reflect

Instrument of our self-assessment.

Self-assessment technique

The purpose of this activity wass to design an instrument that helped the students self-assess their own performance in the classroom.

Self-assessment: Advantages and Disadvantages

Reflection: Testing and types of tests.

Competence:To design appropriate tests after having identified the techniques used to assess the four skills as well as grammar and vocabulary, through the analysis of tests, readings tasks, discussions, group activities in a cooperative ambiance.
Test is a systematic procedure for observing persons and describing them with either a numerical scale or a category system. Thus test may give either a qualitative or quantitative information (Anthony J. Nitko)

Designing a test

Specs Listening: 5 mins.
Format: teacher reviews the test with the students before beginning.
Task: the student follows the reading and formulates questions.

Reading: 10 mins.
Format: before answering, the student needs to read instructions and the options given.
Task: read in order to complete the exam.

Writing: 20 mins.
Format: select correct word, write missing word, and write sentences.
Task: fill in blanks and formulate sentences. Test

Answer Key

Narrative The process of performance of our test, made us go back and revise every exercise we developed during this semester. Every project we handed in, ended up being a part of our test. The type of text, we found more adequate, was the achievement test. Then we revised the objectives and purposes of the exercises that we had developed and created activities directly from those exercises in this case, part I was taken from a vocabulary activity; part II and III were about grammar and part IV was writing. The level that we worked on was for 7th grade. Given the high number of students in that level and the short length of available class time, we decided to develop a test that was easy to complete and also easy to grade. For the first part of our test we designed a direct activity with a discrete objective, so that the students would not feel overwhelmed; since only one right answer could be given, it turned out to be unbiased. Since the words were already provided, no grammar was taken in count there. The difficulty grade was low, therefore we assigned it just 1 point of importance. For activity II, we wanted to grade grammar, specifically their grasp of verbs in the past tense. Again, we made it straight, discrete and impartial. As well as in activity 1, we focused on reading and writing skills. Since it was a longer activity, we assigned a 4 points value. For activity III, we also focused in grammar but it was a merge between activity I and II because although the words were provided, the students needed to select the right order it is a direct, discrete and clear task that required reading and writing skills. We assigned it a 3 points value. For activity IV we wanted to grade writing skills, and for that we designed an activity where the students had to build the whole sentences within grading limitations on what they write. The aspects of this activity are that it is direct, discrete and partly subjective, given that they can choose what they write first bur the options are limited and only 5 possible options. We assigned a 2 points value.

Comments by moderator The comments of our moderator were minimum and reduces to some grammar corrections and few format mistakes that we have been corrected.

Items for a test.

This short story could cover all 4 linguistic skills.

• Speaking
In pairs read the story and discuss, highlight the words that you find hard to pronounce or not know the meaning of. How do think Cinderella and the Prince’s life was after they got married?

• Listening
What was the story about?
Was your partner understandable?
Which words did you have problem to pronounce?
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• Reading
After reading carefully the previous text, answer the following questions:
1. At what time Cinderella had to wake up to cook breakfast?
2. What color were the dresses of Cinderella’s sisters?
3. How did Cinderella feel at the party?
4. What did the Prince say to Cinderella while they were dancing?
5. How did the Prince felt when he thought he had lost Cinderella?

• Writing
Recreate, in present, the story according to your understanding, use more adjectives, and change the ending making it more interesting.