LING 439/539: Assessment
Instructor: Nike Arnold
Credits:
This course is an introduction to the theory and practice of language assessment. More specifically, it is based on the following course objectives:
- be able to use key terminology
- understand fundamental concepts and principles of psychometric measurement as well as strategies for alternative assessment
- learn how to construct language tests for various skills and measurement purposes
- be familiar with principles of computer-assisted testing (CAT)
- learn how to score tests and interpret test results
- evaluate various assessment approaches appropriate for language learning
- be familiar with popular standardized, high-stakes language tests (e.g., TOEFL)
- be familiar with assessment related issues, such as ethics, text anxiety and plagiarism
- understand and compute basic test statistics (graduate students only)
Prerequisites: LING 390; LING 477/577 TESOL Methods I
Major Assignments: This course features a variety of assignments, including collaborative and project-based work.
| 439 | 539 | ||
| Presentation on testing a specific skill | [group] | 30% | 25% |
| Profile of a popular standardized test | [group] | 15% |
15% |
| Development of assessment tool | [group] | 35% | 30% |
| Various smaller assignments/homework | [indiv] | 20% | 20% |
| Statistics assignments | [indiv] | N/A | 10% |
Textbooks:
Other Relevant Information: