Calibrating Standards-based Assessment Tasks for English as a First Foreign Language. Standard-setting Procedures in Germany

Calibrating Standards-based Assessment Tasks for English as a First Foreign Language. Standard-setting Procedures in Germany
Author: Claudia Harsch
Publisher: Waxmann Verlag
Total Pages: 167
Release: 2010
Genre: Education
ISBN: 3830972997

This report is the second in a multi-part technical report series describing the development, calibration and validation of standards-based tests for English as a first foreign language at the Institute for Educational Progress (Institut zur Qualitätsentwicklung im Bildungswesen, IQB) in Berlin, Germany. It details the empirical basis of the calibration of the test item pool and criterion-referenced standard-setting procedures. The aim is to make transparent the decisions, methods and procedures which led to the setting of cut-scores in alignment with the National Educational Standards (NES) (i.e., the Länderübergreifende Bildungsstandards) and the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEF) for English as a first foreign language. Standards were set for the lower secondary school level of Hauptschulabschluss and Mittlerer Bildungsabschluss. This second report describes the process of relating the standards-based proficiency tests to the CEF levels, delineating the purpose of the tests, the aims of the standard-setting procedures, the rationale of the chosen procedures, and the use of the Manual for Linking Language Examinations to the CEF. This is followed by a detailed description of the two standard-setting methods employed, the Bookmark method and the computer-assisted Criterion Mapping method—developed and implemented by the Berkeley Evaluation and Assessment Research (BEAR) Center, University of California. This volume provides information on how the standard-setting sessions were conducted in collaboration with BEAR Center, and describes procedures, data gathering, and issues and problems which arose during the course of the study. The report concludes with a synthesis of the standard-setting study’s results, and discusses the implications of how these results are reported and presented to stakeholders and policy makers.

Ontologies of English

Ontologies of English
Author: Christopher J. Hall
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 403
Release: 2020-01-02
Genre: Foreign Language Study
ISBN: 1108482538

A critical examination of the ways in which English is conceptualised for learning, teaching, and assessment in a range of domains, from both social and cognitive perspectives. Researchers and postgraduates working on English in L1 and L2 educational contexts will find it valuable for research and collaboration.

The Diagnosis of Writing in a Second or Foreign Language

The Diagnosis of Writing in a Second or Foreign Language
Author: Ari Huhta
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
Total Pages: 317
Release: 2023-07-07
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 1315511959

The Diagnosis of Writing in a Second or Foreign Language is a comprehensive survey of diagnostic assessment of second/foreign language (SFL) writing. In this innovative book, a compelling case is made for SFL writing as an individual, contextual, and multidimensional ability, combining several theoretically informed approaches upon which to base diagnosis. Using the diagnostic cycle as the overarching framework, the book starts with the planning phase, cover design, development, and delivery of diagnostic assessment, ending with feedback and feed-forward aspects to feed diagnostic information into the teaching and learning process. It covers means to diagnose both the writing processes and products, including the design and development of diagnostic tasks and rating scales, as well as automated approaches to assessment. Also included is a range of existing instruments and approaches to diagnosing SFL writing. Addressing large-scale as well as classroom contexts, this volume is useful for researchers, teachers, and educational policy-makers in language learning.

CEFR-informed Learning, Teaching and Assessment

CEFR-informed Learning, Teaching and Assessment
Author: Noriko Nagai
Publisher: Springer Nature
Total Pages: 284
Release: 2020-07-21
Genre: Education
ISBN: 9811558949

This book is a practical guide to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages: Learning, Teaching, Assessment (CEFR) (Council of Europe 2001) and the CEFR Companion Volume (CEFR/ CV; COE 2018), which have increasingly been used to inform the language policies and teaching practices of countries within and outside of Europe. It helps practitioners to (i) grasp essential and core concepts of the Common European Framework of Reference, (ii) identify parts of the CEFR and the CEFR/CV as well as other CEFR-related resources and documents that are relevant for readers’ different purposes, and (iii) utilise and adapt these resources for their own needs. Written by practitioners for practitioners, this hands-on guide covers the philosophy of the CEFR, curricula, assessment, learner autonomy, the task-based approach, and teacher development. Logically explaining all aspects of the framework and its application, this manual helps readers deal with many of the difficulties encountered when using CEFR and the CEFR CV. The book will appeal to a wide audience, including teacher educators; curriculum and materials developers; examination boards unfamiliar with the CEFR; university language departments and language centres responsible for developing their own curricula, teaching/learning approaches and assessment instruments; and policy-makers wanting to learn more about the implications of adopting the CEFR. It is a guidebook, a reference book and a workbook all in your hand.

