21 Classrooms ANNE KATZ KEY QUESTIONS > What are students learning? Assessment in Second Language > How well are they learning the content of the lesson? > How can assessment help improve learning outcomes for students? EXPERIENCE Ms. Aranda has been teaching middle school English learners for nearly 10 years, Although her students take yearly standardized exams intended to determine the effectiveness of the instructional program they are receiving, Ms. Aranda wants to make sure they are prepared to meet—and even exceed—learning expectations, and she wants to gather this information on a regular basis, not just once a year. Just as important, she secks ways to support students’ ongoing development of skills, modify instruction to ensure it_ meets students’ needs, and engage students in reflecting on the ‘own learning efforts. She’s been reading materials about new ideas in assessment and tying out some Of the ideas, Here are some of the ways she has been incorporating the ideas into her practice. She is = integrating assessment into instructional activities on a regular basis = examining her students’ learning processes as well as their outcomes = designing assessments to support her stux dents’ learning = engaging students as active participants in the assessment of their work = ensuring that her students are aware of learn- ing expectations and criteria for success In this chapter, I explore fundamental ques- tions about assessment in the classroom. (For information on large-scale assessment, see Kunnan & Grabowski, this volume.) In addition to looking at what assessment is and how it can be used, 1 320 ask why second/foreign language teachers need a ‘comprehensive understanding and working knowl edige of assessment practices. WHAT IS CLASSROOM ASSESSMENT? For many busy teachers planning lessons and teach: ing classrooms of language learners, assessment may be seen as yet one more task added on to an already crowded agenda of things that “should” be done in the classroom, Other teachers, like Ms Aranda, however, have discovered that assessment. can be a useful instructional tool that provides Vital information about the extent of student learn ng and the effectiveness of their instruction. In his chapter, I address the role of assessment in language classrooms and illustrate how a range of practices can be embedded throughout the lesson to enhance learning opportunities for all students. ‘The term assessment refers to the use of meth- ‘ods and instruments to collect information to inform decision making about leaming. In contrast, testis just one of many forms of assessment. Classroom assessment provides useful information for learning and teaching when it is integrated into an instruc: tional framework, often referred to as a curieulum, that links asessment to learning targets. The model in Figure 1 represents how both instruction and assessment function together to promote learning. within a dynamic educational delivery system. Effective teachers use classroom assessment for multiple purposes, such as determining theirLearning Instruction | Assessment Figure |. Instruction and assessment as part of learning (adapted from Katz, 2012) students’ learning needs, diagnosing specific earning challenges, monitoring the development of students’ skills, and engaging students in their own learning processes. Typically, tests are catego~ ized according (o their uses: © Placement tests provide information that is useful for determining students’ appropri- ate levels of instruction within a program or institution. Diagnostic tests are used to assess students’ strengths and weaknesses, providing teachers and students with information that can guide decisions about appropriate instruction to meet students’ needs. Proficiency tests are intended to assess students’ ability in a language independent of a cur riculum or specific course content. & Achievement tests measure whether a student is reaching instructional objectives. A good deal of the assessment taking place in the class room is via achievement tests. The discussion in this chapter addresses this last essential use of assessment, CONCEPTUAL UNDERPINNINGS As one component in an educational system eyed to learning, assessment reflects theories of learning and the educational approaches tied to those theories. Over time, as these theories have changed, assessment practices have also evolved (Shepard, 2000b). For much of the twentieth cen- tury, behaviorist theories of learning dominated testing culture. According to this paradigm, learn- ing was characterized by the accumulation of bits of knowledge organized according to an instructional sequence that moved, step by step, from simpler to more complex skills. Positive rein- forcement such as encouraging feedback at the end of each step enhanced learning by motivating. learners to continue their efforts. Testing was a means of verifying that students had learned the lessons, If students did not meet the desired aim, the teacher could reteach, and then retest, until the aim was met (Shepard, 2000b). Newer theories of learning from a social constructivist perspective have broadened the focus of how learning occurs and, consequently, how to describe that learning; in addition to the products of instruction, they include how students process and make meaning within social contexts. Such theories acknowledge the role of prior knowledge and experiences that students bring to bear as they take on new learning experiences, and the theories recognize students as active participants in the learning process. Within this view of learning and assess- ‘ment as connected and socially constructed activ ties, teachers, students, and community members participate as parmers in the learning process (Arkoudis & O'Loughlin, 2004; Cumming, 2009b;, Davison & Leung, 2009) Congruent with changes in educational theory, changes in language teaching have trans formed our understanding of language learning. Methodologies have recognized the importance of not only what knowledge learners have accu- mulated about language but also how those learn- ‘ers use that knowledge to communicate meaning and achieve their own communicative purpose in a variety of settings and with a range of inter locutors. Not surprisingly, new approaches to language assessment have emerged as alternatives to traditional testing (Brown & Abeywickrama, 2010). Terms such as authentic assessment and alternative assessment have been used to charac- terize assessment practices that engage leamers in demonstrating their skills in communicative and authentic tasks and that use explicit criteria tied to learning aims to record and interpret stu- dent performances. Thus, concurrent with this new understanding has been a move away from an emphasis on indirect testing approaches that attempt to measure students’ abilities underly. ing a specific skill to an increasing reliance on Chapter 21. 