Chapter 14 responses

Performance assessment
As a teacher of a foreign language, I am required to test students (even the most quiet ones) on their oral pronunciation of the language.  I try to to this in a number of different ways throughout my lessons and most importantly, on a daily basis.  These can serve as informal or formal assessments, depending on the material that is currently being covered.  At the beginning of the day, I might ask random students how they are doing and what the weather is like in order for us to review previous material and allow them to become more comfortable speaking the language and doing so in front of their peers.  I find that it has been important for me to set a routine so that students are comfortable and prepared to answer at any point.  I make an attempt to call upon every student at least once in each 90-minute block.  I also give students the opportunity to talk to their peers in Spanish using the material we are currently covering while I circulate and assess each group and group member on their progress and accuracy.

Authentic assessment
Also in pairs or in groups, students will use the conversational material that we have covered to first develop real-life scenarios (scenes in a café or meeting someone for the first time) and then perform them in front of the class.  This gives other students the opportunity to learn from one another and get new ideas.  I assess students on their ability to both use the vocabulary and grammar correctly as well as use proper pronunciation.  I challenge students to use their Spanish outside of the classroom, so I have found that "practicing" it in the classroom setting makes students more comfortable and apt to use it elsewhere.

Formal assessment
A formal assessment is a tangible assessment of how well students are receiving the information, however, it is not comprehensive by any means.  I will have students start with a bell ringer activity of some sort (usually just a simple question to get them thinking or reviewing previous material), and then, throughout the lesson, students will answer questions that pertain to the lesson and add to their response from the bell ringer.  I prefer to break up my lessons so each question will assess how well each particular student understood any given section.  I vary the questions to range from simple T/F to ones that challenge students to think more critically about the lesson overall.  At the end of the day, I can review the student feedback about each section to see what I will need to review more heavily and what I am confident that the students know.

Teacher-developed assessment
At the end of each chapter, I usually administer a test that is a combination of questions from the book and online book we use and questions that I have developed.  It is an easy way to assess what students have and have not mastered.  The teacher-made test allows me to pick and choose, depending on what we have covered, and include real-life scenarios (for example, "write to your pen pal and tell him/her about yourself in Spanish") to help students recognize the benefits of knowing how to use the language.

Criterion-referenced assessment
With new vocabulary, I prefer to use a simple test (sometimes matching, sometimes fill-in-the-blank-with word bank) to assess if students can identify and use a new word correctly.  These two options, while easier for students, may be a preliminary assessment that builds confidence before they move on to one with a more difficult format.  I find that criterion-referenced assessments are a reliable and predictable way to find out exactly which students might be struggling and on what specific information.  Each student learns differently and at different paces and levels, so it's important to vary formatting according to these things.

Criterion-referenced vs. Norm-referenced assessments
As I noted above, criterion-referenced assessments are a great way to assess each student individually.  Each student learns at a different pace and has different needs.  You can make modifications for students and you will still be able to see what the student does or does not know.  You would also be able to look at the results from one assessment and compare them with previous ones to look at student progress instead of student accuracy.  Mastery is very easy to assess with criterion-referenced assessments.  Norm-referenced assessments can be helpful in determining placement of students in honors or AP courses, but they will not show what any given student does or does not know.  I understand the goals of norm-referenced tests, but fear that they fail to take into consideration students' individual learning styles and needs as well as other factors that affect student performance.