Assignment V Roll No.

: 14308

Ans.1.a. The role of evaluation in the teaching/ learning of a second language is quite crucial.
It is the evaluation that explains and confirms the incumbent classroom practices. Evaluation
is a tool both for the teacher and the learners to test their performance and bring changes in
the procedures of teaching and learning whenever necessary. If the evaluation is absent,
definitely the scope of learning and motivation to learn the language is also absent. It gives an
opportunity to either validate or null the ongoing practices of learning as well as teaching.

Ans.1.b.

Advantages
From the point of view of the learner
1. The student can reflect upon his/ her
grey ares.
2. It gives him/ her chance for
improvement.
3. It enables him/ her to come across the
achievements of learning.
Disadvantages
From the point of view of the learner
1. It may leave the student with the
feeling of discomfort and
embarrassment.
2. The other factors such as his/ her
background and culture that have
considerable impact on his/ her
performances, due to lack of
feasibility ,are left unevaluated having
adverse effect on his/ her grades.
3. If the evaluation is not holistic one,
his/ her language may be left
unevaluated in front of his/ her speed
and memory.
Advantages
From the point of view of the teache
1. The teacher can adjust his/ her
teaching practices wherever
needed.
2. It gives him/ her change to come
across the types of weaknesses
present in his her methodology.
3. It enables him/ her to locate the
language skills he/ she has to focus
more in the future.
Disadvantages
From the point of view of the teacher
1. It wastes his/ her time as he/ she could
have done something more productive
in this time.
2. Language proficiency includes all the
four skills of language: listening,
reading, speaking, and writing. If all
the skills are not evaluated with proper
care and weight age, the valuation is
of no use.
3. Some students are very active and
attentive during class times but could
not perform better at exam. This idea
brings wrong results that belie the
entire truth.
Ans. 1.c. Indubitably, evaluation is a practice that is best done by the teacher. It is not owing
to the powers and positions that he/ she enjoys but because of his/ her being guiding and
facilitating the language needs of the students. Certainly, he/ she is the one who has been with
his/ her lot of the students for so long and he/ she is expectedly more acquainted with the
students, their preferences and their level. Consequently, he/ she would be the right choice to
have involvement in the evaluation. Moreover, students on proper training and orientation
may also have their say in the process of evaluation. Students are equally an important part in
the process of evaluation. It is the responsibility of the teacher to give them proper ground to
have their feedback and choices on what should be evaluated and how. This will infuse the
intellectual traits of fair-mindedness and humility in the students and therefore they will be at
a better position to self assess themselves.

Ans. II. Language comprises different skills and so needs different types of assessments such
as formal, informal, formative, and summative depending on different aims and aspects.

Formal assessment refers to the pre-planned and systematic attempts that the teachers designs
to ascertain what the students have learned. These assessments are the same that are held in
schools/ colleges and universities as mid and final assessments. These assessments are
planned as indicated in the objectives of the course. This is the reason that for this assessment
students have time to prepare themselves. In other words these assessments are to ascertain
whether the student has learned what was mentioned in the objective of the course or has he/
she become able to what was expected of him/ her at the end of the course.

On the other hand, informal assessment is the one that results from the teachers day to day
observation of the students diaries, notebooks, journals and other writing materials. These
assessments are done without any set agenda in the mind of the teacher. But, at the same time,
it offers an abundant opportunity to the teacher to learn about the intellect and the interests of
the student.

Formative assessment refers to assessment conducted while the student is learning and is
used by the teacher to adjust his/ her classroom teaching practices and by students to improve
their performance as needed. The difference between formative and summative assessment is
not in the actual assessment tasks but rather in their purposes. If students are given a test or
assigned a homework but are not counted towards their grade, it is a formative assessment.

Summative assessment can be of great help to the student to recover at the end if he/ she was
not able to perform better in class activities and projects, and also if he/ she was shy and
hesitant at voicing his/ her say in the class. With the same token, it becomes disadvantageous
because learning is not merely performing better at the exams and taking class activities and
discussions for granted. As far as informal assessment is concerned, it the most concrete
assessment as it is done without the notice of the students and so the chances of manipulation
are minimal. The same assessment becomes a loophole because it does validate the overall
learning status and behaviour of the students. Cases are also there when students are
extremely good at maintain their notes and other such stuff but at the time of performance the
truth is something opposite.
Formative assessment are not for grades, as a result the changes of anxiety are minimum. It
detaches the thinking that everything should be right. Rather, it gives a chance to the teacher
and the students to work on the gray areas of his/ her and perform better at the end exam. As
grades are not given, the competent skill of the students suppresses and sometimes the lack of
interest also results. On the other side of the seesaw, formal assessment, on their being
announced previously, provide motivation for the students to study hard and pay even more
attention in the class. If the performance was good, good grades will be given that will
become indicators of the students performance for rest of the academic life. Nevertheless, it
has disadvantages also such as the teacher start teaching to the test as it reflects very close to
his/ her performance. Also, no assessment is ever perfect. If the students finds question tricky
and time consuming he/ she may get nervous under pressure loosing the performance not
matter how genius he performed at class discussions and other activities.

Ans. III. a. The test paper I have chosen was set by me for the students of diploma in
engineering. The paper was split over five units. I have taken up only those two units where I
tested reading and writing skills.
The tasks for testing reading skill are both direct and indirect. Question number 3.a. and
3.b. are direct. Here, the students demonstrate how well the students can scan a text, which
is aim of the examiner to examine.
Question number 3.c. is indirect. Here, the students language skills are tested in a controlled
way. Students have been given words selected by the examiner and they have to make
sentences only using them. Therefore, the examinee cannot exhibit his language skills freely.
Task assigned in question number 4 are direct. The students have only been given topics to
write and demonstrate their writing skill without ant restrain. It is bit guided as the topics to
write on are defined by the examiner already.

Ans. III. b. Grading has multiple advantages in assessing language ability. It communicates
students abilities in a second language so as to maximize the potential of each individual
student by allowing them to focus on the specific areas where they may be deficient.
Moreover, it employs the students knowledge and/or ability level in culture, vocabulary,
structures, listening comprehension, reading comprehension, writing, and speaking.
Considering all the factors of learning which are often neglected, grading brings both the
weaker and the good learners in the focus as a result of which the separate methodologies,
commensurate with their levels, can be designed and the existing ones can be manipulated. If
grading is not done the shy and the introvert will leave the class empty handed giving the
fruit to the good and fast learners only. The trainer must make a good use of his/ her
intelligence so that embarrassment by the slow and over confidence by the fast learners does
not creep into. For instance, if his/ her focus is on the slow learners at one time, he must keep
the fast engaged win some task so that the slow may learn their lessons without any
embarrassment and a feel of being noticed.