321Tradi ial Language Testing Focus on language form Learner produces isolate bits of language that can be Scored as right or wrong Oriented to product Highly objective scoring Decontextualized test tasks focused on the right answer Figure 2. Contrasting features of traditional and current direct testing approaches that require students to perform that skill. To illustrate the difference between these two approaches, consider two differ- ent kinds of writing tests. A test that asks students to puta series of sentences into a sequence to make up a coherent paragraph is an indirect measure of the students’ ability to write a paragraph. One that asks students to write a paragraph is a direct mea sure of their writing skill. Both tests can provide information about language learning, albeit about different aspects of that learning. A view of assessment grounded in current theories of teaching and learning guides the kind of assessment practices envisioned by teachers like Ms, Aranda, Figure 2 contrasts some of the features of these current approaches to language testing with more traditional practices ‘Assessment and learning Teachers new (0 assessment may have questions about how to choose among the array of assess- ment tools available for classroom use. Just as there are many’ useful activities for implementing, instruction, there are a number of assessments to support the learning agenda in the language classroom. This section outlines several factors that teachers should consider to make effective choices about incorporating assessment into their classrooms. Summative and formative purposes for assess- ment. Busy teachers do not have time to assess their students without first articulating a purpose for assessment. Although tests can be used in sev- eral ways (e.g., to make diagnoses or to help with placement), the majority of assessment that takes place in the classroom relates to the achievement of instructional aims. These instructionally aligned assessments serve lwo main pedagogical purposes. 322 Unie Ih Current Approaches to Language Testing, + Focus on communicative effect Incegraton of sl reas Includes process and product Clear criteria to guide scoring (Open-ended answers ‘Attention to context approaches to language testing. They are used for summative purposes when they focus on what students have learned as a result of a period of instruction; these are assessments of learning. They are used for formative purposes when they help to promote student learning dur- ing the process of instruction; these are assess- ments forlearning, Figure 3 lists how assessment is, used for both summative and formative purposes. Itis important to note that assessment tools in and of themselves are not summative or forma- tive, It is the purpose to which they are put 1 determines how assessments are characterized. For ‘example, Ms, Aranda uses a rubric when assessing her students’ writing. A rubrics an assessment tool that inchides criteria and levels of performance (examples of rubries are provided in the section later in this chapter on assessing productive skills) When Ms, Aranda uses the rubric to determine a grade for one of her students on the final draft of a paper, it is being used for summative purposes, When she gives the same rubric to the student at the beginning of the writing process and itis used by the student and perhaps by the student's peers Summative Purposes: Formative Purposes: ‘Assessment of Learning Assessment for Learning Seaffold learning Provide ongoing feedback during instruction andlor student performances Document learning * Diagnose learning, needs Provide information for communication linkages among + Engage students in student, families, and self assessment teachers + Plan and improve Figure 3. Summative and formative purposes for assessmentor Ms, Aranda to guide feedback during the writing process, it is being used for formative purposes. Formative uses of assessment have been found to, ment learning (Black & Wiliam, 1998). I dis cuss how this takes place in the classroom at the end of this section. ‘Types of language assessments. A good deal of the assessment literature focuses on how to construct, various forms of assessment tools such as multiple- choice tests, gap-filling texts, rubries, and check- lists; it also provides numerous useful examples of cach type (e.g., see Brown & Abeywickrama, 2010: Coombe, Folse, & Hubley, 2007; Hughes, 2003; O'Malley & Valdez Pierce, 1996). One perspective on understanding the range and variety of assess- ment types examines how students are expected to respond when engaged in a specific type of assessment, Figure 4 presents such a framework, along with examples of each assessment type. ‘The typology is divided into two main divisions: tools that require students to select an answer or response and tools that require students to provide ‘a response using language that they have learned. All the tools listed serve specific kinds of pedagogi- cal purposes, For selected-response tools, students demonstrate learning by choosing a response from, among a selection provided by the test_ maker. Such kinds of assessments are useful, for exampl for determining what students know about a par- ticular language structure or text; they are also, useful for assessing beginning students who have a limited repertoire of language skills they can SELECTED- "CONSTRUCTED-RESPONSE FORMAT _ call on to interpret a test or produce a response, Multiple-choice and matching tests are the most familiar examples of this type of format. To get a sense of how students use the lan- guage they have been studying, teachers choose assessments that require students to