ALTERNATIVES IN ASSESSMENT

Dr. Nguyen Thi Kim Anh

Foreign Languages Department
 OBJECTIVES
Use in your classroom a number of modes of assessment, ranging
from formal tests to numerous formal and informal “alternatives”

Weigh the pros and cons of assessment alternatives against

varying levels of potential fulfillment of the five principles

Examine ways to resolve the dilemma of maximizing both

practicality and beneficial washback in classroom-based
assessment

Develop your own performance-based assessments with

carefully structured rubrics and other scoring procedures

Analyze the benefits and drawbacks of using portfolios, journals,

conferences, interviews, observations, and self and peer- assessment
in the classroom.
 CONTENTS
1. Performance-based assessment

2. Rubrics

3. Portfolios

4. Journals

5. Conferences and interviews

6. Observations

7. Self and peer assessment

 All tests are assessment

BUT

Not all assessments are test

 Alternatives in assessments
(Brown & Hudon, 1998, pp.654-655)
Require students to perform, create, produce or do something

Use real-world contexts or simulations

Are nonintrusive in that they extend the day-to-day classroom

activities
Allow students to be assessed on what they normally do in class
everyday

Use tasks that represent meaningful instructional activities

Focus on processes as well as products

 Tap into higher-level thinking and problem-solving skills

Provide information about both the strengths and weaknesses of

students

Are multiculturally sensitive when properly administered

Ensure that people, not machines, do the scoring, using human

judgment

Encourage open disclosure of standards and rating criteria

Call on teachers to perform new instructional and assessment roles

 PERFORMANCE-BASED ASSESSMENT
Students make a constructed response (as opposed to selecting a response from
among options given to the students)

They engage in higher-order thinking, with open-ended tasks

Tasks are meaningful, engaging, and authentic

Tasks call for the integration of language skills

Both process and product are assessed.

Depth of a student’s mastery is emphasized over breadth

(O’Malley & Valdez Pierce)

 Teachers’ duties
State the overall goal of performance

Specify the objectives (criteria) of the performance in detail

Prepare students for performance in stepwise progressions

Use a reliable evaluation form, checklist, or rating sheet

Treat performances as opportunities for giving feedback and provide that

feedback systematically

If possible, utilize self and peer- assessment judiciously

 RUBRICS
1. What is rubric and why rubric?

2. Holistic and analytic rubrics

3. Samples of rubrics

4. Writing a rubric
 1. Watch a video
2. Answer the questions
- What is rubric?
- Why is rubric necessary?
- How many types of rubric
Time for reflection are there?
Types of scoring instruments for
performance assessment

Scoring instruments

Checklist Rating scales

Rubrics

Holistic Analytic
rubric rubric
 What rubric?
 A rubric is a coherent set of criteria for
students' work that includes descriptions of
levels of performance quality on the
criteria.
 Rubrics have two major aspects: coherent
sets of criteria and descriptions of levels of
performance for these criteria.
 The genius of rubrics is that they are descriptive
and not evaluative. Of course, rubrics can be used
to evaluate, but the operating principle is you
match the performance to the description rather
than "judge" it.
 Thus rubrics are as good or bad as the criteria
selected and the descriptions of the levels of
performance under each.
 Effective rubrics have appropriate criteria and well-
written descriptions of performance.
 Why rubric?
 1. Rubrics help teachers teach
 To write or select rubrics, teachers need to focus on
the criteria by which learning will be assessed.
 This focus on what you intend students
to learn rather than what you intend to teach actually
helps improve instruction
 Rubrics help keep teachers focused on criteria, not
tasks.
 2. Rubrics help coordinate instruction and assessment

 Most rubrics should be designed for repeated use, over time,

on several tasks.
 Students are given a rubric at the beginning of a unit of
instruction or an episode of work. They tackle the work,
receive feedback, practice, revise or do another task, continue
to practice, and ultimately receive a grade—all using the same
rubric as their description of the criteria and the quality levels
that will demonstrate learning.
 This path to learning is much more cohesive than a string of
assignments with related but different criteria.
 3. Rubrics help students learn

 The criteria and performance-level descriptions in rubrics

help students understand what the desired performance is
and what it looks like.
 Effective rubrics show students how they will know to
what extent their performance passes muster on each
criterion of importance, and if used formatively can also
show students what their next steps should be to enhance
the quality of their performance.
 This claim is backed by research at all grade levels and in
different disciplines.
 Comparison
Holistic rubrics
 Describe the work by applying
all the criteria at the same time
and enabling an overall
judgment about the quality of
the work.
 Better when information is
used for a grade.
 Grading with rubrics is faster
when there is only one decision
to make, rather than a
separate decision for each
criterion.
Analytic rubrics
 Describe work on each
criterion separately.
 Better for instruction and
better for formative
assessment
 Students can see what
aspects of their work need
what kind of attention.
 Template for Holistic Rubrics
SCORE DESCRIPTION

5 Demonstrates complete understanding of the problem.

All requirements of task are included in response.

