This document discusses various topics related to language assessment, including key terms, principles, and types of assessment. It defines assessment as appraising a person's attributes and notes that tests are useful tools for teachers. The document outlines quantitative and qualitative measurement and formative versus summative evaluation. It also describes different types of tests (achievement, diagnostic, placement, proficiency, and aptitude) and their purposes. Finally, it discusses principles of language assessment such as practicality, reliability, validity, authenticity, and washback effect.

1. ASSESSMENT AND EVALUATION
Full name : Ana GabrielaMarca Curillo
Nrc: 18234
Professor: Carlos Espín
Academic Period: Nov 2023- Mar 2024
Pedagogy of National and Foreign Languages.
Modalidad de Educación en Línea

2. Assessment terminology
Assessment is “appraising or estimating the level of magnitude of some attribute of
a person” (Mousavi, 2009, p.36). This term refers to the wide and diverse process
to value students’ development.
The test is a method: it is a useful tool for teachers who have to consider that
being the test a method, it includes a set of techniques, procedures or items
managed by the teacher in an appropriate way.
The test must measure: valuable information about the test-taker’s performance
can be taken after the application of a test. Tests can provide results of students’
progress about a general ability or about specific skills or competences.

3. Measurement and Evaluation
Measurement
Is referred as the process to quantify individual´s achievement. It is relevant to
understand two terms: quantitative and qualitative descriptions.
➢ Quantitative description of the learners’ performance helps teachers
understand “how many” or “how much” the students is reaching the learning.
➢ Qualitative descriptions can answer the questions “why” and “how” students
performed during a test.
Evaluation
When a teacher evaluates, he makes an interpretation of information. Teachers give
value to the results of a test and those results may be good or bad projecting
consequences.

4. ➢ Informal assessment: refers to an individual and spontaneous form to measure
students’ progress without any grading criteria.
Some examples are: observations, surveys or oral presentations.
➢ Formal assessment: checks out learners’ performance objectively. It gives teachers
specific and clear information about how much individuals have learned during a
period or cycle.
Some examples are: tests, quizzes and questionnaires.
Formal and Informal Assessment
Informal Formal

5. Formative and Summative Assessment
➢ Formative assessment
Helps teachers to identify weaknesses and strengths. It enables students to manage their
self-regulatory skills by forming their own learning.
Some examples are: in-class discussions, weekly quizzes, surveys and homework
assignments.
➢ Summative assessment
Evaluates formally student’s learning, knowledge, proficiency or success at the end of a
period such as a unit, course, or program.
Formative Sumative

6. Types and purposes of assessment
❖ Achievement tests
Teachers use mostly a test to measure their students´ ability within a lesson, unit or a complete
program.
An achievement test is intended to measure just a specific part of a program. These tests are
administered at the end of a lesson, unit, or course.
An achievement test can be formative or summative.
❖ Diagnostic tests
A diagnostic test is administered at the beginning of a program to determine what skills need to be
developed and included.

7. ❖ Placement test
The principal purpose of a placement test is to place a learner on the right level of
the program or curriculum. Students will find questions both difficult and easy. The
purpose is to get to know the starting point of a course or level.
❖ Proficiency tests
Proficiency tests evaluate students` general competence. The Test of English as a
Foreign Language (TOEFL) is one example of a commercialized proficiency test.
❖ Aptitude tests
An aptitude test measures the ability a person has to learn a language, specially a
foreign or second language before taking a course. The Modern Language Aptitude test
(MLAT) and the Pimsleur Language Aptitude battery (PLAB) are two examples.

8. Principles of language assessment
➢ Practicality
According to Brown and Douglas practicality deals with the administrative
process involved in assessing an instrument. It includes making, giving, and
scoring a test. For example, a very long test which consumes a lot of time is
impractical.
Brown and Douglas remind us of the main qualities of a practical test:
• It does not surpass the budget limits
• It is taken within the given time
• It has clear instructions
• It used human and material resources appropriately

9. ➢ Reliability
Reliability is a term that deals with the consistency of test results. For instance, same test,
same students on two different dates, the results should be the same.
• Learner-Related reliability
It occurs when the test-taker suffers from physical or psychological factors like illness or
anxiety.
• Inter-rater reliability
It happens when two or more scorers agree on the test results.
• Test administration reliability
It deals with the conditions of test administration.
• Test reliability
test reliability occurs when the test cause measurement errors.
➢ Validity
Validity involves measure what is supposed to be measured. For example, a writing test
must evaluate the process of writing sentences and words.
• Content-related validity
refers to the measurement of all important sections of the subject or content.
• Criterion-related validity
It is the relationship between a measure and a standard.
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10. • Construct-related validity
Determines if a test assesses what it is supposed to. The test has to be constructed to
measure the content of a course.
❖ Autheticity
Evaluations are authentic when they focus on real world events of life. Grant Wiggins
(1998) states that an assignment is authentic if it is realistic, replicates situations of
real workplaces and personal life.
• Problem solving exercises are examples of authentic evaluation.
• Authentic tasks require time and effort to be elaborated.
❖ Washback effect
The washback effect exists when a test has great influence on the way a professor
teaches.
• Teachers may find their teaching practices very similar to the summative evaluation
since they want their students to pass examinations.
• Washback offers learners the chance to know the test format in advance, consequently,
students prepare themselves sufficiently.