Having a balanced assessment system where formative assessment receives as much attention as summative evaluation is a step in the right direction, says Ravinarayan Chakrakodi.
It is widely believed that standardised tests such as term end tests, board exams, etc. cause a negative impact on the teaching-learning processes. A cursory look at the English language test papers of many State-board schools reveals that nearly 60 per cent of the questions are from the prose, poetry and supplementary reading parts of the prescribed text books.
These test items encourage rote learning of the textual content. As a result, classroom teaching has also become textbook-centred and examination-oriented.
The Board examinations also test students' knowledge of textual topics, their ability to memorise the facts and figures given in the book. Hence, in the classroom, only content teaching takes place at the expense of language skills development.
For example, teaching of reading is reduced to explaining the text and asking and answering questions based on the given prose, poetry and supplementary reading.
There is hardly any attempt made in the classroom to develop the strategies involved in reading such as skimming and scanning, and the ability to infer, make predictions, evaluate the writer's opinions, think critically and creatively, etc.
Similarly, listening and speaking skills are neglected in the classroom because these skills are not tested in the examination. Conversation in the classroom is limited only to questions and answers. Writing is mainly viewed as improving handwriting skills and copying from different sources.
Hence, there is a need to change the testing and examination patterns. The position paper on the teaching of English (NCF, 2005) also stresses that 'language evaluation' should not be limited to 'achievement' with respect to particular syllabi but must be reoriented to the measurement of language proficiency.
The Department of Education of Karnataka has thought in this direction and decided to introduce Continuous and Comprehensive Evaluation (CCE) from this academic year in the State-board schools. This is a welcome move and will help in achieving positive impacts on the teaching-learning processes.
Formative and summative assessments
Formative Assessment (FA), as mentioned in the CBSE manual on CCE, is a tool used by the teacher to continuously monitor student progress in a non-threatening, supportive environment. It involves regular descriptive feedback, a chance for the learners to reflect on their performance, take suggestions and improve their performance. Learner involvement by way of self- and peer-assessment is essential in FA.
On the other hand, Summative Assessment (SA) is carried out at the end of a course of learning. It measures or 'sums up' how much a learner has learned from the course. Unit tests, term end exams, board exams are some examples of summative assessment. In addition to written tests, oral tests and open-book exams may also be considered for SA.
Evaluating English language skills
As far as English language is concerned, attempts have been made to assess learners' language skills namely listening, speaking, reading and writing at regular intervals through a variety of tasks suggested in the newly designed course book. The following are a few sample tasks used for FA which will shed some light on FA procedures.
Listening: Listening skills are assessed by using stories, dialogues, announcements and exercises on phonemic sounds. Learners' ability to listen and comprehend the message is evaluated through different types of questions, meaningful dictation activities and discussion tasks.
Reading: Unfamiliar passages, authentic texts such as news reports, weather forecasts, railway time tables, and advertisements are used to assess learners' reading skills. Their ability to guess the meanings of new words, refer to a dictionary, make notes, summarise, gather specific pieces of information, identify the gist of the passage and such reading abilities are assessed in FA.
Speaking: In speech, learners' ability to speak fluently and confidently, express relevant ideas, organise their ideas, use appropriate language, etc. is assessed through speaking tasks such as group discussions, debates, role plays, interviews, self- and small group presentations, extended talk, etc. Self- and peer-assessments are carried out using checklists and observation schedules.
Writing:Learners' ability to create 'own' texts is assessed through a variety of writing tasks such as letter writing, paragraph writing, making a diary entry, etc. Checklists and rating scales are used to carry out self-assessment and to award points.
Learners' ability to generate relevant content, express and organise ideas in a logical sequence, use appropriate and accurate language and his/her knowledge of the mechanics of writing — spelling, punctuation and hand writing — are assessed in the writing tasks.
In all of these assessment procedures, learner's involvement in the learning process, the interest shown in completing the task successfully and his/her attitude towards language learning are also evaluated. Hence, assessment becomes not only continuous but comprehensive as well.
These formative assessment tasks provide useful information/feedback to learners as well as teachers. Feedback is the central function of formative assessment. Good feedback is positive, encouraging and suggestive in nature.
It helps learners understand their performance levels, analyse their strengths and weaknesses and focus on areas for improvement. Good feedback also makes learners aware of their learning styles and helps them improve their meta-cognitive awareness of how they learn so that they can adopt effective learning strategies.
Moreover, feedback helps teachers modify subsequent learning activities and experiences, identify and remediate group or individual deficiencies and move focus away from achieving marks/grades and onto learning processes.
All in all, assessment should not be viewed as a 'one shot' activity to be conducted at the end of the year or term or unit. Assessment is an integral, inseparable part of classroom teaching and learning. Such an assessment procedure which is formative in nature can be carried out by teachers using various tools and techniques.
