English Teaching Assessment: Behavioral Performance Assessment and Student Learning Records

Author: Gong Yafu
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2002-12-01
Features: In the past two years, the reform of assessment has garnered increasing attention from teachers. Particularly with the new national curriculum standards advocating task-based teaching and assessment reform, many teachers are eager to understand and apply new, practical assessment methods. This led us to think that it would be beneficial to systematically introduce teachers to the fundamental concepts of assessment, practical operational methods, and existing research findings both domestically and internationally, so that teachers can better understand and participate in assessment reform. Some teachers in certain regions have already taken action and accumulated valuable experience. To this end, we compiled two booklets: "Task-Based Language Teaching" and "English Language Teaching Assessment—Performance Assessment and Student Learning Portfolios." Additionally, we visited places like Zhejiang, Jiangsu, and Shenzhen to observe classes, interview teachers, students, and parents, and filmed some classroom videos of task-based teaching and assessment in action. During these observations and interviews, we were pleasantly surprised to find that the reactions of teachers, students, and parents aligned perfectly with the principles of task-based teaching and assessment reform. Their practices demonstrate that using new assessment methods, such as performance assessment, student learning portfolios, and formative assessment, is entirely feasible in primary and secondary schools in China. Here, we would like to extend our special thanks to teachers like Xia Guming from the English Teaching and Research Section of the Zhejiang Provincial Department of Education, Ren Meiqin from Linhai Huipu Middle School, Qiu Feng from Hangzhou No. 14 Middle School, Hu Ming from Jiangsu No. 10 Middle School, Ji Yongning from Suzhou Taicang Senior High School, Yu Ming, Director of the English Teaching and Research Section of Nanshan District in Shenzhen, Li Hongyan from Nanshan Foreign Languages School, and Xu Yangjie from Nanshan Experimental Primary School. They not only provided a wealth of firsthand materials but also boosted our confidence in compiling these two booklets.