GROUP 6

Testing vocabulary and

grammar
Testing overall ability
 Table of contents

01 02 03
Why test? Writing specifications Sampling
1. Grammar 1. Grammar 1. Grammar
2. Vocabulary 2. Vocabulary 2. Vocabulary

04 05
Writing items
. Testing overall ability
1. Grammar
2. Vocabulary
 01
Why test?
1. Grammar
2. Vocabulary
01 Why test?

Grammar and vocabulary

 01 A brief overview of the history

- Previously, the testing of

grammatical structures always has
an irreplaceable place

- Over the last few decades, however, a

shift in the way language are tested

=> Assessing learners’ 4 skills directly

 01
Why still test?
Grammar
& Vocabulary
01
Grammar =>

Vocabulary =>
 01 Why still test G & V

1. Grammar and Vocabulary

=> indispensable in language acquisition

=> Provide feedbacks and improvement

 01 Why still test G & V

2. Time/cost-efficient
- Proficiency tests administered on a
large scale still retain a grammar and
vocabulary section.
- Convenient scoring

=> identify areas where students may need

additional support or practice
 01 Why still test G & V
3. Strong grammar and
vocabulary skills essential for
effective communication in a
second language.

Testing ensures that students

have the necessary language
foundation to express
themselves clearly and
accurately.
 02
Writing specifications
1. Grammar
2. Vocabulary
Similarities in writing specifications
- including items that have been consciously taught to
students
E.g:
+ Achievement tests (Present tense, conditional sentence,
etc.)

+ Placement tests: determine the coverage of grammar

and vocabulary topics in the placement test, aligning
with the expected language proficiency level for the
target audience.
Similarities in writing specifications

- adding new materials (reading, listening

and other activities)
 03
Sampling
1. Grammar
2. Vocabulary
3. Sampling 3.1 GRAMMAR

● Content Validity: selecting widely from the structures

specified.
● Selection of Important Structures: considering structures
that are deemed most significant for assessment
purposes.
● Avoidance of Bias: not biasing the test towards
structures that are easiest to test.
3. Sampling 3.2 VOCABULARY

● Grouping Words: Words are categorized based on their

frequency and usefulness

● Random Selection: From each of these groups, items can

be taken at random, with more being selected from the
groups containing the more frequent and useful words.
 The similarities in sampling for
grammar and vocabulary tests
Purpose Sampling Methods Random Selection

assess based on frequency of selected randomly

language use and importance from pre-defined
proficiency groups or categories
 Differences in sampling for grammar and vocabulary tests
Grammar tests Vocabulary tests

primarily focus on assessing understanding and focus on assessing knowledge and

application of grammatical rules and structures understanding of word meanings and usage.

includes a range of grammatical structures, such includes a wide range of words and phrases.
as verb tenses, sentence structure, and
punctuation.

evaluated based on adherence to grammatical evaluated based on the accuracy of

rules and correctness of sentence structure. word meanings and usage.

indirectly assess other language skills such as more directly focused on testing lexical
reading comprehension and writing ability knowledge.
 04
Writing items
1. Grammar
2. Vocabulary
4. Writing items 4.1 GRAMMAR
Four techniques are presented for testing
grammar:
● gap filling
● paraphrase
● completion
● multiple choice.

The first three require production on the part

of the candidates, while multiple choice, of
course, calls only for recognition.
 4.1GRAMMAR
Gap filling
● Gap filling items should have just one correct response.

E.g. He arrived late,_ was a surprise. Which

● An item with may be acceptable if the whichever is

used.

E.g. He displayed the wide, bright smile ___ had charmed

so many people before.
[which, that]
 4.1 GRAMMAR
Gap filling
Patient: My baby keeps me awake all night. She won’t
stop crying. Doctor: Then just let her cry. She’ll stop
in the end.
Question: What should be filled in the gap?
A.I’d
B.you
An item is probably to be rejected if the different possibilities
gave different meanings or involve quite different structure,
one of which is the one that is supposed to be tested.
Paraphrase 4.1 GRAMMAR

Paraphrase items require the student to write a

sentence equivalent in meaning to one that is given.
It is helpful to give part of the paraphrase in order to
restrict the students to the grammatical structure
being tested.
Examples of Paraphrase 4.1 GRAMMAR

E.g. Testing passive, past continuous form.

1. When we arrived, a policeman was questioning the bank
clerk.
When we arrived, the bank clerk ……………
Answer: was being questioned

E.g. Testing present perfect with for.

2. It is six years since I last saw him.
I ……………. six years.
—> Answer: haven’t seen him for
Completion
.
Can be used to test a variety of
structures

In the following conversation, the

sentences numbered (1) to (5) have been
left incomplete. Complete them suitably.
 Multiple Choice
If we have the simple sentence:
They left at seven. They……… be home by now.
(must, should, may, could, might, will)

We can add context , having someone reply:

A: They left at seven. They… ……..be home by
now.
B: Yes, but we can’t count on it, can we?
a. can
b. could
c. will
d. must
 4.2 VOCABULARY
Testing recognition ability
Recognise Choose the alternative (a, b, c or d) which is closest in
synonyms meaning to the word on the left of the page

Recognise loathe means

definitions
a. dislike intensely b. become seriously ill

c. search carefully d. look very angry

Recognise The strong wind ____the man’s efforts to put up the tent.
appropriate word
for context a. disabled b. hampered c. deranged d. regaled
 4.2 VOCABULARY
Testing production
ability
There is no approach that fits for all. It depends on
the specific vocabulary being tested. For concrete nouns
like "shoes," picture matching may be effective, while for
adverbs like "usually," gap filling with context may be
more suitable.

