27 Language Testing and Evaluation

Dr. G. A. Ghanshyam

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Content

 

  • Learning Outcomes
  • Introduction
  • Objectives
  • Types of Evaluation & Testing
  • Difference between Evaluation and Testing
  • Check Your Progress
  • Criteria of a Good Test
  • Importance of Testing and Evaluation
  • Check your Progress
  • Conclusion

LEARNING OUTCOMES:

  • The lesson will help the student to understand:
  • What is testing and evaluation?
  • How do we evaluate a student’s learning?
  • Types of evaluation.
  • Testing, evaluation and assessment.
  • Features of a good test.

What is the importance of testing and evaluation?

INTRODUCTION:

Testing and evaluation has been a part of the learning process since ages employed to assess the success of the impartation of knowledge or skill.

Tests “. . . invite candidates to display their knowledge or skills in a concentrated fashion, so that the result can be graded, and inferences made from the standard of performance that can be expected from the candidate, either at the time of the test or at some future time”. (Ingram, 1974: 313). In fact a test can be defined by its objective:

the purpose of testing is always to render information to aid in making intelligent decisions about possible courses of action. Sometimes these decisions affect only the future design or used of the tests themselves, in which case we are dealing with solely experimental uses of tests. Sometimes the decisions have to do with the retention or alteration of courses of training, as when one decides that poor tests results are due to in effective training.

It can thus be said that tests are a part of the evaluation system to find out the extent of learning that has taken place; level of comprehension of students; if they are being able to follow the teaching method of the teacher and the problems and difficulties they are encountering? Tests also assess the knowledge of the students as a mode of comparison between the students in the same group. The term evaluation is used generally for tests and examination, and is a more comprehensive term. Tests and evaluation are an important part of every learning process not only to assess the impartation of knowledge and skill but also to take decisions for further improvement and changes.

Language teaching thus involves not only the imparting of language skills but also various criteria of decision making and implementation throughout the process that is the what, when, how involved is answered with the help of the testing and evaluation process to determine how much of the learning outcome has been achieved and what further improvements or modifications are required to address any shortcoming. In fact test and evaluation are primarily concerned with the decision making process.

“Learning conditions and learning outcomes are important concerns for teachers” claims Desmond Allison in his book Language Testing and Evaluation (1999). Testing and evaluation are prominent concerns in language education to assess the learning outcomes and judge the achievement of learning goals. According to Allison the awareness of testing and evaluation helps the teacher in making “informed decisions” about the teaching methodologies to be implemented, judging the learner’s progress and identifying the weaknesses.

The purpose of a language test is to determine a person’s knowledge and/or ability in a language. Tests consist of specified tasks through which language abilities are obtained. The term language assessment is sometimes used for language testing; although it is also used to include classroom testing as well.

Evaluation includes informal and formal evaluation of the learner’s progress. According to Bloom’s Taxonomy, evaluation is the last step of the learning process that provides the necessary feedback of the learner’s learning progress.

Knowledge – Comprehension – Application – Analysis – Synthesis – Evaluation

Test and evaluation provide feedback about the student’s learning. Feedback is a crucial part of the learning process as it will determine the future learning process. Testing and evaluation not only provides feedback to the teacher but the student can also do self analysis of his/her progress on its basis. Consequently testing and evaluation enables to have a better understanding of the progress or shortcoming of the teaching-learning process and achievement of the intended learning outcome.

Language testing and evaluation primarily focuses on the acquirement of the four basic skills of language, namely: listening, speaking, reading and writing. Language unlike other subjects is skill based and requires a level of proficiency. Thus language test can be used to test the proficiency of the student or to test the achievement of a particular instruction or language module like for instance a grammar. If the former kind of test assesses the student’s ability to use the language for communication and practical purposes, the latter assesses the student’s progress or comprehension of a particular unit of the curriculum.

According to Md. M. Rahman there are three major components that constitute the concept of evaluation and testing:

Content: The general assumption is that whatever has been taught is to be tested. Hence, whatever is assumed as content for teaching will become the content for testing too? In L2 teaching, structure gets focused as main content. In L1 teaching, meaning gets the main focus and in the area of education, the traits of personality.

Method: Method is the means or manner of procedure, especially a regular and systematic way of accomplishing something. In other words, it refers to the plans or procedures followed to accomplish a task or attain a goal. In testing, it refers to the procedure to be followed according to a definite, established, logical or systematic plan.

Purpose: In the field of testing it is defined as the reason for which something exists/happens. It is synonymously used to represent the terms goal, aim and objective. Goal refers to a very broad and ultimate category, aim to a more specific set of purposes, and objective as the most precisely defined ends which can be described in terms of behavioural outcomes in the field of education.

