We often talk about the teaching-learning process as
if it was just one thing, but we know that even though they are closely
related, they are two different processes. Assessment is a third process that
is intimately related to these two, so I’d like to say just a bit about learning
and teaching first, and then take a look at assessment.
Understanding learning
In recent years we have all been presented with
workshops, ideas, and materials that are aimed at helping to bring about
changes in the way we teach, leaving behind the very “teacher-centered”
classrooms of the past and working towards increasing the
“learner-centeredness” that educators (and most teachers) believe will lead to
greater learning. After all, education
is about learning, not what the teacher already knows.
This change reflects a better understanding of the
learning process; learning, and especially language learning, does not come
about as a result of a series of rewards and punishments for certain behavior.
It involves a mental effort to comprehend new information – words and
structures – and connect the new to what we already know. We learn by building
on our previous knowledge and using that knowledge to make sense of the new
knowledge.
Changes in teaching
This understanding of learning as a construction of
knowledge on the part of the student, and not a simple transmission of the
knowledge from the teacher to the learner, has changed the way we teach. We don’t base the class on rote memorization,
we try to scaffold our students’ learning through activating their prior
knowledge of the topic, structuring the learning tasks so that they lead to
improved development of understanding.
If there are changes in our teaching practice then
necessarily the way we assess the learning that is going on needs to evolve and
change, also. Reliance on an end of unit
written test is not going to be the best indicator of what has been learned.
The assessment process
Assessment is how a teacher gathers information about
what the students know, what they can do, their attitudes and beliefs, and what
they have learned. Gathering this
information is important for a variety of reasons. First of all, we need to inform the parents,
the administration, and society in general of how much learning is going on in
our classrooms, we could call this an administrative reason.
In addition, this information is of key importance for
us as teachers – it can be reliable feedback on our teaching techniques and
strategies. Does our teaching match the
way our students are learning?
Finally, and probably most importantly, assessment is
a way for students to receive feedback on how well they are learning.
Assessing learning
Teachers assess before even teaching anything to have
an understanding of what the students already know, both what is correct and
what misconceptions they might have.
This helps by allowing the teacher to better plan the lessons – finding
a starting point for the new information.
It helps the students prepare to learn new information by getting them
to think about what they already know. Putting
this information up on a K-W-L chart is a good way to let everyone show what
they know and find out what others know.
As the class is progressing it is important to continue
to assess, to ensure that students are understanding and making sense of what
is going on in the class. Asking students to put into their own words what has
been going on, or explain to a classmate, while the teacher is monitoring, are just
two ways to check this.
After teaching takes place there are still many
options for assessing besides giving your students a test. One way is the use
of portfolios. Portfolios are examples
of use or production of language that are chosen by the student as representing
their best effort.
Project work is another way to assess – not only does
it integrate the language skills, but it also gives students an opportunity to
use their XXI century skills too. Critical thinking, communication,
collaboration and creativity are all incorporated in project work. Project work allows students to see more
real-world applications of what they are learning.
Using a project or a portfolio for assessment means
that we as teachers need to inform students very clearly of the criteria that
will be used. Having a rubric that will allow the teacher to identify how well
those criteria have been met gives the assessment process more reliability.
Conclusions
Assessment is sometimes the part of the
teaching-learning process that is not discussed much. We teachers put a lot of
time into planning our lessons, finding or preparing the materials to be used,
making sure our instructions are clear, and in general working hard to create
interesting and engaging classes. Using the appropriate assessment techniques
to see if all this work has been worth the effort is just as important.
I encourage you to venture beyond “tests” and try a variety of assessment techniques.
Barbara Bangle is originally from the United States but has lived and worked in Mexico for many years. She is the former director of the CELe language institute at the University of the State of Mexico (UAEMex), and has spent the past 35 years both teaching English and working in the field of Teacher Education.
In addition to currently being an academic consultant for Oxford University Press, she has been a Speaking Examiner for the Cambridge University exams, and is co-author of several English language teaching books. In addition to working free-lance for Oxford University Press, she currently holds a full-time teaching position at the Universidad Autónoma del Estado de Mexico.
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