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Comprehensive Guide to Language Assessment: Principles, Forms, and Practices

This text explores the fundamental aspects of language assessment, from the relationship between teaching and testing to different forms of test delivery. It delves into the characteristics of a good test, such as validity, reliability, and practicality, while discussing the benefits and drawbacks of multiple-choice reading tests and computer-based testing. Key concepts like positive washback and the impact of test designs on teaching and learning are examined, providing insights into ensuring test effectiveness and relevance.

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Comprehensive Guide to Language Assessment: Principles, Forms, and Practices

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  1. Basic Issues in Language Assessment 袁韻璧 輔仁大學英文系

  2. Contents • Introduction: relationship between teaching & testing • Forms of test delivery • Characteristics of a good test • Validity, reliability, practicality, positive washback • Multiple-choice reading tests • Computer-based testing • Advantages and disadvantages • Conclusion

  3. Relationship between Teaching & Testing • Subordinate  partnership (supportive, corrective)

  4. Forms of Test Delivery alternative assessment paper-&-pencil computer-based tests testing

  5. Characteristics of a Good Test • Validity • Reliability • Practicality (feasibility) • Positive washback • The effect of tests on teaching & learning

  6. Validity • Definition: a test should measure what it is intended to measure, and nothing else (i.e., no external knowledge or other skills measured at the same time). • Types of validity • Face validity, content validity, construct validity, criterion-related validity

  7. Face Validity • You know if the test is valid or not by ‘looking’ at it. • It “looks right” to other testers, teachers, and testees, etc. • Essential to all kinds of tests, but it is not enough.

  8. Content Validity • “A test is said to have content validity if its content constitutes a representative sample of the language skills, structures, etc. with which it is meant to be concerned.” (Hughes 1989, p. 22) • Also called rational or logical validity. • Check against: • Test specification (test plan) • Teaching materials, textbooks • Course syllabus/objectives • Another teacher or subject-matter experts

  9. Definition of Reliability • “The consistency of measures across different times, test forms, raters, and other characteristics of the measurement context” (Bachman, 1990, p. 24). • The accuracy or precision with which a test measures something; consistency, dependability, or stability of test results.

  10. How to make sure the test is reliablefor teachers • Take enough samples of behavior • Try to avoid ambiguous items • Provide clear and explicit instructions • Well layout • Provide uniform and undistracted condition • Try to use objective tests • Try to use direct tests • Have independent, trained raters • Try to identify the test takers by number, not by names • Try to have more multiple independent scoring in subjective tests (Hughes, 1989, pp. 36-41).

  11. Practicality • Practical consideration when planning tests or ways of measurement, including cost, time/effort required • Economy • Ease of • Scoring and score interpretation • Administration • Test compilation • A test should be practical to use, but also valid and reliable.

  12. Multiple-choice Reading Tests • Comprehension—being able to find meaning in what is read • Three levels of comprehension: • Literal, interpretive (or referential) & critical • Problems of multiple-choice reading tests • Recall the info. Or text recycling • Ambiguous, flawed texts/items • Information gaps in passages • Unfair, tricky tasks (e.g., full of unfamiliar words) • Too much background knowledge assumed • Scored for wrong reason or vice versa • Test-taking techniques

  13. Advantages of CBT • Scoring done automatically and immediately • Tests tailored to the particular abilities of each test taker • Tests provided on demand • Many item combos are possible test security • Multi-media  multiple-intelligent learning

  14. Disadvantages of CBT • Writing tests: • Do raters react differentially to printed vs. handwritten texts? • To testees: different composing processes • Reading tests: Do testees react in the same way to read texts presented on computer screen and texts printed on paper? • Speaking tests (semi-direct tests): • Nature of communication: a shared human activity, involving interlocutors & interaction

  15. Conclusion • Variables of test performance: • Types/formats of tasks, nervousness, physical conditions of testees, rater factors, etc. • Adoption of multiple methods of assessment, alternative assessment • Valid, reliable paper-and-pencil tests that have positive washback • CBT for classroom teachers—depending on the testing purpose & needs

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