4 Demonstrates considerable understanding of the problem.

All requirements of task are included.

3 Demonstrates partial understanding of the problem.

Most requirements of task are included.

2 Demonstrates little understanding of the problem.

Many requirements of task are missing.

1 Demonstrates no understanding of the problem.

0 No response/task not attempted.

Template for Analytic Rubrics
Analytic rubrics
 Advantages and Disadvantages of Different Types of Rubrics
Type of Defintion Advantages Disadvantages
rubric
Holistic All criteria • Scoring is faster •• Single
Single
(dimensions, than with analytic overall
overallscore
score
traits) are rubrics. does
doesnot
not
evaluated • Requires less time communicate
communicate
simultaneously. to achieve inter- information
information
rater reliability. about
aboutwhat
whatto
to
• Good for do
dototoimprove.
summative •improve.
Not good for
assessment. formative
• Not good for
assessment.
formative
assessment.
 Advantages and Disadvantages of Different Types of Rubrics
Type of Defintion Advantages Disadvantages
rubric

Analytic Each criterion • Gives diagnostic • Takes more

(dimension, trait) information to teacher. time to score
is evaluated • Gives formative than holistic
separately. feedback to students. rubrics.
• Easier to link to •T akes more
instruction than holistic time to achieve
rubrics. inter-rater
• Good for formative reliability than
assessment; adaptable with holistic
for summative rubrics.
assessment; if you need
an overall score for
grading, you can
combine the scores.
Steps in writing rubrics
 Step 1: Re-examine the
learning objectives
 Re-examine the learning objectives to be addressed
by the task
 Unit 7- Tieng Anh 7 (page 13)

 Write a paragraph about the traffic problems where

you live, or in a town or a city you know well.
 Use the cues above and the following outline:

Introduction => Problem 1 => Problem 2 => Problem 3

=> conclusion (reason or advice/ suggestion)
 Step 2: Identify specific
observable attributes
 Identify specific observable attributes that you want to see
(as well as the one you don’t want to see) your students to
demonstrate in their product, process or performance.
 1. Organization/ layout:

 2. Content/ Ideas:

 3. Vocabulary/ Lexical resources:

 4. Coherence and cohesion/ Development of ideas

 5. Conventions / Grammar, spelling, punctuation:

 Step 3: Brainstorm
characteristics
 Brainstorm characteristics that describe each attribute

 1. Organization/ layout: a paragraph

 2. Content/ Ideas: traffic problems
 3. Vocabulary/ Lexical resources: trafffic in big cities

 4. Coherence and cohesion/ Development of ideas:

linking words, logical development
 5. Conventions / Grammar, spelling, punctuation:
mistakes,
Step 4a: For holistic rubrics
 Write thorough narrative descriptions for excellent
work and poor work incorporating each attribute
into the description
 Complete the rubric by describing other levels of the
continuum that ranges from excellent to poor work
for the collective attributes.
Step 4b: For analytic rubrics
 Write thorough narrative descriptions for excellent
work and poor work for each individual attribute.
 Complete the rubric by describing other levels of the
continuum that ranges from excellent to poor work
for each attribute.
 Step 5: Collect samples of
student work
 Collect samples of student work that exemplify each
level
 Step 6: Revise the rubric
 Revise the rubric if
necessary
 Websites to create rubrics
 http://www.learner.org/workshops/hswriting/intera
ctives/rubric/build7.html
 http://rubistar.4teachers.org/

 http://www.4teachers.org/tools/ (Very interesting

and useful)
 busyteachers.org
bookzz.org: books
 booksc.org: journals
 Work in groups
 Write your own rubrics (holistic/analytic rubrics)
 Write on the posters
 Do the gallery work
 Give feedback/ comment
 Mark student work using these rubrics
 A purposeful collection of
PORTFOLIOS students’ work that
demonstrates..... their
efforts, progress and
achievements in given areas”
(Genesee and Upshur 1996,
pp.99)
 Materials
Essays and compositions in draft and final form