New Challenges for Language Testing

New Challenges for Language Testing
Author: María Luisa Carrió-Pastor
Publisher: Cambridge Scholars Publishing
Total Pages: 190
Release: 2016-12-14
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 1443855553

The main focus of this volume is test development and accreditation requirements and needs. One of the major objectives here is to show the key aspects of the application of assessment in higher education and the systems of accreditation. Thanks to its unique perspective, it offers a different approach on various aspects of second language assessment. As universities are one of the best arenas for the analysis of language testing, the book thoroughly prepares higher education teachers to apply pilot studies and shows students’ responses to new testing techniques and accreditation requirements. It offers an enlightening guide for scholars with an academic interest in acquiring the basic principles of language testing and accreditation, providing real cases of how new ways of testing and accreditation can be useful to second language teachers and students. Readers will not only come to understand how to use new testing strategies, but also have the opportunity to see that the proposals described in each chapter may be useful to language assessment and motivation of students.

Measuring Up

Measuring Up
Author: John Sabatini
Publisher: R&L Education
Total Pages: 182
Release: 2012-06-07
Genre: Education
ISBN: 1607094878

In recent decades, the science of reading acquisition has been advancing through interdisciplinary research in cognitive, psycholinguistic, developmental, genetic, neuroscience, cross-language, and experimental comparison studies of effective instruction. Some of the science of reading has emerged from the theory and research into the realm of practice and policy. Yet the science and practice of measuring “reading comprehension” has remained relatively immune to much of this foundational knowledge. Measuring Up questions the traditional format of reading comprehension tests, typically a single series of questions asked about a series of passages, and offers ideas and innovations we might expect in a next generation of 21st century reading assessments. Sabatini, Albro, and O'Reilly believe that in light of the move towards Common Core State Standards and assessments, as well as significant national investments in reading and literacy education, it is a critical and opportune time to bring together the research and measurement community to address fundamental issues of measuring reading comprehension, both in theory and in practice.

Frontiers in Language Assessment and Testing

Frontiers in Language Assessment and Testing
Author: Vahid Aryadoust
Publisher: Frontiers Media SA
Total Pages: 192
Release: 2020-12-30
Genre: Science
ISBN: 2889663019

This eBook is a collection of articles from a Frontiers Research Topic. Frontiers Research Topics are very popular trademarks of the Frontiers Journals Series: they are collections of at least ten articles, all centered on a particular subject. With their unique mix of varied contributions from Original Research to Review Articles, Frontiers Research Topics unify the most influential researchers, the latest key findings and historical advances in a hot research area! Find out more on how to host your own Frontiers Research Topic or contribute to one as an author by contacting the Frontiers Editorial Office: frontiersin.org/about/contact.

Literacy Development with English Learners, Second Edition

Literacy Development with English Learners, Second Edition
Author: Lori Helman
Publisher: Guilford Publications
Total Pages: 369
Release: 2016-08-02
Genre: Education
ISBN: 1462526594

As the number of students learning English in elementary schools across the country continues to grow, so does the body of research on their literacy development. This respected course text and teacher resource synthesizes cutting-edge scholarship on how to teach English learners (ELs) at all levels of English proficiency. Accessible chapters on key components of reading and writing combine theoretical issues with practical suggestions for the classroom. Case studies, vignettes, and samples of student work illustrate both the challenges facing emergent bilingual students and the types of high-quality instruction that can help them succeed. New to This Edition *Incorporates the latest research and key current topics, such as bilingual assessment. *Chapter on vocabulary instruction across the elementary grades. *Chapter on collaborative teaching and how to structure it. *Covers implementation of the Common Core State Standards with ELs.

Developing Reading and Writing in Second-language Learners

Developing Reading and Writing in Second-language Learners
Author: Diane August
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
Total Pages: 336
Release: 2008
Genre: Education
ISBN: 0805862080

Reporting the findings of the National Literacy Panel on Language-Minority Children and Youth, this book concisely summarises what is known from empirical research about the development of literacy in language-minority children and youth, including development, environment, instruction, and assessment.