Informal & Formal Norm-Referenced &

Assesment Criterion-Referenced
Texts
Formative &
Informal Formal Summative Formative
Summative Norm-Referenced Texts Criterion-Referenced
Assesment Texts
- Incidental, - Exercises or
unplanned procedures specifically
designed to tap into a - Evaluating Ss in - Each test-taker’s
comments and - Aims to measure, or - Are designed to give
storehouse of skills the process of score is interpreted
responses summarize, what a test-takers feedback,
- Systematic planned “forming” their in relation to a mean
- Impromptu student has grasped, and usually in the form of
sampling techniques typically occurs at the end competencies (average score),
feedback median (middle grades on specific
constructed to give an of a course or unit of and skills with the course or lesson
appraisal of Ss instruction goal of helping score), standard
objectives
achievement - Final exams in a course them to continue deviation (extent of
- Criterion-Referenced
and general proficiency that growth variance in scores),
exams are examples of testing is of more of
process. and/or percentile
summative assessment prominent interest
- A type of integrative rank
than norm-referenced
test is a cloze test is a testing
Reading passage in which
roughly every sixth or
seventh word has been - Discrete-Point tests are constructed - Bachman and Palmer: “In order for
deleted; the test-taker is on the assumption that language can a particular language test to be - In technical terms, higher content
required to supply words be broken down into its component useful for its intended purposes, test validity is achieved because learners are
that fit into blanks. parts and that those parts can be performance must correspond in measured in the process of performing
- The ability to have tested successfully. These components demonstrable ways to language use
knowledge of vocabulary,
the targeted linguistic acts.
are the skills of listening, speaking, in non-test situations”. The problem
grammatical structure, - A characteristic of many performance-
reading and writing, and various units that language assessment experts
discourse structure, of language of phonology/graphology,
based language assessments is the
reading skills and faced was that tasks tended to be presence of interactive tasks. Test-takers
morphology, syntax, lexicon, and
strategies and an artificial, contrived, and unlikely to are measured in the act of speaking,
discourse. It was claimed that an
internalized “expectancy” overall language proficiency test, then, mirror language use in real life. requesting, responding, or in combining
grammar should sample all 4 skills and as many - Strategic Competence: (the ability listening and speaking and in integrating
linguistic discrete points as possible to employ communicative strategies reading and writing.
to compensate for breakdowns - A prime example of an interactive
language assessment procedure is an oral
Integrative Testing interview
Discrete-Point Testing
Communicative
Language Testing Performance-Based
Discrete-Point & Assessment
Integrative Testing