Reports, projects, and presentation outlines

Poetry and creative prose

Artwork, photos, newspaper or magazine clippings

Audio and/ or video recordings of presentations, demonstrations, etc

Journals, dairies, and other personal reflections

Tests, test scores, and written homework exercises

Notes on lectures

Self and peer-assessments: comments, evaluations, and checklists

 Benefits
Foster intrinsic motivation, responsibility, and ownership

Promote student-teacher interaction with the teacher as facilitator

Individualize learning and celebrate the uiqueness of each student

Provide tangible evidence of a student’s work

Facilitate critical thinking, self- assessment, and revision processes

Offer opportunities for collaborative work with peers

Permit assessment of multiple dimensions of language learning

 Steps and guidelines
1. State objectives clearly

2. Give guidelines on what

materials to include

3. Communicate assessment
criteria to students

4. Designate time within the

curriculum for portfolio development

5. Establish periodic schedules

for review and conferencing

6. Designate an accessible
place to keep portfolios

7. Provide positive washback-

giivng final assessments
Portfolio self-assessment questions

1. Look at your writing sample

• What does the sample show that you can do?

• Write about what you did well.

2. Think about realistic goals. Write one thing you need to do better. Be specific.
 Portfolio project
self-assessment questionnaire
1. What makes this a good or interesting
1. What makesproject?
this a good or interesting
project?
2. What is the most interesting part of the
2. What is the most interesting part of the
project?
project?
3. What was the most difficult part of the
3. What was the most difficult part of the
project?
project?

4. What did you learn from the project?

4. What did you learn from the project?
5. What skills did you practice when doing
5. What skillsthis
didproject?
you practice when doing
this project?
6. What resources did you use to complete
6. What resources did you use to complete
this project?
this project?
7. What is the best part of the project?
7. What is the Why?
best part of the project?
Why?
8. How would you make the project better?
8. How would you make the project better?
• European language portfolio-primary school.p
df
• Sample Portfolio.pdf
Journals
 A journal

A log (account) of one’s thoughts, feelings, reactions, assessments, ideas, or

progress towards goals

Written with little attention to structure, form, or correctness.

Language learning logs

Grammar journals

Responses to readings

Strategies- based learning logs

Self-assessment reflections

Diaries of attitudes, feelings and other affective factors

Acculturation logs
 Steps and guidelines
1. Sensitively introduce students
to the concept of journal writing

2. State the objectives of

the journal
3. Give guidelines on what
kinds of topics to include

4. Carefully specify the criteria for

assessing or grading journals

5. Provide optimal
feedback in your responses

6. Designate appropriate time

frames and schedules for review

7. Provide formative, washback-

giving final comments
CONFERENCES AND INTERVIEWS
Commenting on drafts of essays and reports

Reviewing portfolios
Responding to journals
Advising on a student’s plan for an oral
presentation

Assessing a proposal for a project

Giving feedback on the results of performance

on a test

Clarifying understanding of a reading

Exploring strategies for improving

performance

Focusing on aspects of oral production

Checking a student’s self-assessment of a

performance

Setting personal goals for the near future

Assessing general progress in a course

 Interviews
Assesses the student’s
oral production
Ascertains a student’s needs
before designing a course or
curriculum

Seeks to discover a student’s

learning styles and preferences

Asks a student to assess

his/ her own performance

Requests an
evaluation of a course
 1. Determine the specific
objectives of the observation

2. Decide how many students

will be observed at one time

3. Set up the logistics for

making unnoticed observations

4. Design a system for recording

observed performances

5. Do not overestimate the number of

different elements you can observe at
one time- keep them very limited

6. Plan how many

observations you will make

7. Determine specifically
how you will use the results
SELF AND PEER ASSESSMENTS
TYPES OF SELF AND PEER ASSESSMENT
1. Direct assessment of
(a specific) performance

2. Indirect assessment
of (general) competence

3. Metacognitive assessment
(for setting goals)

4. Socioaffective
assessment
5. Student-generated
tests
GUIDELINES FOR SELF AND PEER ASSESSMENT

1. Tell students the

purpose of the
assessment

2. Define the
tasks clearly
3. Encourage impartial
evaluation of performance
or ability

4. Ensure beneficial
washback through follow-
up tasks