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Summary of the article entitled” Assessment of young learners”

This article discusses the importance of assessment and provides some techniques to assess the linguistic achievements of young learners.

The importance of assessment:

Assessment helps teachers diagnose the learners?’ abilities in differ ent skills in order to draw the appropriate strategies and remedies to fill the gaps. Assessment tools and procedures used to be predetermined at the level of the Ministry of Education. Learner-centred and communicative teaching methodologies has shifted assessment from centralized authority towards the classrooms. Hence, teachers has become more decisive. So, it is necessary for them to look for new assessment techniques to evaluate students?’ achievemen and progress.

Classroom assessment techniques:

1.     Nonverbal Responses: As an assessment technique, this type of response may help lower the level of anxiety normally associated with evaluation, as students see it as a natural extension of learning activities.

2.     Oral Interview: a student may be asked to choose pictures to talk about, and the teacher?’s role is to guide the student by asking questions that req uire the use of related vocabulary.

3.     Role-play: It combines oral performance and physical activity. Children of all ages, when assessed through this technique, feel comfortable and motivated. It is seen as a fun way of learning.

4.     Written Narratives: It could be purposeful through writing letters, emails, and short stories.

5.     Presentations: Presentations can assess students?’ abilities in bo th oral and written performance.

6.     Student-Teacher Conferences: Interviews can be an effective informal way of assessing a student?’s progress in language learning. Conferences an interviews provide opportunities to assess learners?’ communicative abilitie s.

7.     Self-Assessment: Young learners may also participate in self-assessment.

a)     Know Wonder Learn charts (KWL charts): The students create charts in which they provide what they know, what they wonder, what they learned. At the start of a course, these charts can help the teacher learn about students?’ background knowledge and interests.

8.     Dialogue Journals: They take the form of an ongoing written dialogue between teacher and student. Teachers can use journals to collect information about students?’ views, attitudes to the program or to the process involved i learning

9.     Peer and Group Assessment: The students evaluate each other?’s work on the basis of certain criteria pre-discussed with the teacher.

10.                       Student Portfolios: The purpose of a portfolio in the context of language teaching is to show to what extent the student is able to communicate through oral and written topics that he selects.

These assessment techniques can be integrated into daily classroom activities and give a comprehensive picture of the students?’ abilities progress, and achievement. Thus, they avoid anxiety caused by traditional ways of assessment.