Having a balanced and coherent assessment system where formative assessment procedures will receive as much attention as summative evaluation is a step in the right direction.
It is widely believed that standardised tests such as term end tests, board exams, etc. cause a negative impact on the teaching-learning processes. A cursory look at the English language test papers of many State-board schools reveals that nearly 60 per cent of the questions are from the prose, poetry and supplementary reading parts of the prescribed text books.
These test items encourage rote learning of the textual content. As a result, classroom teaching has also become textbook-centred and examination-oriented.
The Board examinations also test students' knowledge of textual topics, their ability to memorise the facts and figures given in the book. Hence, in the classroom, only content teaching takes place at the expense of language skills development.
For example, teaching of reading is reduced to explaining the text and asking and answering questions based on the given prose, poetry and supplementary reading.
There is hardly any attempt made in the classroom to develop the strategies involved in reading such as skimming and scanning, and the ability to infer, make predictions, evaluate the writer's opinions, think critically and creatively, etc.
Similarly, listening and speaking skills are neglected in the classroom because these skills are not tested in the examination. Conversation in the classroom is limited only to questions and answers. Writing is mainly viewed as improving handwriting skills and copying from different sources.
Hence, there is a need to change the testing and examination patterns. The position paper on the teaching of English (NCF, 2005) also stresses that 'language evaluation' should not be limited to 'achievement' with respect to particular syllabi but must be reoriented to the measurement of language proficiency.
The Department of Education of Karnataka has thought in this direction and decided to introduce Continuous and Comprehensive Evaluation (CCE) from this academic year in the State-board schools. This is a welcome move and will help in achieving positive impacts on the teaching-learning processes.
Formative and summative assessments
Formative Assessment (FA), as mentioned in the CBSE manual on CCE, is a tool used by the teacher to continuously monitor student progress in a non-threatening, supportive environment. It involves regular descriptive feedback, a chance for the learners to reflect on their performance, take suggestions and improve their performance. Learner involvement by way of self- and peer-assessment is essential in FA.
On the other hand, Summative Assessment (SA) is carried out at the end of a course of learning. It measures or 'sums up' how much a learner has learned from the course. Unit tests, term end exams, board exams are some examples of summative assessment. In addition to written tests, oral tests and open-book exams may also be considered for SA.
Evaluating English language skills
As far as English language is concerned, attempts have been made to assess learners' language skills namely listening, speaking, reading and writing at regular intervals through a variety of tasks suggested in the newly designed course book. The following are a few sample tasks used for FA which will shed some light on FA procedures.
Listening: Listening skills are assessed by using stories, dialogues, announcements and exercises on phonemic sounds. Learners' ability to listen and comprehend the message is evaluated through different types of questions, meaningful dictation activities and discussion tasks.
Reading: Unfamiliar passages, authentic texts such as news reports, weather forecasts, railway time tables, and advertisements are used to assess learners' reading skills. Their ability to guess the meanings of new words, refer to a dictionary, make notes, summarise, gather specific pieces of information, identify the gist of the passage and such reading abilities are assessed in FA.
Speaking: In speech, learners' ability to speak fluently and confidently, express relevant ideas, organise their ideas, use appropriate language, etc. is assessed through speaking tasks such as group discussions, debates, role plays, interviews, self- and small group presentations, extended talk, etc. Self- and peer-assessments are carried out using checklists and observation schedules.
Writing:Learners' ability to create 'own' texts is assessed through a variety of writing tasks such as letter writing, paragraph writing, making a diary entry, etc. Checklists and rating scales are used to carry out self-assessment and to award points.
Learners' ability to generate relevant content, express and organise ideas in a logical sequence, use appropriate and accurate language and his/her knowledge of the mechanics of writing — spelling, punctuation and hand writing — are assessed in the writing tasks.
In all of these assessment procedures, learner's involvement in the learning process, the interest shown in completing the task successfully and his/her attitude towards language learning are also evaluated. Hence, assessment becomes not only continuous but comprehensive as well.
These formative assessment tasks provide useful information/feedback to learners as well as teachers. Feedback is the central function of formative assessment. Good feedback is positive, encouraging and suggestive in nature.
It helps learners understand their performance levels, analyse their strengths and weaknesses and focus on areas for improvement. Good feedback also makes learners aware of their learning styles and helps them improve their meta-cognitive awareness of how they learn so that they can adopt effective learning strategies.
Moreover, feedback helps teachers modify subsequent learning activities and experiences, identify and remediate group or individual deficiencies and move focus away from achieving marks/grades and onto learning processes.
All in all, assessment should not be viewed as a 'one shot' activity to be conducted at the end of the year or term or unit. Assessment is an integral, inseparable part of classroom teaching and learning. Such an assessment procedure which is formative in nature can be carried out by teachers using various tools and techniques.
Having a balanced and coherent assessment system where formative assessment procedures will receive as much attention as summative evaluation is a step in the right direction.