Designing Classroom Language Tests Jacob Luth Questions to Consider • What is the purpose of the test? • What are the objectives of the test? • Do my test questions match the purpose and objectives of the test? • How will you decide the test items? • What kind of scoring, grading, or feedback is expected? Types of Test • • • • Language Aptitude Tests Proficiency Tests Placement Tests & Diagnostic Tests Achievement Tests Language Aptitude Exams • Category I language: 95 or better[4] (French, Italian, Portuguese, and Spanish) • Category II language: 100 or better (German, Indonesian) • Category III language: 105 or better (Dari, Greek, Hebrew, Hindi/Urdu, Persian, Punjabi, Rus sian, Serbo-Croatian, Tagalog, Thai, Turkish, and Uzbek) • Category IV language: 110 or better (Modern Standard Arabic, Pashto, Chinese, Japanese, and Korean) • US Military High Stakes Proficiency Exam • http://www.ets.org/toefl/ibt/about/who_acce pts_scores?WT.ac=toeflhome_whoaccepts_12 1127 Clear Objectives • • • • What do you want to test? Ex: I want to test the Define your objectives. Example: Students will use the progressive future tense in written discourse Designing Multiple Choice Items • • • • • • Simple item to create but difficult to do well Students can guess Students can cheat -High Practicality High Reliability Multiple Choice Exams • Design each item for a specific objective • Make the stem as simple as possible • The intended answer is the only correct one Grading • How will you score the exam? -- based on your intentions What is important? Feedback • One number (0-5) • Sub scores • Listening and reading section – Signals for what is correct – Side comments More Feedback • Interview or Presentation Scores for each element on a rubric A checklist of what elements that need to be included Essay Written comments Rubric Ongoing and post conferences Self assessment Design Your Own Quiz!