• Course Description
• Objectives
• Class Format and Method of Teaching
• Methods of Assessment
• Textbooks
• Student Responsibilities and Semester Schedule
• Committee of Examiners' Meeting Schedules
• Important Dates during the Semester

Ling 624/424 is a course designed for persons who will teach or are teaching foreign languages (L2) in grades K through 12, or at the tertiary level of education. +AKA-As a University of Delaware teacher-preparation course, the methods, objectives, topics, and requirements for this course presuppose that all participants are reflective practitioners who are committed to serving a diverse population of L2 learners by becoming well grounded in relevant L2 testing theory and current L2 testing research.

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This course is designed to assist L2 teachers in the development and selection of second language tests for classroom, institutional or research use. +AKA-More specifically, the participants in the course will be able to:
 

+AKA-articulate general and specific notions related to assessed and testing second language skills

evaluate and make up second language tests, and refine them in group meetings

articulate their familiarity with the theoretical bases that underline the testing of second languages

articulate current issues and research in language testing

understand basic experimental design procedures, and interpret tables and graphs

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LING 624/424 is a course for reflective practitioners who teach different foreign languages. The first two hours of the course consist of formal lectures and demonstrations by the instructor, +AKA-followed by student presentations on assigned readings. +AKA-In order for the instructor to focus on testing the several, various, specific languages represented in the class, the third hour of the class will be devoted to language-specific groups of students. +AKA-Therefore, on a rotating basis, only those teachers planning to teach a certain +AKA-foreign language, for example, Japanese, will collaborate on week No. 2 to discuss testing Japanese language proficiency. +AKA-On the following week, those planning to teach French will collaborate as a group with the instructor to discuss testing +AKA-French. +AKA-On the following week, those practitioners planning to teach Spanish will collaborate as a group with the instructor, and so forth, on a rotating basis. +AKA-Thus, all participants will meet together for two hours; the third hour will be devoted to language-specific, cooperative group work. +AKA-This round-robin rotating schedule for the language-specific groups will be arranged in class.

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The final grade will be calculated on the following bases:

	Undergraduate	Graduate
Mid-Term Exam*	20%	15%
Final Exam*	20%	15%
Term Paper or Project (Graduate Students)	XXX	30%
2 Sample Tests*	30%	20%
Critical, In-class Reports*	10%	10%
Class Participation/Contribution	20%	10%

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Textbooks (Required)

Cohen, Andrew W. (1994). +AKA-Assessing Language Ability in the Classroom. +AKAAoA-
+AKAAoACgAKAAoACgAKA-+AKA- +AKA- Boston: Heinle & Heinle. Second Edition.

O'Malley, J. M. & Veldez-Pierce (1996). +AKA- Authentic Assessment for ELL's: Practical
+AKAAoA- +AKA- +AKA- +AKA- +AKA- +AKA-Approaches for Teachers. +AKA-N.Y. : Addison-Wesley Publishing Co.

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All students are responsible for reading assigned materials before each class. +AKA-Graduate students are responsible for planning the term project well in advance so that it can be turned in by the last week of class. +AKA-Working in language specific groups is encouraged.

+AKA-

Week	Date	Topic	Required Readings
1	+AKA-August 28	Introduction and Approaches to language test design; different kinds of tests; basic testing terminology.	Cohen; Chap. 1 O'Malley, Chap. 1
2	Sept. 4	Basic considerations in test design; purpose of L2 tests; concepts of Validity and Reliability	Cohen; Chap. 2 O'Malley, Chap. 1
3	Sept.11	Measurement scales; Test construction; preparing discrete point and integrative tests.	Cohen; Chap. 6 O'Malley, Chap. 2
4	Sept. 18	Preparing language tests: Multiple Choice Questions for both discrete point and integrative tests	Cohen; Chap. 3 Course packet O'Malley, Chap. 2
5	Sept. 25	More on pragmatic/integrative techniques: +AKA-dictation; cloze; c-tests; cloze elide	Class lecture Course packet
6+AKA-	Oct.2 HAND IN 2 MID-TERM QUESTIONS (*COPIES)	Scoring tests; evaluating test:  item difficulty vs. item discrimination guidelines	Cohen, Chap. 4.1.2-4.1.8 Course packet
7	Oct.9 HAND IN 2 ANSWERS  (1 COPY)	Test-taker characteristics:  test-taking strategies; testing reading comprehension  (cloze, etc.)	Cohen, Chap.5 O'Malley, Chap. 5
8	Oct. 16 MID-TERM EXAM	Testing L2 reading comprehension (Cont.); alternative assessment techniques.	Cohen, Chap.7 Course packet O'Malley, Chap.5
9	Oct.23	Testing L2 Writing; product vs. process; analytical vs. holistic scoring; preparing L2 writing prompts; designing scoring guides for assessing L2 writing	Cohen, Chap. 9 Course packet O'Malley, Chap.6
10	Oct. 30	Holistic Scoring Workshop	Cohen, Chap. 8 Course packet
11+AKA-	Nov. 6	Testing L2 listening comprehension	O'Malley, Chap. 6 Cohen, Chap. 8
12	Nov. 13	Testing L2 speaking; O.P.I;  S.O.P.I; TSE; FSI Interview	Course packet O'Malley, Chap. 4
13	Nov. 20 HAND IN 2  Final EXAM QUESTIONS  (* COPIES)	Alternative assessment techniques;  Portfolio Assessment	Class lecture Course packet O'Malley, Chap. 3, 8
14	Nov.27	Non-test techniques for assessment of L2 skills  and communicative competence.	Class lecture O'Malley, Chap. 3, 8 Course packet
15	Dec. 4	+AKA- +AKA- +AKA- +AKA- +AKA- +AKA- +AKA- +AKA- +AKA- +AKA- +AKA- +AKA- FINAL EXAM. +AKA- All tests/research papers due.

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Committee of Examiners' Meeting Schedules
Discrete Point Tests Due

September 25                                        Elementary ESL Teachers  (20)

October  2                                            Adult ESL Teachers  (11)
                                                           Japanese & Italian Teachers (by appt.)

October 9                                             French Teachers  (5)

October 23                                           Spanish Teachers  (12)

Integrative Tests Due

October 30                                           Elementary ESL Teachers  (20)

November 6                                         Adult ESL Teachers (11)
                                                           Japanese & Italian Teachers (by appt.)

November 13                                        French Teachers (5)

November 20                                        Spanish Teachers (12)

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Important Dates During the Semester
 

Sept. 11+AKAAoA-	Last day free drop/add and late registration. Last day for completion of incomplete undergraduate work.+AKA- +AKAAoACg- +AKAAoACg- +AKAAoACg- +AKAAoACg- +AKAAoACg- +AKA-
Oct.19	Graduate students only: last day to complete work from 01S and 01J.
Oct.22-29	Registration for winter 2002 (02W) semester begins
Oc.t 30	Last day to drop a full course without penalty or approval.
Nov.15-30	Registration for spring 2002 semester (02S) begins
Nov. 21	Thanksgiving recess begins at 5:00 p.m.
Dec.5 (Wed.)	Last day of classes; classes end at 10:00 p.m.
Dec. 7-14	Final exam week
Jan. 5, 2002	Commencement (Saturday)

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