CURRENT ISSUES IN
CLASSROOM TESTING
Teguh Ardianto
Assessment experts
Communicative
language testing
Challenge
Performance-based
assessment
Classroom teachers
New
theories of
intelligence
The increasing
popularity of
computer based
testing.
The advent of
alternative
assessment
Effective
Assessment
Moving trends and moving views
New View on Intelligence
Teguh Ardianto
INTELLIGENCE
Old View
Gardner
(1983, 1999)
Sternberg
(1988, 1997)
Goleman
(1995)
LogicalMathematic
Linguistic
Linguistic
Musical
LogicalMathematic
Bodilykinesthetic
Creative
thinking
Spatial
Interpersonal
Musical
Intrapersonal
Manipulative
Strategy
EQ (Emotional
Quotient)
Views on Intelligence
This..??
Assess what…??
Objectivity
Whole
language skills
Learning
processes
Those..??
These..??
Authenticity
Ability to
negotiate
meaning
Trend of Assessment
Traditional and Alternative
Assessment
Teguh Ardianto
Triggered
Performancebased
assessment
The traditional,
more-objective
assessment
The alternative,
more authentic
assessment
Moved the
trend
Traditional and “Alternative”
Assessment
Armstrong (1994) and Bailey (1998) drew the
clear distinction between traditional and
alternative assessment in the table below:
Traditional Assessment
Alternative Assessment
One-shot, standardized exams
Continuous long term assessment
Timed, multiple-choice format
Untimed, free-response format
Decontextualized test items
Contextualized communicative tasks
Scores suffice for feedback
Individualized feedback and washback
Norm-referenced scores
Criterion-referenced scores
Focus on the “right” answer
Open-ended, creative answers
summative
formative
Oriented to product
Oriented to process
Non-interactive performance
Interactive performance
Foster extrinsic motivation
Foster intrinsic motivation
Notes to Armstrong and Bailey’s
categorization
• It is difficult to draw a clear line of distinction
between “traditional” and “alternative”
assessment.
• It is not always true that traditional
assessment is worse than alternative
assessment.
Computer-Based Testing
Teguh Ardianto
Some
famous
CBTs
TOEFL
TOEIC
IELTS
Small scale,
“home
grown” test
Large scale,
standardized
test
Computer Based Testing
Computer based test requires test
takers perform responses on a
computer.
Test takers receive
prompts
The prompt can be in spoken or
written
Test takers are required
to response
They can write or
speak the response
Almost all responses and
items are fixed and close
ended
Computer Based Testing
In a CAT, each test taker receives a set of questions that
meet the test specifications and that are generally
appropriate for his or her performance level.
CAT starts from
moderate level
questions
test takers answer
the question
the computer scores the
responses and determine
the next questions
Correct
Incorrect
More difficult
questions
Lesser or equal
difficult questions
Computer Adaptive Test
Some advantages of CBT
• Classroom-testing
• Self-directed testing on various aspects of
language (vocabs, grammar, discourse, language
skills, etc.)
• Practice for upcoming high stakes standardized
test
• Some individualization, in the case of CATs
• Large scale standardized test can be administered
easily to thousand of test takers at many different
stations, then scored electronically for rapid
reporting of results
Some disadvantages of CBT
• Lack of security and the possibility of cheating are inherent
in classroom-based, unsupervised computerized test
• Occasional “home-grown” quizzes that appear on unofficial
websites may be mistaken for validated assessment
• The multiple-choice format preferred for most computerbased test contains the usual potential for flawed item
design
• Open ended responses are less likely to appear because of
the need for human scorers, with all the attendant issues of
cost, reliability and turn around time
• The human interactive element (especially in oral
production) is absent
Lessons from this chapter
• Assessment is an integral part of the teachinglearning cycle.
• Tests are a subset of assessment and may
provide authenticity, motivation, and
feedback to the learner.
• Tests are essential components of a successful
curriculum and one of several partners in the
learning process.
Cont: Lessons from this chapter
• Periodic assessments, both formal and informal, can
increase motivation by serving as milestones of student
progress.
• Appropriate assessments aid in the reinforcement and
retention of information.
• Assessments can confirm areas of strength and pinpoint
areas needing further work.
• Assessments can provide a sense of periodic closure to
modules within a curriculum.
• Assessments can promote student autonomy by
encouraging students' self-evaluation of their progress.
• Assessments can spur learners to set goals for themselves.
• Assessments can aid in evaluating teaching effectiveness.
Thank You…