Therefore,writers must consider the nature of the

vocabulary being tested and choose the format that
best aligns with assessment goals.
 Part 2
Tests for Young Learners
 Discussion
Should we test young learners?
Some reasons why we should test young learners

● To ensure that the teaching program is effective, and that the

children are really benefiting from the chance to learn a language at
an early age.

● To fulfil the need for a common yardstick, which tests give, in

order to make meaningful comparisons.

one’s test result one’s performance one’s performance

vs. their previous vs. their vs. learning
Some reasons why we should test young learners
Some reasons why we should test young learners

● To ensure that the teaching program is effective, and that the

children are really benefiting from the chance to learn a language at
an early age.

● To fulfil the need for a common yardstick, which tests give, in

order to make meaningful comparisons.

● To help the children develop positive attitudes towards assessment,

and to help them recognize the value of assessment.
General recommendations
1. Teachers should try to make testing an integral part of assessment,
and assessment an integral part of the teaching program.

➔ To instill a healthy attitude towards testing among young learners.

Note: All 3 elements (testing, assessment, & teaching program)

should be consistent with each other in terms of learning objectives
and, as far as possible, with the kind of tasks which the children are
expected to perform.
 Unit 1 (Family s Friends 4)
In this unit, students learn vocabulary related to the restaurant, along
with present simple, present continuous, and their time markers. Achievement test for
Unit 1
General recommendations
2. Children should be provided with constant feedback on their
test performance.

● Feedback should be immediate and positive.

● The criteria by which they are being assessed should be

explained before the test and revisited at the feedback stage.

● Feedback should challenge the learner and require some

form of (achievable) action.
General recommendations
3. Self-assessment should be made part of the teaching program.

➔ To help the children develop the habit of monitoring their own

progress, which in turn can set them on the path to becoming
active learners.
Suggested source:
Twinkl.com.vn
General recommendations
4. Teachers should create the conditions that allow young
learners to perform at their best.

● Think about what they are familiar with (e.g. the

teachers, the surroundings)

● Prepare practice items at the start of the test, or at least 1-2

examples modeling what the child is expected to do if needed.

● Include easy tasks at the beginning of the test.

Specific test features
Children have a relatively short attention
span.

Tests should not be long. Individual tasks

should be brief and varied.
Specific test features
Children enjoy stories and
play.

Tests should reflect this.

+ Children react well to ‘silly’

scenarios.

Stories and activities with

elements of silliness are to be
encouraged.
Specific test features
Children respond well to attractive typography, color, pictures and
videos.

Tests should include these elements where possible.

Specific test features
Their first language and cognitive skills are still developing.

Tasks should be ones that the children being tested can be expected to
handle comfortably in their first language.
Children draw a line from an image to the appropriate text
 05

Test overall ability

Overability as a
concept
is directly related to the
common-sense idea that
someone can be good (quite
good, or poor) at a second or
foreign language.
Measuring
overall ability
Most techniques are re based on the
idea of reduced redundancy.

When we read or write, the extra

information available for us to
interpret what is said or written,
which is called redundancy.

The deliberate reduction of

redundancy has been used as a
means of estimating foreign
language ability.
Varieties of cloze procedure
Traditional cloze
 Varieties of cloze
procedure

Selected deletion cloze

Varieties of cloze
procedure

Multiple choice
cloze
Varieties of cloze
procedure

Conversational
cloze
The C-Test

is a variety of cloze, which its originators claim is superior to the kind of

cloze described above. Instead of whole words, it is the second half of
every second word that is deleted.
Dictation

Dictation tests give results similar to those obtained from cloze tests. In
predicting overall ability they have the advantage of involving listening
ability.
Elicited imitation

Elicited imitation is
normally carried out on a
one-to-one basis. It
requires a candidate to
repeat a series of spoken
sentences of increasing
length and complexity.
Using measures
of overall ability
Screening
In screening, we eliminate candidates who
could not possibly be successful on a longer
test which takes time to administer and
score. Only those candidates who pass the
screening test take the longer one
 Component of larger test
reliability validity

validation
 Ex. 4: Comparing literary movements
Compare and contrast the main features, themes, and representative authors
of two literary movements of your choosing

Literary movement Main features Themes Representativ

e authors
● ● ● ●

● ● ● ●

See the answers

 Answers
● Classicism: A literary movement that emphasizes emotional expression and
Exercise 1
individualism. It often focuses on the beauty of nature and the power
of imagination
● Romanticism: A literary movement characterized by its rejection of traditional
forms and its exploration of subjective experience, emotion, and intuition
● Realism: A literary movement that emerged in the late 19th century, depicting
the details of everyday life and society in a truthful and objective manner
● Expressionism: A literary movement that arose after World War I, known for
its emphasis on the unconscious mind, dreams, and the absurd
● Symbolism: A literary movement that seeks to represent ideas, emotions, and
objects through symbols and metaphors
● Modernism: A literary movement marked by a deliberate break from
traditional styles and forms, often reflecting the fragmented and complex
nature of modern life
 Answers
Exercise 2 ● Fairy Tale (Märchen)

Exercise 3 ● Naturalism (Naturalismus): beruht auf exakter

Gesellschafts- und Naturbeobachtung und
Darstellung aktueller Zeitprobleme

Exercise 4 The specific answers will depend on the literary movements chosen
by the students.
 Thank you
for listening!