Brown Chapter 23 &24

In Brown’s chapter 23 it was interesting to see his viewpoint on assessment in comparison to what we are learning in ENG 345. When he brought up the question about whether there is ever teaching without assessment since at one point or another everything that is taught is assessed, it really made me reflect on my learning experience. There is a long standing argument that is fundamentally based on whether or not grades should be given and I am constantly changing my position in this argument. I think that grades can be a very important motivator and tool to gauge the learning of students, but on the other hand students should be intrinsically motivated and want to learn for their own benefit. This directly correlates with testing because tests are often a large sum of points and they motivate students to learn the material more specifically so that they may pass the test instead of for their own learning. Also the concept of wash back comes into mind because often teachers tend to teach to the test so that their students score highly, but skip out important or beneficial material that students would need to know in order to function appropriately in a real setting.

I think that in terms of practicality, criterion referenced tests are more beneficial for the learners because it specifically tests the material that is from the curriculum and students may see where they need more help. Norm-referenced tests can prove unfair at times because instead of grading the students based on their individual performance, a teacher could compare the results as a whole without any type of helpful feedback. Validity is another important factor in testing because with its various types it shows how easily a test can go from being valid to invalid if it is not designed appropriately.

In terms of classroom based assessment, I think the concept of alternatives in assessment is really important because it shows a more authentic demonstration of student’s language ability. For example, some students find it difficult to take tests and often score poorly but may have a great understanding of all concepts of the language. It is also very important to have alternative assessment in the language classroom because some assessments tend to limit the different domain skills that are necessary to have proficiency in a language (ie. speaking, listening). Among the examples of alternative assessment, I think that portfolios and observations are the most beneficial because they are unique and authentic demonstrations of the student’s abilities and improvement is really clear when comparing work from various times throughout the semester.