Rethinking the Assessment of Listening and - CLA

Università degli Studi di Romà Tre
Centro Linguistico d’Ateneo
Il Centro Linguistico di Ateneo dell’Università Roma Tre ha il piacere di invitarvi al Seminario
del Professor James Purpura del Teachers College, Columbia University, sulla valutazione
dell’ascolto e del parlato. Il seminario, in lingua inglese, è destinato a tutti coloro che si occupano di insegnamento e di valutazione delle lingue. Il professor Purpura è a Roma per partecipare
al convegno LEND che si svolgerà a Roma il 23 e 24 Ottobre.
Rethinking the Assessment
of Listening and Speaking Ability
James E. Purpura, Teachers College, Columbia University
21- 22 Ottobre 2015
There are isolated instances in the target language use domain (e.g., listening to a podcast or listening to a
movie on plane) in which individuals listen to a spoken text without ever having to discuss what they heard
with other interlocutors. There are also instances (e.g., constructing video voice mail or giving certain kinds of
public lectures) in which individuals express themselves without the expectation of reciprocal interaction. If
we wanted to make inferences about a student’s ability to listen or speak in these isolated contexts, then it
would make sense to present them with independent tasks of listening or speaking ability.
However, in most instances of language use, such as when L2 learners are having a casual conversation with
friends in a café, negotiating a purchase in a store, participating in an academic discussion at school, or doing
a formal presentation, individuals engage in reciprocal communication, where they need to understand what
an interlocutor says and is trying to communicate so they can respond with topically meaningful utterances
that are linguistically precise, and contextually appropriate. If we wished to make inferences about an individual’s ability to communicate in these contexts, however, an integrated task of listening-speaking ability, rather than an independent task, would provide an evidentiary basis for making such inferences.
Quàndo
Finally, while there are many instances in real life where individuals might need to listen to something, such
as a presentation, and then engage in a brief discussion, there are many other times, especially in schools or
in the workforce, where individuals need to use available resources to solve a problem, make a decision, or
produce some product. This requires the individuals to not only engage with the topic and collaborate over
time, but also to draw on their ability to understand and express their ideas. To make inferences about performance in these contexts, we need to rethink the nature of integrated tasks in assessments of listeningspeaking ability such that performance can be sampled within a coherent, goal-oriented scenario involving
multiple subtasks and a final resolution of the goal.
Dove
The goal of the current workshop is to rethink the assessment of listening-speaking ability so that the kinds of
interpretations we make about listening and speaking scores can be linked to the kinds of tasks we use to
assess performance. This workshop will discuss three approaches to assessing listening-speaking ability—
through independent, integrated, and scenario-based tasks. In each approach, we will discuss (1) domain
description, (2) task specification, (3) task development, and (4) measurement. The pros and cons of each
approach will be highlighted. Participants should leave the workshop with a clear idea of the issues involved
in designing listening and speaking tasks.
Dr. James E. Purpura is an Associate Professor of linguistics and education in the Applied Linguistics and
TESOL Program at Teachers College, Columbia University. Jim’s research has focused on grammar assessment
and the cognitive underpinnings of assessment. More recently, he is interested in learning-oriented assessment (LOA) as a means of understanding how learning can be incorporated into assessment, and how assessments function when embedded in teaching and learning. He teaches a seminar on designing scenario-based
L2 placement exams from an LOA perspective. He is currently Editor of Language Assessment Quarterly, and
is series co-editor of New Perspectives on Language Assessment and Innovations in Language and Learning
Assessment at ETS. He served as President of ILTA in 2007 and 2008.
21 ottobre ore 15.00‐18.00
22 ottobre ore 9.30‐12.30
c/o CAFIS
Via Ostiense, 139
Aula 2.15 , Secondo piano
Info
Per ulteriori informazioni
rivolgersi a
Gabriele Ridarelli
[email protected]
tel.: 06 5733 2071