Language evaluation in science

1. EVALUATION OF LANGUAGE IN SCIENCE
Dr. VMS

2. LSP
 Language for special purposes, LSP, is the
traditional term for the various linguistic variants
used in professional settings.
 LSP is a widely applied approach to second or
foreign language teaching and training that
addresses immediate and very specific needs of
learners who need that language as a tool in their
education, training or job.

3. LSP DOMAINS
 Language for special purpose is a branch of applied
linguistics which deals with a variety of language
used by members of a particular subject field,
concentrating on its genres, stylistic features and
technical lexis.

4. MAJOR DIVISIONS IN LSP
 Language for Academic Purposes (LAP): e.g.
 English for Science and Technology (EST), English
for Medical studies/purposes (EMP) English for
Legal Purposes (ELP),
 English for Business and Economics (EBE), English
for Social Studies (ESS)

5. MAJOR DIVISIONS IN LSP
 (2) Language for Occupational Purposes/
 Professional Purposes/Vocational Purposes (EOP)
 & English for Business Purposes(EBP): e.g. English
for Technician,
 English for Chemists,
 English for Educationists,
 English for Advertisements,
 English for Media,
 English to become a Tourist Guides,
 English in Business / management / Hotel /
Catering English.

6. KEY FEATURES OF LSP
 Two central aspects of LSP are (1) needs analysis and
(2)
 description of language use in target situations.
 1. Need Analysis: the attempt to systematically collect
information about the communicative demands faced by
those in the target situation. This includes information
about language use in specific academic, professional, or
vocational groups, the linguistic skills used most
frequently in the target situation, and the difficulties
second language learners experience there. This
information is then used in designing second language
courses tailored to help second language learners meet
those demands.

7. KEY FEATURES OF LSP
 2. Description of Language Use In Target
Situations:
 describes how language is used in specific
academic, professional, or workplace contexts.

8. ESP CONCERNS
1. One view is that a specific purpose language is a
restricted repertoire of a general language system.
2. Another view is that languages for specific
purposes are varieties of language and that there is
no such thing as general-purpose language.
3. Should be based on objective assessments of
communicative demands in target situation.

9. LSP TEST AND PURPOSES
 The LSP tests were started from 1970s. LSP tests,
whether in English or other languages, are typically used
for selection or accreditation purposes, for example, to
determine readiness for academic study, as is the case
with the widely used IELTS (International English
Language Testing System); to license foreign health
professionals to practice in an English medium
environment. LSP tests may be used to promote the use
of a minority language in a majority language
environment.

10. TESTING, ASSESSMENT AND
EVALUATION

11. Testing
Testing is an important phenomenon from science to
arts, in order to weigh, measure and qualify the validity
and the quantum of things.
In order to find out the nature and state of the
students proficiency, tests are to be conducted and
the results are the only source, which provide
valuable ideas, and suggestions.
The most common use of language tests is to
pinpoint strengths and weakness in the learnt
abilities of the students.

12. RICHARDS, (1999)
 Tests are any instruments of evaluation which
measure ability, knowledge or performance by eliciting
observable behaviour from the test taker as they try to
make accurate predictions about small samples of
performance in a complex structure like language .
 In language context, a test‘ is designed to measure
and evaluate students‘ language proficiency according
to different qualities

13. TESTING PROCESS

14. EVALUATION
 Evaluation is an activity through which the human
behaviors, actions and happenings of the world are
identified, perceived and realized. It is the only activity
that controls and provides valid judgments and
conclusions about each and every activity of the day-
to-day events.
 Test is a part in the process of evaluation but not the
whole of it.
 An evaluation process may be complete when the tests
are rightly interpreted with pros and cons of it.

15. TESTING AND EVALUATION IN
CURRICULUM DOMAIN
 Tests do not always follow evaluation procedures and
in many cases the purpose of the tests is specific and
they do not necessarily include the evaluation
procedures. Mostly tests are conducted and made use
of for pedagogical and recruitment purposes.

