Practical Idea on Alternative Assessment for

ESL Students. Author: Tannenbaum, Jo-Ellen

Instructor:  Liane HaslauerPresenter: Natasha LiaoDate: April 28th, 2008

Why is Alternative Assessment useful?* It's particularly useful with ESL students because it engages strategies that ask Ss to show what they can do.  * Ss are evaluated on what they integrate and produce instead of on what they are able to recall and reproduce.

Alternative Assessment

* Focus:       documenting individual S growth over time, rather than comparing students with one another.   * Emphasis:      on Ss' strengths, rather than weaknesses. 

    * Consideration is given to:• learning styles• language proficiencies• cultural & educational

background• grade levels of Ss

A Variety of Measures

* Nonverbal assessment strategies * K-W-L charts * Oral performances or presentations * Oral and written produces * Portfolios

Nonverbal Assessment Strategies

* Physical demonstration:       students can point or use other gestures to express academic concepts without speech.

* Pictorial products:       teachers can ask Ss to produce and manipulate drawings, models, graphs, and charts to elicit content knowledge without requiring Ss to speak or write. 

K-W-L Charts

  * this strategy enables teachers to gain an awarness of Ss' background knowledge and interests  * it helps teachers assess the content material learned

Sample K-W-L Charts

* what I know:•  Lincoln was important• His face is on a penny• He's dead now• I think Lincoln was a

President• He was a tall person.

 * what I want to know:•  Why is Lincoln famous?• Was he a good President?• Why is he on a penny?• Did he have a family?• How did he die?

 

* what I've learned:• Lincoln was President

of the U.S.• He was the 16th

President.• There was a war in

America when Lincoln was President.

• He let the slaves go free.

• Two of his sons died while he was still alive.

Oral Performances or PresentationsPerformonce-based assessments include: • interviews• oral reports• role plays• describing• explaining• summarizing • retelling• paraphrasing stories

Oral and Written Products

Useful oral & written products for assessing ESL Ss: • content area thinking & learning log• reading response logs• writing assignments• dialogue journals• audio  or video cassettes

Portfolios

* Portfolios are used to collect samples of S work over time to track S development.  Materials can be included in a portfolio:• Audio• Writing samples• Art work • Conference or interview notes• Checklists• Tests and quizzes

 

Conclusion

   Alternative assessment holds great promise for ESL Ss.    The ideas and models are intended to be adaptable, practical, and realistic for teachers who are dedicated to creating meaningful and effective assessment experiences for ESL Ss. 

Thank you for listening !!!