4 Handy Types of Assessment in Language Teaching That Stray from Tradition

Test undercover. Whatever you do, don’t call it a proficiency test or a diagnostic test. Call it a grammar exercise, a comprehension activity or some other subtle name that leaves students feeling less judged.

A simple example would be to hand out a quiz at the end of every chapter or book unit that tests what has been covered and what’s coming up in the next unit. This lets you know what review is still required before moving on, as well as how you should prioritize the next unit.
Go over the answers as a class and give candy as a reward for everyone who received 80% or higher.
2. Learner-designed
If student participation is a central pillar to success, then why not let them help design their own tests?
Over the years, teaching has become progressively more student-centric and participatory. This next type of assessment is a product of that school of thought.
Here’s what it looks like: A week or two before testing is set to begin, do a review day with students. Go through every lesson together and determine what would qualify as mastering that lesson, what would qualify as passing/average and what would qualify as failing/unsatisfactory.
Let’s say the chapter you’re looking at covers irregular verb conjugation and vocabulary about weather. Students could determine that, in order to have mastered this chapter, they should be able to:

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  Show that they can conjugate all of the main irregular verbs (written exercise)
  

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  Be able to use them in a sentence (written & verbal exercises)
  

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  Have a conversation using them without making mistakes (verbal exercise)
  

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  Write a 300-word text that incorporates all of their weather vocabulary and each irregular verb, using a provided word bank (written exercise)
  

This is a time-consuming process, but by the end, not only have you developed a logical, end-of-course assessment that your students think is fair, you’ve also made them accountable and invested. They designed the test, after all.
The test-designing class activity doubles as a thorough review of everything learned in the course.
Here are few tips for this type of assessment:

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  Have this conversation sitting in a circle so that you don’t become the focal point, although you’ll still be the facilitator.
  

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  You can adapt this method and have students design their test requirements in groups. Afterwards, the groups will share their answers and you’ll choose the best.