3 modes of assessment

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UW-Whitewater
Languages and Literatures
Ellen Titzkowski Boldt

August 6, 2014

Summer Assessment Workshop for High School World
Language Instructors
The Three Modes of Assessment: Interpretive,
Interpersonal, Presentational


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Overview

Understanding Assessment

Designing Assessments

Implementing Assessments

Evaluating Assessments


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Overview
 Introduction

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The Purpose of Assessment

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Attitudes Towards Assessment

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Intended Use of Assessments

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Developing Effective Assessments

 Types of Assessments
 Integrated Performance Assessments (IPA)
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The Three Modes of Communication

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Assessing the Modes: Tasks & Strategies

 Designing Performance Assessments
 Rubrics

Why is assessment important?
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Why do we keep doing it in our classrooms,
despite the challenges it can present?


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The Purpose of Assessment

 To motivate students
 To serve as more than a vehicle to assign a grade
 To drive the instruction (Sandrock 2010)
 To show evidence that learning is occurring
 To evaluate the effectiveness of instruction
 To identify areas needed for improvement


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The Purpose of Assessment

 Assessment is used as a diagnostic tool to
 describe what students have learned in the past
 shape future learning goals
 document progress towards student learning objectives
 identify areas needing improvement (in instruction and student performance)
 measure language proficiency, communicative competency, and cultural awareness
 evaluate teacher effectiveness*

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WI Educator Effectiveness System  DPI

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*Starting in 2014-2015, all WI educators will be evaluated on student achievement & student learning
objectives/outcomes (SLOs).

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See for the latest information.


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The Purpose of Assessment

 “Language assessment is the process of using language tests to accomplish
particular jobs in language classrooms and programs” (42).

 “To keep our language assessment practice purposeful, we therefore need to
evaluate the extent to which the language testing tools we select and use are
actually helping to accomplish the jobs of language assessment in our
classrooms and programs” (44).

(Norris 2000/2012)


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Attitudes towards Assessment

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Attitudes towards Assessment

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Assessment Stakeholders: How do different groups view
assessment and why?

 Stakeholders
 Teachers
 Students
 Administrators
 Students’ Families
 Curriculum planners
 Future employers
 University admissions counselors

Step 1: Brainstorm individually

 Goals?
 Attitudes?
 Problems?

Step 2: Share and compare

 Discuss ideas with a partner.
 Focus on differing motivations.

(Norris 2000)


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What makes a good
assessment?

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Discuss in pairs.


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Quality and Selection:
What makes a good assessment?

TRICK QUESTION!

The selection and perceived quality of an assessment
depends on its intended use.


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Intended Use of Assessments

WHO?

WHAT?

Test

Test

Users

Information

INTENDED
TEST USE

IMPACT?

WHY?

Test

Test

Consequences

Purposes

(Norris 2000)


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Developing Effective Assessments

 Key questions to ask when creating/selecting the right assessment:
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Who uses the assessment?
What is being assessed?
Who/What is impacted?
Why? What is the purpose?

 Specify the intended use of the assessment.
 Provide a general description of the intended assessment.
 Note problems and possible solutions.

(Norris 2000)

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Developing Effective Assessments

Purposeful language assessment requires:
 Acknowledging the context for assessment
 Focusing on assessment, not just on tests
 Specifying the intended use(s) of the assessments(s)
 Evaluating the outcomes of the assessment(s)

(Byrnes 2001; Norris 2000)


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Developing Effective Assessments

 What does purposeful assessment look like?
 Identifying the thematic and cultural contexts
 Setting attainable benchmarks or learning targets
 Creating classroom activities to support student success on performance
assessments

 Synthesizing language and content instruction
 Fostering task-based instruction
 Developing both formative and summative assessments
 Involving all three modes of assessment
 Embedding assessments into curriculum

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Assessment Models

 Common Assessments
 Level- and course-specific assessments
 Formative vs. Summative vs. Prototypical
 Exit interviews (OPI, SOPI, MOPI)
 Content-based, task-based, genre-specific
 Performance Assessments
 Three Modes of Communication
 5 C’s of the National Standards