 

OBJECTIVES:

Testing and evaluation aims to:

  • Develop an understanding of the principles and purposes underlying evaluation.
  • Become familiar with the variety of procedures to be used for an evaluation.
  • Be able to identify and use criteria for the evaluation of textbooks and materials.
  • Understand the purposes and procedures of teacher evaluation.
  • Be able to discuss uses of language tests for different purposes and contexts.
  • Develop basic competence in writing classroom tests and evaluating published tests.
  • Become familiar, at a basic level, with the concerns of professional test writers.
  • Become aware of issues related to second language assessment such as reliability, validity, fairness, test taker’s characteristics, holistic versus analytical assessment
  • Be able to identify different types of tests (both teacher-prepared and standardized) and various types of test items.
  • Be able to design different testing exercises to measure students’ learning and competence.
  • Use testing terminology to describe test elements.
  • Be able to distinguish between well and poorly written test items.
TYPES OF EVALUATION & TESTING

It was M. Scriven (1967) who in his work, “The Methodology of Evaluation”, first distinguished between formative and summative evaluation. While formative evaluation helped in understanding the development and improvement of an ongoing activity, summative evaluation helps in assessing if the result of a particular ability being evaluated has attained the intended objective.

Formative evaluation is done to gather feedback that can be used by the instructor or the learners to guide improvements in the ongoing teaching and learning context. For example: classroom interactions, question-answer sessions, discussions, etc. Also known as educative assessment or classroom assessment, it helps in identifying the weaknesses and strengths of the learner as well as his/her preferences. Formative evaluation thus helps the teacher to assess the progress of the learner and modify and improvise his/her teaching methods. It also provides the students with the ability to assess their own progress.

Summative evaluation is employed to assess the level of success or proficiency obtained at the end of an instructional unit by comparing it with some benchmark. For example: Examinations or tests. Summative evaluation refers to the more formal kind of evaluation and tests. Done periodically, usually at the end of a unit or an academic term, they help in the preparation of grades or in evaluating the effectiveness of a course/curriculum, etc.

Tests can also be classified into objective and subjective types. Objective test include multiple choice questions, true – false, cloze test, match the column, fill in the blanks, etc. Subjective test on the other hand test the student’s question-answer, short notes, essay, etc.

Test is also categorized as per the objective for which it is being prepared like placement test, aptitude test, proficiency test, admission test, diagnostic test, etc.

Language tests assess the student’s language skills and can be distinguished on the basis of its design and purpose. Based on design the test can either be in the form of grammatical exercises, reading comprehension, vocabulary, etc. or a performance test that assesses the student’s communicative ability. Based on purpose test can be either an achievement test or a proficiency test. Achievement test assesses the success of the teaching and is associated with the process of instruction and curriculum. Alternative assessment is a part of achievement tests. Proficiency test measures the level of language ability and future performance.

EVALUATION, ASSESSMENT AND TESTING

“The terms evaluation, assessment, and testing are often confused and used interchangeably. They do not however, mean the same thing.”

According to David Nunan, “Evaluation is the collection and interpretation of information about aspects of the curriculum . . . for decision making purposes” (Nunan, 1999: 85). For collection of information it uses tests, questionnaires, observations, etc. As a process it is developed through the course and necessary changes implemented as required.

Evaluation focuses on grades and may also reflect classroom components other than course content and level of efficiency or skill. It can include discussion, cooperation, verbal ability, etc.

Assessment on the other hand is a process of gathering information that will help in evaluating the examinee. It focuses on learning, teaching and outcomes. It provides information, which is learner centred, is not graded and is used for improving learning and teaching.

Assessment “is taken to refer to the set of processes by which we judge students learning” (Nunan, 2004: 118). In fact it is a part of evaluation and relates to the students and the methods being used for judging their performance like tests, exercises, etc. Result of different assessment processes are analyzed during the evaluation process and actions/changes are undertaken.

Testing “is one of the procedures that can be used to assess child’s performance. A test has a certain objective, for example, to see to what extent a child understand a written text.” (Loannou and Pavlou, 2003: 04). Testing is a more specific instrument employed to assess the student’s performance: specific tests are used with a specific objective depending on the skill or ability that is to be tested.

Test is “an evaluative device or procedure in which a sample of an examinee’s behaviour in a specified domain is obtained and subsequently evaluated and scored using a standardized process.” (The Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing, 1999). In other words a test evaluates a person’s ability in a given point of time in a specific domain. Tests usually give scores as in a summative evaluation but when it is diagnostic, it provides information about the examinee’s strengths and weaknesses based on his/her performance in the test.

CRITERIA OF A GOOD TEST

A good test can be created keeping in mind the objective of the course or module for which it is being made. The teacher has to determine the objectives of the test as well as prepare and plan in advance. In language teaching all the basic language skills – LSRW are important. Language tests are to be made as per this criterion where the students’ language skills and comprehension are to be assessed from their performance. Time being a significant factor in the preparation and implementation of a test, its duration and regularity has to be kept in mind. As such, Md. M. Rahman has mentioned three main stages of preparation of a test, which are:

Planning: It covers outlining test, listing of topics, casting of ideas for items and material collection.

Composition: This includes the composition of actual items and choice for objectivity.

Analysis: It consists of determining difficulties and discrimination of test items.

