Abstract:This chapter first outlines the theoretical rationale behind task‐based language assessment (TBLA) and discusses why it remains a contested domain within language testing. The construct and key features of tasks in TBLA are reviewed, with particular attention to the use of TBLA for both summative and formative purposes. Both these purposes are illustrated by means of two extended case studies. The first of these focuses on formative TBLA in the context of Dutch‐speaking primary education. It shows how the rati… Show more
“…Thus, the focus in TBLA is not on ability level, but on performance and task outcome (Skehan, 1998). A current example of a TBLA is seen in the Certificate of Dutch as a Foreign Language (Van Gorp & Deygers, 2014). 8 Skehan (1998) proposed a somewhat different version of TBLA in which he is less concerned with tasks as predictors of real-world performance than with tasks as triggers of language and L2 processes during task performance.…”
Section: What Gets Assessed: Task-centered Approaches To Construct Dementioning
confidence: 99%
“…In sum, TBLA in general has gained considerable recognition over the years as L2 teachers have become more interested in task-based language teaching as an extension of communicative language teaching. This approach has also generated considerable research interest in SLA and L2 assessment (see Van den Branden, Bygate, & Norris, 2009;Van Gorp & Deygers, 2014).…”
Section: What Gets Assessed: Task-centered Approaches To Construct Dementioning
This article summarizes some of the main issues, concerns, and debates that have ensued over the years in the field of L2 assessment and shows how past concerns have shaped contemporary L2 assessment research and practice. The article first describes what L2 assessment is and what it entails, arguing that notions of L2 assessment have been broadened over the years to keep pace with contemporary interpretations of how information from assessments in large‐scale or classroom contexts is used to make decisions. It then describes in some detail four approaches to construct definition, showing how these approaches have influenced what gets assessed. Finally, the paper discusses a range of other topics of current and future importance for L2 assessment theory, research, and practice.
“…Thus, the focus in TBLA is not on ability level, but on performance and task outcome (Skehan, 1998). A current example of a TBLA is seen in the Certificate of Dutch as a Foreign Language (Van Gorp & Deygers, 2014). 8 Skehan (1998) proposed a somewhat different version of TBLA in which he is less concerned with tasks as predictors of real-world performance than with tasks as triggers of language and L2 processes during task performance.…”
Section: What Gets Assessed: Task-centered Approaches To Construct Dementioning
confidence: 99%
“…In sum, TBLA in general has gained considerable recognition over the years as L2 teachers have become more interested in task-based language teaching as an extension of communicative language teaching. This approach has also generated considerable research interest in SLA and L2 assessment (see Van den Branden, Bygate, & Norris, 2009;Van Gorp & Deygers, 2014).…”
Section: What Gets Assessed: Task-centered Approaches To Construct Dementioning
This article summarizes some of the main issues, concerns, and debates that have ensued over the years in the field of L2 assessment and shows how past concerns have shaped contemporary L2 assessment research and practice. The article first describes what L2 assessment is and what it entails, arguing that notions of L2 assessment have been broadened over the years to keep pace with contemporary interpretations of how information from assessments in large‐scale or classroom contexts is used to make decisions. It then describes in some detail four approaches to construct definition, showing how these approaches have influenced what gets assessed. Finally, the paper discusses a range of other topics of current and future importance for L2 assessment theory, research, and practice.
“…Needs‐based settlement classes require instructors to design their own materials using authentic resources in order to help their students complete genuine communicative tasks that they have expressed a need to accomplish in the real world. The focus on real‐world tasks that are “important to students obviates the need for … teachers to contrive artificial lesson content” (Long, , p. 162) and provides a meaningful space to optimize language learning (Van Gorp & Deygers, ).Real‐world tasks are activities people think of when planning, conducting, or recalling their day. That can mean things like brushing their teeth, preparing breakfast, reading a newspaper, taking a child to school, responding to e‐mail messages, making a sales call, attending a lecture or a business meeting, having lunch with a colleague from work, helping a child with homework, coaching a soccer team, and watching a TV program.…”
Section: Introductionmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…. teachers to contrive artificial lesson content" (Long, 2015, p. 162) and provides a meaningful space to optimize language learning (Van Gorp & Deygers, 2013).…”
English as a second language teachers often find themselves teaching classes of heterogeneous students who have very divergent English language skills, abilities, and learning needs. One effective approach to address some of the challenges teachers face when teaching heterogeneous, mixed‐level classes is task‐based language teaching (TBLT). TBLT begins with a needs analysis to determine the types of real‐life tasks learners need to accomplish, and then classroom tasks are developed to meet the learners’ language use needs. This article provides teachers with information on three task‐based language teaching frameworks to guide their selection and design of classroom tasks. The task frameworks illustrate how to select and modify the instructional content, learning process, and products to match students’ language proficiency levels and needs. Numerous examples of task modifications and ideas for adapting authentic resources are presented.
“…However, tasks also offer considerable advantages for language assessment, beyond their obvious relevance within TBLT classes and programs. In fact, major innovations in the general domain of language assessment over the past two decades have occurred in conjunction with the introduction of tasks into assessment design, largely in response to the need for tests that better represent examinees’ abilities to use the language (Mislevy, Steinberg, & Almond, 2002), but also because tasks offer a meaningful space for language teachers, testers, learners, and others to examine, understand, and improve language learning endeavors (Van Gorp & Deygers, 2013). This article reviews the considerable range of current uses for TBLA, illustrating different types of assessment with concrete examples and highlighting distinct roles for tasks as a basic unit of analysis in test design, interpretation, and intended consequence.…”
Task-based language assessment (TBLA) has generated interest since the early 1990s, primarily in conjunction with the ongoing development of task-based language teaching (TBLT) and the pursuit of developing appropriate testing models for this approach to pedagogy (Norris, 2002, 2009). However, tasks also offer considerable advantages for language assessment, beyond their obvious relevance within TBLT classes and programs. In fact, major innovations in the general domain of language assessment over the past two decades have occurred in conjunction with the introduction of tasks into assessment design, largely in response to the need for tests that better represent examinees’ abilities to use the language (Mislevy, Steinberg, & Almond, 2002), but also because tasks offer a meaningful space for language teachers, testers, learners, and others to examine, understand, and improve language learning endeavors (Van Gorp & Deygers, 2013). This article reviews the considerable range of current uses for TBLA, illustrating different types of assessment with concrete examples and highlighting distinct roles for tasks as a basic unit of analysis in test design, interpretation, and intended consequence. Ultimately, it argues that tasks offer a fundamental, though not exclusive, foundation for useful language assessment, and that task-based assessment, though challenging, is probably worth the effort.
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