+ Types of Assessments
Traditional

Alternative Performance Assessment

Assessment Tools

Tools

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Focus on:

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grammatical accuracy
focus on form
vocabulary building
discrete learning checks

Focus on:

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communication
application of learning
authentic language use
performance of real world tasks
meaningful contexts
proficiency development
integration with standards
3 modes of communication

teaching to the “test”

(Sandrock 2010)


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Types of Assessments

 Assessment is a continuum.
 Teachers need to provide students with a variety of feedback on various
types of assessment across the spectrum, including:

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specific and focused feedback
holistic and broad feedback
Formal (rubrics) and informal (learning checks) feedback

A balanced assessment system = both formative and summative
assessments.

(Sandrock 2010)


+ Types of Assessments

Formative Assessment

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Summative Assessment

Learning checks, guided activities with teacher
support

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End-of-unit, end-of-course assessment (no
support)

Informs and modifies instruction, classroom
activities and student learning

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Demonstrates knowledge gained without
teacher assistance

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Motivates students

Scaffolds information to be used in summative
performance assessments

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Showcases application of various skills learned
via formative assessments

May focus more on specific learning targets (i.e.
grammar concepts, vocabulary)

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Synthesizes a variety of communication skills
and language concepts

Builds students’ confidence


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Characteristics:
The 3 Modes of Communication
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Interpretive Mode:

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listening, reading, viewing

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authentic, text-based (audio, written, video/film) materials

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monologic tasks (one-way communication)

Interpersonal Mode:

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spontaneous communication (oral or written)

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negotiation of meaning

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dialogic tasks (two-way communication)

Presentational Mode:

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speaking, writing

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monologic tasks (one-way communication)

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Rehearsed language usage


+ The 3 Modes of Communication
Interpersonal
Active negotiation of meaning among individuals

Interpretive
Interpretation of what the author, speaker, or producer

Presentational
Creation of messages

wants the receiver of the message to understand

Participants observe and monitor one another to see how

One-way communication with no recourse to the active

One-way communication intended to facilitate

their meanings and intentions are being communicated

negotiation of meaning with the writer, speaker, or

interpretation by members of the other culture where no

producer

direct opportunity for the active negotiation of meaning
between members of the two cultures exists

Adjustments and clarifications are made accordingly

Interpretation differs from comprehension and translation in

To ensure the intended audience is successful in its

that interpretation implies the ability to read (or listen or

interpretation, the “presenter” needs knowledge of the

view) “between the lines,” including understanding from

audience’s language and culture

within the cultural mindset or perspective

Speaking and listening (conversation); reading and writing

Reading (websites, stories, articles), listening (speeches,

Writing (messages, articles, reports), speaking (telling a

(text messages or via social media)

messages, songs), or viewing (video clips) of authentic

story, giving a speech, describing a poster), or visually

materials

representing (video or PowerPoint)

(ACTFL Performance Descriptors for Language Learners 2012)


+ Standards-Based Performance Assessment

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Assessment: Interpretive Mode
How do you typically assess students’ abilities to communicate in the
interpretive mode?


+ Assessment: Interpretive Mode
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Interpretive Assessment Task =

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Demonstrate literal comprehension (keys words, main ideas, details) and interpretive
comprehension (word and concept inferences, cultural perspectives, author intent, text organization).

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Use a comprehension guide (worksheets, Q&A, creating or identifying images based on descriptions,
etc.) to document both levels of comprehension.

Strategies for Developing Interpretive Communication

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Routinely incorporate authentic listening, viewing, and reading texts/tasks into classroom instruction
 skimming, scanning, identifying language patterns.

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Encourage focused listening/viewing/reading of smaller textual chunks and teach comprehension
strategies  context clues, word families, textual organization (headings, captions, photos).

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Design group activities that allow for collaborative interpretive skills.
Assist students as they move from literal comprehension to interpretive comprehension goals.

(Sandrock 2010: 83)