Designing a good test is very important. The task is not an easy one but requires great care and responsibility. The aim for which the test is being designed should be clearly specified in order to get valid interpretation of its result. The test should be prepared in such a manner as to get the desired outcomes.

It was Robert Lado who first used the term ‘validity’ for language testing in 1961. Lado concluded that a test should provide meaningful answers and measure what it is supposed to measure. In other words it has to be valid. Validity is thus considered as one of the most important qualities of a language test together with reliability. A test is considered valid when test content and test conditions are relevant and there are no irrelevant problems which are more difficult than the problems being tested.

Thus the three vital features that a good test should have are:

• Reliability:

The test should be reliable and generate similar results under the same testing conditions. In other words it should be consistent.

• Validity:

The test should fulfil the desired outcome and provide meaningful information.

• Practicality:

The test should be practical, that is it should be economical and manageable in time.

A good test should fulfil the objective for which it has been designed and should give information that can be meaningfully interpreted. In order for the test to be reliable, valid and practical it is necessary that one should:

  • Decide the objective of the test – why and for what purpose the test is being taken.
  • Maintain consistency – course objective, teaching method and the goal of the test.
  • Use appropriate testing methods – for instance multiple choice question to test memory and recall.
  • Avoid ambiguous questions and confusing directions – questions that can be interpreted in more than one way and thus give rise to confusions.
  • Maintain clarity – instructions should be clear.
  • Employ simple and precise language – students should understand the instructions clearly.
  • In multiple choice questions provide good distracters and one clear answer.
  • Avoid clues.
IMPORTANCE OF TESTING AND EVALUATION

Testing and evaluation is an integral and important part of the teaching– learning process. It provides the essential feedback about the teaching–learning process regarding the student’s progress, weakness, strength, inclinations, problems encountered, etc. The feedback helps in adapting, changing, improvising or improving the teaching-learning process, the curriculum or the execution of the curriculum. To sum up the importance of testing and evaluation it can thus be said that it helps in:

  1.  Finding out about student strengths and weaknesses.
  2.  Determining learning styles that would be more effective for students.
  3. Learning about student inclination and interests.
  4. Classifying students into different levels: they can be divided into groups as per their learning abilities, interests, characteristics and achievements.
  5. Monitoring and following the progress of individual students.
  6. Providing feedback about students’ achievement.
  7. Specifying suitable teaching materials and activities.
  8. Discovering what students have learned and what they still need to learn.
  9. Deciding what to teach next.
  10. Determining how to adapt lesson content to student need and learning styles.
  11. Evaluating the effectiveness of teaching methods.
  12. Assigning grades and feedback to students.
  13. Giving feedback to parents.
  14. Giving feedback to other teachers in the school and the principal.
  15. Communicating with other professionals to provide more effective courses.
  16. Revising previous lesson content.

CONCLUSION

 

Language testing and evaluation is an important and integral part of language teaching. In other words it can be termed as a crucial and determining factor of the decision making process. It not only provides evidence of the student’s progress or achievement but also reveals the problems they might be facing. The information gathered through tests and evaluation provides important clues as to the changes that need to be brought into the curriculum or the teaching methods in order to attain the desired outcomes. Testing and evaluation are thus significant indicators of the success to be judged or shortcomings that have to be addressed.

 

Planning, designing and preparing a test are thus crucial parts of the teaching-learning process. The tests, evaluation and assessment in fact set the benchmarks of the entire educational process, giving relevant information as to the success or failure, and the reasons thereof. They are a prominent part of course design and plan for they provide direction to future plans and course of action to be undertaken. A part and parcel of the teaching-learning process, it is vital for the teacher to have proper knowledge of the testing and evaluation process. More importantly it is of prime importance for the language teacher to be familiar with the process because testing and evaluation in language teaching unlike other subjects is both skill and content based: comprehension as well as proficiency in performance of the language skills.

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Reference

 

  1. Carrol, J.B. “Fundamental Consideration in Testing for English Language Proficiency of Foreign Students” Teaching English as a Second Language. ed. J.P.B. Allen. New York: McGraw Hill Inc., 1965.
  2. Ingram, E. “Language Testing”. Techniques in Applied Linguistics: The Edinburgh Course of Applied Linguistics. Vol. 3. eds. J.P.B. Allen and S.P. Corder. London: Oxford University Press, 1974.
  3. Lado, R. Language Testing: The Construction and Use of Foreign Language Tests. London: Longman, 1961.
  4. Loannou, S & P. Pavlou. Assessing Young Learners. Oxford: OUP, 2003.
  5. Nunan, D. Second Language Teaching and Learning. Cambridge: CUP, 1999.
  6. ……………The Learner Centred Curriculum. Cambridge: CUP, 2004.
  7. Rahman, Md. M & A. K. Gautam. “Testing and Evaluation: A Significant Characteristic of Language Learning and Teaching”  www.languageinindia.com, 2012: 432 – 442.
  8. languagetesting.info
  9. https://eltguide.wordpress.com
  10. www.nwlink.com