KEY CONCEPTS At the beginning of these modules, it is essential to define terms related to language

assessment that are often confused with another because in some books they are used interchangeably. 1.
Assessment. It is the act of gathering information on a daily basis in order to understand individual
student‘s learning and needs. ―In the context of language teaching and learning, ‗assessment‘ refers to
the act of collecting information and making judgments about a language learner‘s knowledge of a
specific language and ability to use it (Chapelle & Brindley, 2013). 2. Testing.
It refers to a tool technique or a method that is intended to measure students‘ knowledge or their ability to
complete particular tasks. In this sense, testing can be considered as form of assessment (Rhalmi, 2019).

3. Language Testing. Allen, (2019) explained that it is the practice and study on how to evaluate the
proficiency of an individual in using a language effectively. 4. Measurement. It is the technique of
evaluation that uses tests and other procedure and instrument which is generally precise and objective.
This generally results in quantitative data and characteristically can express its results in numerical form
(Bhat, 2020.)
5. Evaluation, Bhat, (2020) highlighted that it is a process of education that uses gathered data from the
products and the process by means of measurement technique. In these Modules, testing, measurement
and evaluation shall subsume under assessment. ASSESSMENT AND EVALUATION PRINCIPLES To
assists teachers in planning for student assessment and evaluation, the following principles are
considered; 1. Assessment and evaluation are essential components of teaching-learning process. They
should be planned, continuous activities which are derived from curriculum objectives and consistent
with the instructional and learning strategies. 2. A variety of assessment and evaluation techniques should
be selected for their appropriateness to students‘ learning styles and to the intended purposes. Students
should be given opportunities to demonstrate the extent of their knowledge, abilities, and attitudes in a
variety of ways. 3. Teachers should communicate assessment and evaluationstrategies and plan in
advance, informing the students of the objectives and the assessment procedures relative to the objectives.
Students should have opportunities for input into the evaluation process. 4. Assessment and evaluation
should be fair and equitable. They should be sensitive to family; classroom, school and community
situations as well as to cultural or gender requirements; they should be of free of bias. 5. Assessment and
evaluation should help students. They should provide positive feedback and encourage students to
participate actively in their own assessment in order to foster lifelong learning and enable them to transfer
knowledge and abilities to their life experiences. 6. Assessment and evaluation data and results should be
communicated to students and parents/guardians regularly, in meaningful ways. 7. Assessment and
evaluation should use a variety of techniques and tools. The teacher collects assessment information about
students‘ language development and their growth in speaking, listening, writing and reading knowledge
andabilities. The data gathered during assessment becomes the basis for an evaluation. Comparing
assessment information to curriculum objectives allows the teacher to make decision or judgment
regarding the progress of the student‘s learning. PURPOSES OF ASSESSMENT 1. Assessment for
learning It focuses on the gap between where a learner is in his learning process, where he needs to meet
the desired goals which can be achieved through sharing criteria with peers, effective questioning and
feedback. The teacher must understand that learners learn best when; they can comprehend clearly; they
receive feedback; they receive advice; and they are fully involved. 2. Assessment as learning It is about
reflecting in evidence of learning. This is part of the cycle of assessment where students and teachers set
learning goals, share learning intentions and success criteria to evaluate their learning through dialogue
and self & peer assessment. Throughthis, learners become more aware of what they learn, how they learn
and what helps
them learn.
Learners are able to build knowledge of themselves as learners and become metacognitive. In other
words, they become aware of how they learn. It also helps them to make more responsibility for their
learning and participate more in the process of learning. 3. Assessment of learning This involves working
with range of available evidence that enables staff and the wider assessment community to check on
student‘s progress and using this information in a number of ways. Assessment of learning provides an
arena for the management and planning of assessment for the teachers to work collaboratively with the
evidence. It connects assessment with the curriculum. Judgments about students‘ learning need to be
dependable. This means that:  based on sound criteria, they are valid,  based on accuracy of assessment
and practice, they are reliable,  can stand up when compared to judgments in other departments or
schools which means that, they are comparable. FUNCTIONS OF LANGUAGE TESTS Tests are
essential parts of assessment, thus it is important that their functions are clearly identified.
In learning, tests are used to measure students‘ language ability to discover how much they have been
learning, to diagnose students‘ strengths and weaknesses and to motivate students in learning. Sometimes,
language teachers choose test students through periodic quizzes and tests of achievements.

In teaching, tests are used as a means to ensure effective teaching in order to improve teaching quality, to
obtain feedback on student learning place or in a course.

In research, language tests have a potentially important role in virtually all research, both basic and
applied, that is related to the nature of language proficiency, language processing, language acquisition,
language attrition and language teaching.
TYPES OF LANGUAGE ASESSMENT Language is a complicated thing to measure. Consequently,
there are many types of language testing, each type measuring different skills for different reasons. For
example, one test might ask you to read a passage out loud, while another asks you to answer questions
about the passage (Antonette, 2018). LEARNING OBJECTIVES: At the end of this module, students
must have: 1. identified the types of assessment and evaluation; 2. explained the different types of
assessment tool; 3. used guidelines for the use of each tool; 4. prepared samples of each tool discussed; 5.
differentiated the different kinds of tests and testing; 6. explained the use of each kind of tests and testing;
and 7. appreciated the value of knowing the various types of Assessment tools in teaching.