Prepared by Mr.

Sam Sary, MA in TESOL

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What is language testing?

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Language testing is evaluating language knowledge for making judgments.

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Once: collection of isolated

lexical and grammatical items.

Today: use, communicative,

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based on connected discourse.

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Trait is the language knowledge that needs to be tapped. Method is the procedure to tap that knowledge.
A good test should include minimum method and maximum trait.
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Pre-Scientific Psychometric Structuralist Sociolinguistic/

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Integrative
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Discrete to integrative
Indirect to direct Knowledge to performance

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Classroom Tests
1. Find out whether what was taught was also successfully acquired 2. Evaluate and improve instruction 3. Obtain information on students' progress and language knowledge 4. Help organize learning/teaching material
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Classroom Tests
5. Provide information to students on their language progress 6. Provide information for grades 7. Help diagnose students strengths and weaknesses in the language 8. Motivate students to learn
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External Tests
1. Evaluate proficiency

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2. Decide whether to accept students to certain programs

3. Provide information for administrative decision- special treatment to certain groups, assist in selection and grouping
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External Tests
4. Help evaluate the curriculum

5. Serve research purposes

6. Obtain information for grading

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Test becomes a punishment, rather than a constructive tool.

Test is used to prove rather than improve. Using tests as disciplinary tool as punishment There is a gap between what is taught and what is tested

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There is a delay in returning test papers so the feedback, when given, becomes irrelevant.
Using test exclusively for grading. Using tests without proper planning. No cooperation among teachers about tests; no analysis of tests after they have been administered. Not discarding bad tests or bad items.
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Lets judge students performance against their own knowledge and not against peers.
Lets use tests for improvement, for feedback to students, so they can know what their problems are and improve accordingly.

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Lets use tests along with teaching and learning.

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Lets determine in advance the criteria for success. Lets test to improve knowledge, not just for judgment. Lets tell students what the purpose of the test is and what the criteria for doing well on it is. Lets return the test with meaningful feedback and not just with a numerical score.
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Lets plan a test in advance and not in the last minute.

Lets discuss test result with students. Lets try to make tests fun, challenging and interesting.

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