Assessment in Languages Teaching

In general, each type of assessment implies an interaction within a classroom and learning situation among students and a teacher. This interaction could be constant, and intense when the learning process is observed as a whole. It implies planning it as part of the educative process, even if it is an informal assessment. this means to consider that one or any kind of assessment is going to be done during the course, either a the beginning, middle or end of it. To do assessment of any kind implies as well to take into account the time that it will take to do it, and the moment in which it should be done within the whole process. Another implication of assessment of a learning process is to have a clear idea of the purpose of doing it, meaning if the purpose is to measure or focus on performance of the student or if it is to promote exchange of knowledge and experience. That would determine what kind or data or information would be needed to be collected and how, and what should be expe...

What is a portfolio in Language learning? Portfolios are "a collection of individual students’ work put together in a file or ring binder. They belong to the student and can be updated as language learning continues by adding to and taking away pieces of work" (Iturain, 2007) . According to this author, Portfolios are made up of three parts: 1. The Passport (factual information of the learner) 2. The Language Biography (history of learner´s language learning experience), and 3. The Dossier (a collection of course work). According to O’Malley & Valdez Pierce, (1996) cited by Lynch Gomez (1999), "an assessment portfolio is the systematic collection and evaluation of student work measured against predetermined scoring criteria, such as scoring guides, rubrics, checklists, or rating scales". For this author, "portfolios provide a broader picture of student achievement than do tests alone, and can include a great deal of information that shows what students...

Here is a chart of the different types of assessmemt

What does each type of assessment imply? We can say that in general, each type of assessment implies an interaction within a classroom and learning situation among students and a teacher. This interaction could be constant, and intense when the learning process is observed as a whole. It implies planning it as part of the educative process, even if it is an informal assessment. this means to consider that one or any kind of assessment is going to be done during the course, either a the beginning, middle or end of it. To do assessment of any kind implies as well to take into account the time that it will take to do it, and the moment in which it should be done within the whole process. Another implication of assessment of a learning process is to have a clear idea of the purpose of doing it, meaning if the purpose is to measure or focus on performance of the student or if it is to promote exchange of knowledge and experience. That would determine what kind or data or information would ...