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ESL forum >
Ask for help > Reading assessment
Reading assessment
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julianbr
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sorry Anitarobi but I disagree that the exercise can be great and a lot obtained from doing it .. I think it is a total waste of classroom time .. time that should be put to better use .. Zizou is correct .. reading needs a purpose - reading out loud and sounding good just doesn �t provide that purpose .... I would ignore the previous teacher �s request and just ask that teacher for an indication of his perception of student ability ascertained from his working with the students over a period of time .. then if any further reading assessment were necessary I would use one of the methods that Zizou mentions above ..
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24 Oct 2009
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nite
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I think you �re right julian. I �ve observed that when students read aloud, they are so focused on reading the text well that they often do not know what they are reading. If it was my choice, I would assess pronounciation through some comunicative game rather than on a reading, at least at this elementary stage. However, I think Im gonna make them read it for themselves first, then I �ll aske them what did they understood by asking comprehension questions and then I �ll make read the text aloud... |
24 Oct 2009
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nite
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Thanks for your suggestions by the way! |
24 Oct 2009
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SaraMariam
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Hello Nite I cant give you any suggestion but I didnt want to miss the opportunity to say congratulations for finally being an official English teacher :) and by the way .. I love your picture, resembles me in the morning lol |
24 Oct 2009
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anitarobi
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Sorry, you misunderstood me - I didn �t mean that simply reading aloud is a great exercise - I mean that you have to know what/how much you expect from your sts - I always set different standards for my elementary sts who are very young (who have barely started reading, e. g. 7 years old) and for my advanced sts (who are adults or 16-17 years old) - what/how much you expect them to do, while reading, is different. If you �re clear with yourself and your students as to what is expected from them, then their success will be easier to assess and grade. My sts never simply read aloud - they have to do all kinds of tasks while doing it, but those tasks have to be appropriate for their age and knowledge level. Of course - simple reading aloud and assessing simply sound is a fast way out for some teachers. I agree with all of you who do believe purposeful reading is necessary.
Btw, nite, congratulations on becoming a teacher! We �ve all become so interested in your practical question(good debate, good question question), we forgot to send our best wishes... It �s good to ask the previous teacher what he/she did, because it helps you know what your sts were accustomed to( not that it �s always advisable to keep that practice going ), but it �s definitely best to develop your own teaching style and repertoire, and with some time and consistency on your part, you soon become the teacher you believe you need to be! Good luck in that! Anita |
24 Oct 2009
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julianbr
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I agree with you, Nite. I �d have the students read the text to themselves .. demonstrate what they �ve understood from the text by completing some task using the new understanding .. but I �d skip just the the last part .. the reading aloud part .. instead I �d also do as you suggest with the communication task assessment approach when the student wasn �t having to simultaneously deal with the extra complexities of reading aloud ...
good luck with it .. let us know what happens .. 
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24 Oct 2009
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julianbr
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I see Anitarobi .. I misunderstood you .. but I wouldn �t ever put any store on how a student reads out loud .. the only time I would ask them to is to check that certain individual words can be spoken in context ... which is rare .. just my personal preference ..
and yeah .. congrats Nite .. welcome to the world of teaching .. 
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24 Oct 2009
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nite
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wow wow mates! Thank you all for your support, comments and ideas! I am relatively new at this but I dont mind taking the time it needs to improve and give my students the best of me.
Anita, I understand what you �re saying. The problem is that I �ve just landed in the middle of an already started course. I do have clear what I expect from my students but I do not know what the teacher Im substititing expects. When I asked him what his expectations were he wasnt clear and I didnt dare to insist... So do I create my own expectations and forget about him? then what would happen when I leave and he comes back? arghhhh |
24 Oct 2009
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aftab57
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Welcome and congratulations. These might throw some light on this issue.
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24 Oct 2009
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anitarobi
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Hi, nite! I get your problem. I guess it all depends on lots of things that have little to do with teaching and a lot to do with your boss, the hierarchy in your school, your position there and your conscience... There - didn �t I make you feel better??? Sorry, I know you don �t feel comfortable in your present situation; being a substitute teacher is always tricky, and we who love this job do want to keep it. You might want to speak to some of your colleagues or boss about this. As far as methods and advice are concerned, we �re all here for you. I would say it �s best to decide what you think is right and act upon it, because your superiors, students and the regular teacher might appreciate your responsible initiative, but then - this would be the ideal world, eh? But it is sometimes, so perhaps you decide to try and do it your way. Btw, great discussion everybody, and thanks, aftab57, for all the links... And, nite, as Julian said, do let us know how it went - it would be very interesting to know. Best of luck! |
24 Oct 2009
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