Assessment is one of the three main components in the pedagogical process other than

planning and instruction. An interrelatedness exists between the three phases that can create
strength or weakness in the pedagogical process as a whole. The role of assessment is to provide
a constant framework of references as well as to support the overall goal of language learning. I
think the test should reflect the content and the way the instructors teach and it is ineffective and
poor practice to assess without a specific goal in mind.
Instructors should carefully craft valid, reliable exams and grade them as fair as possible
to be able to reflect students abilities and how well they achieved the goals. Students are
complex individuals and the ability, skills, knowledge that they master varies in a wide range.
Hence rubrics and standardized exams work well together as a form of summative assessment
because they can guide learners towards success and to minimize their stress by preparing
themselves by outlining my expectations of them (Lopz-Burton, pp. 282-283). The ability to
verbalize and lay out expectations is an effective way to teach because it leads the leaners to the
desired direction. Clarification of expectations breeds understanding and higher achievement.
Awareness of what is great challenges leaners to do and be great. I am very grateful that we had
the chance to design our own quizzes based on any topics to experience what it takes to conduct
a good assessment. The most important thing I learned from this is that clarification of
expectation MUST be clear, concise, and matches the actually content that is being tested (e.g.:
Mexican music vs. Music theory, or Pizza vs. Pizza culture)!
... Assessment can be linked more closely to instruction is in the type of washback
effect that it has on instruction: the impact of tests and assessment on the curriculum and on
teaching and learning practices (Teachers Handbook, pp. 398). Although most language
learners are accustomed to and feel most comfortable with taking traditional paper based
summative assessment (such as midterms, final exams that contains reading comprehension,
cloze, etc.), I always try to use alternative assessment methods to have a more thorough
evaluation of students language proficiency while reducing stress and lowering the stake
whenever I have the chance. I assigned a story presentation rather than a final exam in one of the
adult ESP classes that I have taught and it was highly enjoyed by my students. During the last
two weeks of instruction, I paired up the students and asked each pair to choose one story from
the material provided by me, then, they needed to write a summary of the story and find pictures
from magazines, newspapers, etc. to make a post to demonstrate their stories with captions.
Similar to Lopz-Burtons idea of students have the pleasure of seeing their classmates doing
something silly, I announced that the best presentation winners will be awarded with prizes and
the pair with the lowest score had to clean up classroom at the end of the day (to reduce the stress
and lower the stake). This assessment method tested integrated all four language skills and
provided a chance for students to communicate using the target language as well as to solve
problems collaboratively in a real-world context.