This document provides guidance on assessing student understanding through concept checking questions. It discusses the purpose of assessment, developing effective concept questions, and strategies for checking understanding in the classroom. Concept questions should be simple yes/no or one-word answers that check basic elements of meaning without using target language. Effective questions break down language into bits of meaning and turn statements into verifyable questions. The document also stresses the importance of context, clear objectives, and providing informative feedback to students to improve their learning.

1. Checking Understanding

2. Checking Understanding:
Objectives
• to develop awareness and use of concept
checking, task checking and monitoring
• to raise awareness of the task cycle
• to give an overview of major test types
and reasons for assessing
• to give guidance on assessing in class

3. Why test?
• Read the card.
• In that context, what is the purpose of the
assessment?
• What are the pros and cons of these
assessments?

4. Concept Questions

5. In a perfect world…
• It’s not always possible to think of or
develop perfect concept checking
• Concept checking:
– should be yes/no or one word answer
questions
– shouldn’t use the target language
– should be easy for the learners to understand
– and most important of all, should…

6. CHECK THAT THE
LEARNERS UNDERSTAND

7. Developing good concept
questions
• Break the language exponent into basic
bits of meaning…
• “I’m playing tennis with Paul this evening.”
– I like playing tennis with Paul.
– I am not playing now.
– I didn’t play tennis last week
– I will play this evening.
– I have arranged to do it.

8. Developing good concept
questions - 2
• Turn the statements into questions
– I am not playing now.
• Am I playing now? – No.
– I will play this evening.
• Will I play this evening? - Yes
– I have arranged to do it.
• Have I arranged to do it? - Yes
• Did I arrange to do it? - Yes

9. Going to – intentions
• I am going to see the dentist on Friday.
– Am I at the doctor’s now?
– Will I see the doctor today?
– Will I see the doctor on Friday?
– Did I decide to see the doctor before now?
– (or: When did I decide to see the doctor?)

10. Going to - predictions
He’s going to fall off.
He’s going to jump.
Is he on his horse?
Is the horse standing
safely?
Will he fall off?
How do you know?
Can you see now?
Is he jumping now?
Will he jump in the future?
How do you know?
Can you see now?

11. Things to bear in mind…
• AIMS
– you need to know exactly what you are teaching
• CONTEXT
– no context means no (good) exponents
• EXPONENTS
– no exponents means no good concept questions
• “Do you understand?” is not a concept
question!!! Because the answer is always…

12. YES

13. Activity Sequence
•
•
•
•
•
•
set context
give instructions
check instructions
monitor
peer feedback
class feedback

14. Assessment and feedback
“Formative assessment is informative
feedback to learners while they are still
learning the topic. But to be truly formative
this information must be used by the
learners to improve.”
“research shows that this feedback while
you learn has more effect on student
achievement than any other factor, so it’s
worth getting it right!”
Petty. G. Teaching Today p. 450

15. Checking Understanding
• You want the learners to work in pairs to
answer ten questions on a reading text.
The questions are the same, but the texts
are different. You want them to read alone
and then compare with a partner before
feeding back to the class.
• What are the stages to this task?
• How will you give instructions?
• How will you check them?

16. Feedback strategies
• Consider the feedback strategies:
– Whole class
– Small group
– Individual
–T–S
–S-S