Aemilianum College Inc.

COLLEGE OF EDUCATION & BUSINESS

Rizal St. Piot, West District, Sorsogon City
Sorsogon, Philippines 4700
Contact No. (056) 211 – 6012
Email Address: aemilianumcollege@gmail.com
www.aemilianum.edu.ph

SUBJECT: Teaching English in Elementary Grades (Language Arts)

COURSE/YEAR: BEED-2
A.Y./TERM: 2022-2023/1st Semester
INSTRUCTOR: DAVE B. JACOB

I. INTRODUCTION
Teaching English and Language Arts

In elementary school, language arts classes focus on basic reading, writing and linguistic /
communication skills. Periods of silent sustained reading, cursive writing, syntax, thematic
writing and vocabulary are all major focal points of elementary lessons. Through these
exercises, children are expected to develop reading and writing skills at an early age.

II. SUBJECT MATTER

 Assessing language performance
III. LEARNING OBJECTIVES
At the end of these lessons, the students are expected to:
1. Be familiarized with the best practices in assessing language performance
2. Distinguish each type of assessment
3. Identify the importance of assessing language performance
IV. DISCUSSION
LESSON 3
Assessing Language Performance

Forms of Language Testing

There are five main types of language assessments — aptitude, diagnostic, placement,
achievement, and proficiency tests.

1. Aptitude Tests

Aptitude refers to a person's capacity for learning something. Language aptitude tests assess a
person's ability to acquire new language skills. Because of the nature of these tests, they are more
general than most other language tests and don't focus on a particular language. Instead, they
assess how quickly and effectively a person is able to learn new language skills.
An employer might use an aptitude test to select the best employees to take language courses so
they can aid in the setup of a new international branch or provide bilingual customer service.

2. Diagnostic Tests

Diagnostic tests are aimed at diagnosing the state of a person's abilities in a certain area — in this
case, their language abilities. In contrast to achievement and proficiency tests, diagnostic tests
are typically given at the start of a language learning course or program.

On a diagnostic test, most test-takers encounter questions or tasks that are outside the scope of
their abilities and the material they're familiar with. The results of the test reveal the strengths
and weaknesses in one's language abilities. Having a student's diagnostic test results can help
teachers formulate lesson plans that fill the gaps in the student's current capabilities. Students can
also use diagnostic tests to determine which areas they need to work on in order to reach a higher
level of proficiency.

3. Placement Tests

Placement tests share some similarities with diagnostic tests. They are used for educational
purposes and are administered before a course or program of study begins. In this case, the
application is a bit different. Educators and administrators use placement tests to group language
learners into classes or study groups according to their ability levels.

A university may give a placement test to determine whether a new French major needs to take
introductory French courses or skip over some courses and begin with more advanced classes.
Placement tests are also an important type of test in English language teaching at the university
level, since international students typically come in with different English-learning backgrounds
and proficiency levels.

4. Achievement Tests

An achievement test evaluates a student's language knowledge to show how their learning has
progressed. Unlike diagnostic, aptitude, and placement tests, achievement tests only cover
information the student should have been exposed to in their studies thus far.

Achievement tests are typically given after a class completes a certain chapter or unit or at the
conclusion of the course. A language teacher may give a final exam at the end of the semester to
see how well a student has retained the information they were taught over the course of the
semester. Achievement tests are typically graded and are meant to reflect how well the language
tester is performing in their language learning studies.

5. Proficiency Tests

Proficiency refers to a person's competency in using a particular skill. Language proficiency tests
assess a person's practical language skills. Proficiency tests share some similarities with
achievement tests, but rather than focusing on knowledge, proficiency tests focus on the practical
application of that knowledge. Proficiency tests measure a language user’s comprehension and
production against a rating scale such as the ACTFL, ILR, and CEFR scales.

Whereas most of the tests we've looked at are primarily associated with academic contexts,
proficiency tests are useful in a variety of settings. Anyone can take a language proficiency test,
regardless of how they learned the language and where they believe they are in their level of
competency. Proficiency tests accurately measure the candidate's ability to use a language in
real-life contexts.

Types of Language Skills

Another way to understand language testing is in terms of language skills. Though you may ask
someone whether they "know" a certain language, that general term consists of several distinct
skills. The four skills involved in language proficiency are listening, speaking, reading, and
writing.

These skills can be categorized by their direction and method of communication. Listening and
reading are both ways of receiving language input, whereas speaking and writing are both ways
of producing language output. These pairs differ from each other when it comes to the direction
of communication. The items within each pair, however, differ by their method of
communication. Listening and speaking both involve oral communication while reading and
writing involve written communication.

Let's take a closer look at each of the four language skills.

1. Listening

Listening skills in a particular language involve understanding oral communication. When

people acquire their first language as babies, listening to their parents and others speaking around
them is the initial step toward comprehension and listening ability. Some people also acquire a
second language through immersion, with their listening skills developing earliest.
2. Speaking

People often refer to speaking a language in a general way that encompasses multiple ways of
using a language. For example, they may say they speak a certain language when a more
accurate statement would be that they are able to communicate in it using all four of the
communicative skills. Speaking is a specific skill, however, which, along with listening, is
required to negotiate meaning in a conversation. Speaking requires communication in real time
and may be one of the most challenging to develop yet most valuable of the four skills.

