DELTA Module 1 - Paper 2 Task 1 -
Assessment and Testing
ANS-Definition: (TESTING) Achievement/summative tests are tests at the end of a course that
focus on the outcome. They are directly related to language courses, their purpose being to
establish how successful individual students, groups of students, or the courses themselves
have been in achieving objectives.
Ex: final achievement tests at the end of a course of study.
Atomistic - ANS-
Backwash/washback - ANS-Def: (TESTING) the effect of testing on teaching and learning. It
can be advantageous or detrimental. The effect is likely to be negative if the test's content and
methods diverge from the course goals. Ex: the teacher might try and narrow down the course
content to help Ss pass a test, which could create negative ______.
The Cloze Test (ANS) Computer adaptive testing - ANS-Def: (TESTING) Candidates are
presented initially with an item of average difficulty: those who respond correctly are presented
with a more difficult item, those who respond incorrectly get an easier item. At the end of the
test, an estimate of the candidate's ability is produced.
For instance, in an oral interview, the examiner alters the questions based on the candidate's
apparent level of understanding. Extra information: a possible more effective method for
gathering information about people's abilities. Concurrent validity - ANS-Def: (TESTING)
measures how well a new test compares to a well-established test of the same construct (i.e.
testing the same thing).
For instance, test results are compared to the teacher's assessment of the student in class. OR
if the test had to be reduced to 10 mins, a sample of students are given the 'full' 45 min test and
their results are compared to their 10 min test to see the extent of co-efficiency.
Construct validity is defined by the ANS as the degree to which a test accurately measures
what it is designed to measure. Evidence for this needs to be found through 'content' validity
and 'criterion-related' validity.
Ex: a course with the objective of teaching reading sub-skills that contained no reading text or
tasks would have no ___________ validity.
Content validity - ANS-Def: (TESTING) how far the content of the test constitutes a
representative sample of the language skills, structures, etc. with which it is meant to be
concerned. We measure this by comparing the test with the specifications of skills/language it is
supposed to cover.
Ex: a speaking test which tests all elements of the specification would have high ________
validity.
Criterion-referenced testing - ANS-Def: (TESTING) tests and assessments that are designed to
measure student performance against a fixed set of predetermined criteria or learning
Assessment and Testing
ANS-Definition: (TESTING) Achievement/summative tests are tests at the end of a course that
focus on the outcome. They are directly related to language courses, their purpose being to
establish how successful individual students, groups of students, or the courses themselves
have been in achieving objectives.
Ex: final achievement tests at the end of a course of study.
Atomistic - ANS-
Backwash/washback - ANS-Def: (TESTING) the effect of testing on teaching and learning. It
can be advantageous or detrimental. The effect is likely to be negative if the test's content and
methods diverge from the course goals. Ex: the teacher might try and narrow down the course
content to help Ss pass a test, which could create negative ______.
The Cloze Test (ANS) Computer adaptive testing - ANS-Def: (TESTING) Candidates are
presented initially with an item of average difficulty: those who respond correctly are presented
with a more difficult item, those who respond incorrectly get an easier item. At the end of the
test, an estimate of the candidate's ability is produced.
For instance, in an oral interview, the examiner alters the questions based on the candidate's
apparent level of understanding. Extra information: a possible more effective method for
gathering information about people's abilities. Concurrent validity - ANS-Def: (TESTING)
measures how well a new test compares to a well-established test of the same construct (i.e.
testing the same thing).
For instance, test results are compared to the teacher's assessment of the student in class. OR
if the test had to be reduced to 10 mins, a sample of students are given the 'full' 45 min test and
their results are compared to their 10 min test to see the extent of co-efficiency.
Construct validity is defined by the ANS as the degree to which a test accurately measures
what it is designed to measure. Evidence for this needs to be found through 'content' validity
and 'criterion-related' validity.
Ex: a course with the objective of teaching reading sub-skills that contained no reading text or
tasks would have no ___________ validity.
Content validity - ANS-Def: (TESTING) how far the content of the test constitutes a
representative sample of the language skills, structures, etc. with which it is meant to be
concerned. We measure this by comparing the test with the specifications of skills/language it is
supposed to cover.
Ex: a speaking test which tests all elements of the specification would have high ________
validity.
Criterion-referenced testing - ANS-Def: (TESTING) tests and assessments that are designed to
measure student performance against a fixed set of predetermined criteria or learning
