Assessments
- Tests & Quizzes
- Students should be regularly evaluated on their ability to understand and use the grammar discussed in class. The teacher can assess grammar concepts by creating traditional choice-based items using the test bank which accompanies the book.
- The teacher should include productive items that require spontaneously-produced writing and speaking by selecting an intermediate- or advanced-level prompt that elicits the target grammar.
- Recordings
- Prompted recordings with a time limit should give students opportunities to engage in level-appropriate tasks and functions using the target grammar. While the question should be specifically designed to prompt specific grammar use, the teacher should indicate in the instructions if a student needs to use grammar forms. It is often possible to answer many questions using the language naturally, so students should know what the expectations are.
- Writing tasks
- DWCF can be used to help students recognize and correct recurring errors. Students write under a time constraint and receive coded feedback on the errors. The writing sample for DWCF can be either paragraph length (10 mins) or a longer essay-like sample (30mins). The students then make the necessary corrections until the paragraph is error-free. Final drafts of DWCF work should be graded on accuracy for a proficiency grade (example formula: total number of words - errors/total number of words). Collaboration with the writing teacher is strongly encouraged so as not to overwhelm the students with timed writing practice.
- An Error-free Clause Ratio (EFCR) can also be used to evaluate accuracy in a timed writing sample. This is most effective with longer writing samples, like an essay. To do this, the teacher will divide the essay into clauses and then mark which clauses are error-free and which ones have errors. Next, the teacher will count the total clauses and create a ratio. For example, Student A writes an essay with 40 clauses and 32 of them were error-free. Their EFCR would be 32/40 (80%). The final grade a student receives for this type of assessment is at the teacher's discretion, but it is recommended that the grades be curved (remember that we are not expecting the students to be perfect).