produce a response, ranging from short answers, such as filling in a blank or responding to a partner ith words or phrases, (o language performances requiring extended text, such as writing an essay ‘or engaging in a role play. The design of an assessment includes both the way in which a language performance is eli cited—via either a selected- or constructed- response format—and a means of scoring that performance. For selected-response assessments, scoring appears fairly straightforward. Such assess- ments are scored via reference to an answer key that provides the predetermined correct selection for each item, Constructed-response formats require the use of a scoring guide—such as a rubric—to assist in recording and making judgments about a language performance. Because leamers can gen- erate a range of responses, it takes more time and expertise to score these assessments. (More discus- sion on both types of formats can be found in the section on assessing specific language skills.) Just as each type of assessment serves specific pedagogical purposes, each format also presents specific challenges. As previously noted, selected- jonse formats provide opportunities for stu dents to show what they know about language but not how effectively they can use that knowledge in = Performance-Based Assessment moron Brief Constructed |___ eee | FORMAT Response Product-focused Performance-focused Process-focused Fidipe dice | Gp ing ay ral pres sara Tete Stor | Surbpoem | Oram ede Refecion ihing Goze Tremolo [lee ora ] seam Ca pee | Daten Ss ara kg gran complaion __| “eftudorpe | iervew — | Error correction Poster session Online chats i I oe Project Figure 4. Types of assessment (based on McTighe & Ferrara, 1998), Chapter 21 323communicative tasks. The format may also restrict the range of possible language areas to be tested, since it is not always possible to come up with an appropriate range of options for possible answers. Given that these items provide a fixed number of answers, guessing has to be factored into how well students perform on these types of tests. Last, @ good deal of time and effort is required to con- struct useful items. For multiple-choice tests, for example, itis important to make sure that only one answer is correct; that each item tests only one bit of language knowledge; and that nothing about the options, such as one response being much longer than the others, provides a clue to the cor rect response (see Coombe, Folse, & Hubley, 2007, for tips on writing these kinds of tests). To ensure that such tests meet the teacher’s intention in using them, they should be tried out beforehand, perhaps by other teachers. When students are called on to generate lan- guage during a constructed-response type assess- ment, they provide evidence of how they can use that language. Tests that engage learners in pro- ducing extended oral and written texts also often engage students in demonstrating higher-order thinking skills. However, this format presents chal- lenges as well. Because it takes longer for students, to respond to these kinds of tests, teachers must allot more time to them in the classroom, reducing the number of items that can be included in a test and thus the range of student leaning. An essay test, for example, is a one-item test. Scoring the Tanguage that stuclents produce also requires a siz~ able investment of time on the part of the teacher as well as careful attention to the process of provid: ing useful feedback and arriving at a score for the language performance. Linking assessment to learning. Assessment data provide teachers with information about students’ developing skills and the effectiveness of their instruction. However, incorporating assessment into the daily routine of the classroom takes some planning, A useful way to conceptualize and orga nize activities related to assessment is dhrough multistep and recursive instructional and assess- ment cycle (Davison & Leung, 2009; Rea-Dickens, 2001; Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages, 2001) in which teachers set up tasks, monitor student engagement and performances during those tasks, collect information about 324° Unie performances, and then use that information in some purposeful manner. Such a four-step cycle can be found in Figure 5. Let us look more closely at how teachers can develop a range of assessments linked to learning aims. Before becoming more interested in new assessment practices, Ms. Aranda used to plan her lessons around instructional activities that she felt would help her students learn most effectively She carefully allotted time for each activity in the class schedule and hoped for the best. While understanding that what students do in the class: room is certainly important, Ms. Aranda has come to realize that it is also useful to focus on why students are engaging in those activities and to determine whether in fact learning is taking place. Step |: Identifying learning alms + Identify students’ proficiency level and language learning needs + Select learning aims aligned with curriculum {guideline or learing standards that are related to learner needs + Identify purpose forthe assessment ‘Step 2: Collecting and recording information about student learning + Selec instructional actives designed co help students meet those aims + Collec information during and at the end of the unit of instruction + Use mulople assessmencs that wil provide feedback and record performances + Prepare scoring tools (e., modify or design rubrics for scoring performance assessments, check the accuracy of answer sheets for selected- fesponse assessments) + Familiarize learners with each assessment format land engage them in self-and peer assessments + Devise a time line for data collection and analysis Step 3: Examining the information Use a log or record to keep track of student performances + Review patterns of student performances across time and multiple assessments + Match studene performances agunst desired ‘outcome levels or benchmarks Step 4: Using the information ‘Modify instructional plans + Share student progress with students and others (eg. parents, oer teachers) + Create additional program support for students Figure 5. Four-scep assessment cycle (base! on Gottlieb, Katz, & Ernst-Slavit. 2009).