3. Reading

Comprehension of oral language and written language are two very different skills. The reading
skill involves understanding the meaning of written language. A person may be able to speak a
language with a high level of proficiency but be completely unable to read it, while other may
find it easier to read than speak since they can consume and process the language at their own
pace.

The degree of difficulty in learning to read in a second language partly depends on how similar
or dissimilar the writing system is from that of a person's first language. For example, most
European languages use the Latin alphabet, the world's most widely used alphabetic writing
system, making letters appear similar on the page. Therefore, a native English speaker may be
able to learn to read in Spanish relatively easily. However, a knowledge of the Latin alphabet
won't help you understand Arabic script or Chinese characters. Reading tests can help you
determine your proficiency in reading a language

4. Writing

Writing comes with the same challenges involved in reading since writing systems vary across
languages. Learning to write in a second language that uses a completely different system from
the one you're familiar with can be especially challenging. Writing doesn't come as naturally as
speech, even in acquiring our first language, so it can be a challenging skill for language
learners. This is why students often take writing courses in their first language throughout their
educational careers.

Language Proficiency Tests

ACTFL’s language proficiency tests are designed to assess a person's abilities in the four skills
explained above. Some of the most well-respected tests for assessing the above skills include:

 Listening Proficiency Test: The Listening Proficiency Test (LPT) is an internet-based

test that measures a person's ability to spontaneously understand spoken language in one
of 11 languages available. The test-taker listens to recordings and must answer multiple-
choice questions about what they hear. The results report the test-taker's level of
proficiency in listening.
 Oral Proficiency Interview: The Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI) evaluates a person's
speaking skill in a particular language. An ACTFL-Certified Tester speaks with the test-
 taker over the phone and gauges their proficiency level against the criteria outlined in one
of the proficiency scales. The interview is a useful assessment tool because, though it
follows a structure and protocol, it reflects a real-life conversation.
 Oral Proficiency Interview-computer: The Oral Proficiency Interview-computer
(OPIc) evaluates a person's speaking skill in a particular language. The goal of the OPIc
is the same as the OPI: to obtain a ratable sample of speech which a rater can evaluate
and compare to the criteria outlined in one of the proficiency scales. The internet-
delivered assessment emulates the "live" OPI, but delivery of questions is through a
carefully designed program and via a virtual avatar, allowing the test to be taken on
demand and at a time convenient to the candidate and proctor.
 Reading Proficiency Test: The Reading Proficiency Test (RPT) is an internet-based test
during which the candidate reads passages in one of 12 languages and answers multiple-
choice questions to demonstrate their reading comprehension in that language. Because
of the format of the test, it is machine scored, so results are available immediately upon
completion.
 Writing Proficiency Test: The Writing Proficiency Test (WPT) is another internet-based
test. Rather than answering multiple-choice questions, the test-taker responds in detail to
open ended writing prompts. ACTFL-Certified raters assess the candidate's written
responses as compared to the guidelines established by one of the proficiency scales. This
test is available in a variety of languages.

Through each test, the candidate's results are reported according to one of the following scales to
objectively measure proficiency:

 The ACTFL scale

 The Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) scale
 The Interagency Language Roundtable (ILR) scale

The Value of Language Testing

Language testing is a valuable tool both in language-learning contexts and in professional ones.
Language tests can define where a student is in their current knowledge and reveal the path
forward to greater proficiency. Professionals can use language testing to determine whether their
skill set meets the criteria of a job or whether they need further training. At the same time,
employers can certify their employees’ and new hires’ levels of language proficiency and ensure
that they are able to successfully complete the tasks required of them without creating risk for the
organization.

Language is complex and assessing it can be a complicated endeavor. Thankfully, experts have
created tests that effectively assess a person's language skills. As an instructor, employer,
student, or professional, all you have to do is take advantage of these tests to get a useful
measure of language proficiency.
V. ASSESSMENT/EXERCISES
Explain. Use your own words.
Module Lesson 3 Assessment:
1. Distinguish each form of language testing. (5 points)

2. Differentiate each type of proficiency tests. (5 points)

VI. SELF-ASSESSMENT/REFLECTION
From the module,
A. I UNDERSTAND THAT……

B. I REALIZE THAT…..

VII. LEARNING RESOURCES/REFERENCES

Author: (languagetesting.com)
Title: What is a Language Proficiency Test & How to Get Certified
Date published:
URL: What is a Language Proficiency Test & How to Get Certified (languagetesting.com)

NAME: COURSE:

V. ASSESSMENT/EXERCISES
Explain. Use your own words.
Module Lesson 3 Assessment:
1. Distinguish each form of language testing. (5 points)

2. Differentiate each type of proficiency tests. (5 points)

REFLECTION
I UNDERSTAND THAT……
I REALIZE THAT…..