Assessment - Parts of a Syllabus -Octavio

Luis Octavio Canseco García

Luis Octavio Canseco García / Escuela de Idiomas / Universidad Regional del Sureste / Oaxaca / México

In many references, the terms assessment

and evaluation are used synonymously.

According to Nunan (1999), Evaluation is

the collection and interpretation of

information about aspects of the curriculum

(including learners, teachers, materials,

learning arrangements, etc.) for decision

making purposes.

Assesment


Assesment is a subcomponent of evaluation.

It refers to the tools, techniques, and

procedures for collecting and interpreting

information about what learner can and

cannot do.

Assesment is extremely related to goals and

objectives as well as course content.


Traditionally, assessment practices are

characterized by test designed,

administered and graded by the teacher.

Traditional techniques are exams, tests and

quizzes.


Practical Ideas on Alternative Assessment for ESL Students

Nonverbal Assessment Strategies

Physical Demonstration

To express academic concepts without speech, students can point or

use other gestures. They can also be asked to perform hands-on

tasks or to act out vocabulary, concepts, or events.

Pictorial Products

To elicit content knowledge without requiring students to speak or

write, teachers can ask students to produce and manipulate drawings,

dioramas, models, graphs, and charts.



Nonverbal Assessment Strategies

Oral Performances Or Presentations

Performance-based assessments include interviews, oral

reports, role plays, describing, explaining, summarizing,

retelling, paraphrasing stories or text material, and so on.

Oral assessments should be conducted on an ongoing basis to

monitor comprehension and thinking skills.



Oral and Written Products

Content area logs

Designed to encourage the use of metacognitive strategies when

students read expository text.

Reading response logs

Used for students' written responses or reactions to a piece of

literature. Students may respond to questions--some generic, some

specific to the literature--that encourage critical thinking, or they may

copy a brief text on one side of the page and write their reflections on

the text on the other side.




Writing assignment

This can be controlled or structured. The teacher can guide students

through a pre-writing stage, which includes discussion, brainstorming,

webbing, outlining, and so on. The results of pre-writing, as well as

the independently written product, can be assessed.

Dialogue journals

Provide a means of interactive, ongoing correspondence between

students and teachers. Students determine the choice of topics and

participate at their level of English language proficiency.




"Audio and video cassettes"

They can be made of student oral readings, presentations,

dramatics, interviews, or conferences (with teacher or peers).



Portfolios

Portfolios are used to collect samples of

student work over time to track student

development.

The following types of materials can be

included in a portfolio:



Audio- and videotaped recordings of readings or oral

presentations.

Writing samples such as dialogue journal entries, book

reports, writing assignments (drafts or final copies),

reading log entries, or other writing projects.

Conference or interview notes and anecdotal records.

Checklists (by teacher, peers, or student).

Tests and quizzes.


A suggested grading scale for mexican

students is:

10 Trabajo de calidad superior con mucha

atención al detalle. Asistencia perfecta o casi

perfecta. El alumno aprovechó de todas las

oportunidades de participar y practicar en clase.

9 Trabajo muy fuerte, en términos de calidad y

esfuerzo. Pocas o ninguna inasistencia y una

buena contribución a las actividades en clase.


8 Por lo general, trabajo bueno. El alumno hizo

un buen esfuerzo y produjo trabajos completos.

Su asistencia fue buena y el alumno se

involucró en la clase.

7 Trabajo adecuado. El alumno completó su

trabajo con un nivel aceptable de calidad.

Asistencia regular con algún esfuerzo de

participar en clase.


6 No aprobatorio. El alumno no hizo las tareas

asignadas, o produjo un trabajo de calidad

inferior que mostró poco esfuerzo, y no participó

mucho en actividades en clase.

5 Reprobatorio. Su trabajo fue

consistentemente de calidad pobre y/o no

entregó sus tareas.


Useful sources about language learning

levels to base your goals, objectives and

assessment techniques are:

Niveles del Marco Común Europeo de

Referencia.doc

Niveles de Conocimiento de Idiomas

SEP.pdf

Niveles del Marco Com�n Europeo de Referencia.doc















Niveles de Conocimiento de Idiomas SEP.pdf














Don’t forget the parts of our suggested

syllabus:

Course Information

Teacher Information

General Objectives (goals)

Specific Objectives


Course Content

(Structures, Vocabulary, Notions,

Pronunciation, Functions, Cultural

Aspects, Situations, Skills, Topics)

Teaching Strategies

Learning Strategies

Assessment


Bibliography and References:

Jameson, J. (1998). Three principles for success: English language

learners in mainstream content classes (From Theory to Practice

Issue No. 6). Tampa, FL: Center for Applied Linguistics, Region XIV

Comprehensive Center.

Nunan, David. (1999) Second Language Teaching and Learning,

Heinle and Heinle.

Oxford, R.L. (1990), Language Learning Strategies, Newbury House.

Documents

Assessment - Parts of a Syllabus -Octavio