How accurately do you feel that classroom-based tests reflect student abilities? What are your experiences as a test-taker? Do you think there are students that do not test well? What method of testing do you think is most effective to measure students' language skills? Use examples to justify your point of view.
In my view, classroom testing only provides limited insight into a student's language abilities. From my admittedly limited teaching experience, I found that for the most part classroom testing seemed only to confirm what I already knew about my students. The students that were performing well in class did well on tests and vise versa with very few exceptions to that rule. I think this is especially true in lower level language courses, were tests also happen to occur more frequently as a measure of student skills. More often than not, I think classroom tests are used as a way of forcing students to demonstrate their abilities and knowledge in a high pressure situation. I think this is interesting given the amount of time we have devoted in class discussing how important a low anxiety environment is to facilitate successful language learning.
This is not to say that testing is entirely useless. I have given both short quizzes and large chapter tests in the classes I have taught and they were useful to me as a teacher because they provided me with a good way to know whether the class was understanding certain concepts and learning goals. A quiz especially gives a teacher a good benchmark to work from and allows him/her to adjust lesson plan accordingly, depending on the needs of the class. Larger tests can make a teacher aware of student needs as well, but since they usually come at the end of a chapter or unit, it can be difficult to backpedal and incorporate further practice while at the same time moving the class forward and on to more advanced concepts.
End of unit or end of course projects can be an interesting alternative to traditional tests to measure language skills. A project tied to an oral and written component can serve well to measure a student's language skill when the teacher is clear about expectations. Since it is difficult to create "authentic" speaking activities in the context of a text, I see student projects/presentations in lieu of testing to be a good alternative. It provides a more authentic and meaningful context to measure the student's speaking skills. Ideally, my language classes would have a mixture of student projects/presentations and traditional tests. This approach would also cater to student needs and learning styles. Not every student, including myself, are good test takers and a teacher should provide ways for students to demonstrate their skills beyond a traditional test.
Seb - I completely agree with you when you say that traditional classroom testing does not really tell me anything new about my students. Those who consistently come to class prepared and who do their work always score reasonably well, while others who skip class and put limited effort into their daily preparation perform poorly. I wish that there was another way to test the language abilities of my students, as I agree that traditional testing does not always describe a student's actual language skills, but at the same time some courses, like my Spanish 401 class, seem to move too quickly to implement other more creative assessments. If we had more time, I would gladly work to implement some sort of creative project, as I think that such assessments allow students to demonstrate a mastery of multiple skills. At the same time, I do think that traditional testing, in the case of my class, is valuable in that it forces students to be accountable for what they have learned and actually study the material (which many would not do if there was no written exam).
ReplyDeleteYes, time constraints are a big concern that I had as well, the one time I did do a more creative project in German it had to be in place of a traditional test. The semester just seems to move so quickly and there is a lot of material to cover. This is especially true at the lower levels!
DeleteI also know what you mean when you say testing doesn't tell you anything new about your students. Students who speak in my class and do well on quizzes and tests generally tend to do so while those that seem confused seem to struggle more. The only time it might tell you something new is if a student never speaks, then you might not know if they understand or not until you get the exam back from them. I also like what you said about projects or presentations, as it allows the students to have more of a say in what they present to the teacher.
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