16. GRANT HENNING (1987,P: 9)
Evaluation of the language tests should consider
 Purpose of the test
 Characteristics of the examinees
 Accuracy of measurement
 Suitability of the format and features of a test
 Developmental sample
 Availability of equivalent or equated forms
 Nature of the scoring and reporting of scores
 Procurement and
 Political compatibility of the test.

17. ROLE OF EVALUATION
 Identification of course objectives. (the expected or
desired learning outcome)
 Defining the objectives in terms of learners’ terminal
behavior.
 Constructing appropriate tools or instrument for
measuring the behavior.
 Applying or administering the tools/instruments and
analyzing the results to determine the degree of
learners’ achievement in the instructional program.
 The above four steps are basically the same in the
evaluation of instructions, curriculum or the program
as a whole. Both measurement and evaluation require
broad variety of tools or instruments such as, tests,
rating scales, inventories, check lists, questionnaires
etc.

18. TYPES OF EVALUATION
Evaluation
Ongoing Terminal
Formative
Summative
Brief
Extensive

19. ONGOING EVALUATION
 Ongoing evaluation is meant for getting the feedback
regularly after the completion of every
step during its process viz. planning, preparation,
production and application. This would enable the
program to improve at various stages at that time of
the program itself. This type of evaluation is more
helpful to modify anything if necessary in the course of
the didactic process.

20. TERMINAL EVALUATION
 Terminal evaluation is a type of evaluation that is
made after the completion of the program and it is
used to know whether the program is success or
failure. This type of evaluation would not be used for
any improvement of the program. In general,
evaluation has been further classified into four
categories: They are:
 Formative evaluation
 Summative evaluation
 Brief evaluation and
 Extensive evaluation


21. TYPES OF EVALUATION
 Formative evaluation
 Formative evaluation is a process of evaluation that is
made from time to time in the case of an instructional
program and from one stage to the other. It does not
provide a totalitarian impression of the quality either of the
instructional programs, the techniques and methods,
materials or media.

 Summative evaluation
 Summative evaluation is that kind of evaluation which takes
into consideration the periodic evaluation that has been
made and in addition to a total evaluation of the program:
process or product made and the conclusions are arrived at
keeping in view the outcome of the periodic evaluation in
addition to the final evaluation.

22. TYPES OF EVALUATION
 Brief evaluation
 Evaluating a program can also be made taking into
account only some aspects and the evaluator can also
give a judgment based on the few aspects chosen for
evaluation. But it will be subjective and impressionistic
and not a realistic one. This can be useful to roughly
compare two (or) more programs.
 Extensive evaluation
 Extensive evaluation involves the analysis of a program
in its entire main and sub aspects. The evaluator has to
rate and weigh each of them individually and consolidate
the total rating based on which he makes his value
judgment. This is more objective and valid.

23. RESEARCH TECHNIQUES
1. data collection techniques
 Observational
 Experimental
2. causality relationships
 Descriptive
 Analytical
3. relationships with time
 Retrospective
 Prospective
 Cross-sectional
4. medium of application
 Clinical
 Laboratory
 Social descriptive research

24. SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH
 Scientific research can be classified in several ways.
Classification can be made according to the data
collection techniques based on causality, relationship
with time and the medium through which they are
applied.

25. Scientific research Non-scientific research
Logical
Expanding understanding
Reproduced and demonstrated
Not Logical
Reproduction may result in varied
results
Truth and factual enquiry
Scientific techniques are utilized
Identification of problem
Formulation of hypothesis
Data analysis and interpretation
Recommendations and conclusions
Acquiring knowledge and truths
about the world using techniques
without following the scientific
method.
Systematic
Experimentation
Observation
Investigation based on natural
phenomenon

26. PRE-SCIENTIFIC MOVEMENT
 characterized by translation tests developed exclusively by
the classroom teachers.
 Relatively difficult to score objectively; thus, subjectivity
becomes an important factor in the scoring of such tests
(Brown, 1996).