The Problem With Level Testing

From Teknobites

Many schools have started grouping students by levels and requiring them to take a level test first. While this seems to work pretty well at language schools it may backfire in schools and universities, especially when English is a required course.

Although you would think that people would try their best at level testing, some students deliberately choose the wrong answer so that they're put in a lower level. The idea behind this is that they can get an easy A. Some schools are starting to realise this and are using official tests, such as the Korean SATs, IELTS, or TOEFL, to group students. If your school does so level testing make sure to gauge students' levels the first few weeks of class and ask your director to move students out of your class if their level is too high.

NB: I'll be on vacation in July and August. While I'm gone you can check out my other blogs. New posts at TEFL Tips will be coming out in September.

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Hot Topic: The Paperless Classroom

Updated 13 April 2014

I'm a minimalist. I'm constantly giving away things I don't need and I hate clutter. I'm the type of minimalist that annoys other people because I'm always begging them to let me organise their closets. Yet despite all this, I've been wary to go paperless.

Don't get me wrong, I hardly use paper in the classroom as it is. Of course, students have books, but I'm talking about extra worksheets and all that.

From drminternational.com

Despite being young I have a fear of technology. I grew up with a TV that you could fix by smacking it or sticking a coat hanger in to make an antenna. You can't do that with stuck now; it breaks. they just don't make things like they used to.

I'm starting to use technology more and more and recently came across 40 Android Apps for Teaching and Learning from the Chronicle, though I've recently converted to an iPhone and finally see what everyone's talking about.

It seems like Facebook has taken over the world and everyone's online. Just take a look at the post I wrote about personal learning networks. I'm afraid that my computer ate my homework or someone will hack in to my account. Once something is gone, it's gone. It's not like paper that you can fish out of the trash. With that being said, I haven't gone completely paperless, although eventually I'd like to. I use paper in my classroom for a couple of activities.

1. Grading. I usually use rubrics. To cut down on the amount of paper and toner/ink I use, I try to print out a couple complete rubrics for students to see and then just use score sheets for their grades. By doing this, I can fit 4-6 score sheets on a page. It's not pretty, but it saves paper. Online grading is great. I've used edu 2.0 and engrade and love them.

2. Answers. Students work at different paces. When doing activities such as proofreading, it's really hard for students to compare their answers to the correct answers. I'll put the entire paragraph on paper and bold the correct answers. I can usually fit about 4-6 paragraphs on a page. That means for a class of 30, I only need to use 5 pieces of paper, max. BUT, it gets better. I reuse the papers for the next class. Gotta give me points for that.

Two other alternatives for using paper for answers would be to email students the answers and have them check at home or upload them to the intranet.

3. Grade Sheet. I've semi-converted to cloud computing, but computers at my work are slow and when they're shut down they automatically delete everything you've downloaded on them. That means I'd have to re-download the program every time I want to use it. I can't be bothered, so I use a usb. The problem with this is that usbs tend to break and you lose everything. I print out my grade sheet and have a hard copy available just in case. I suppose that using edu 2.0 and engrade would eliminate this issue.

4. Student Work. With over 100 students per semester, I really don't know if I want to get 1000s of emails a semester with student assignments. edu 2.0 and engrade are supposedly good at managing that. I've been told that the former can even help grade easy quizzes/tests, such as multiple choice or true/false. Essays, CVs, or Cover Letters are more difficult.

I'm one of those people who like to curl up with a good book, not with an ereader. There's the whole debate that books are better since they can be recycled and sustainable forestry requires two trees to be planted when one is cut down. Plus, egraders require batteries/electricity and are harder to recycle.

I find it easier to grade papers when I'm writing on them, not looking at a screen. This also means that I can stick papers in my purse and grade anywhere, rather than lug my laptop around with me. However, I think I should change. There are two reasons why grading on the computer is better. First, I personally type a heck of a lot faster than I can write. Second, you know what it's like when you hand back a paper to a student, they crumple it up, and throw it away. Then at the end of the semester, they come and complain about their grades but have no evidence to back it up? Using a computer would solve both of those. I could save all their work and eliminate paper use.

5. Quizzes/Tests/Exams. Once again edu 2.0 and engrade are supposedly good at managing that. However, I don't think I could do that. I wouldn't trust students to take quizzes at home alone without help. Second, most of my classrooms only have one computer in it, so students couldn't take the quizzes in class. I try to make quizzes, tests, and exams short. For my classes, students take 8 quizzes and 4 exams. One paper is needed for the 8 quizzes and they use that paper all semester. Half a paper is used for the 4 exams and they use that paper all semester. Granted, I'm using paper, but not that much.

The only alternatives I see to using paper for quizzes would be to create open-book quizzes which can be taken at home or to have the school buy enough computers so that they can be taken in class.

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Hot Topic: Reliability and Validity in the Classroom

Reliability and validity are used in a variety of situations in the classroom:

• Administrators who create questions for students so that they can evaluate their teachers.
• Teachers when they are creating quizzes, exams, or marking papers. 
• Peer evaluations whether for students or teachers.

Reliability
Something is reliable when you do the same procedure again and get the same score. So if you give a student a speaking test and they get a 80% and then you give the same student the same test a week later and the student gets a 70%, something is not reliable. Perhaps the test was flawed, or the student had a bad day, or you were stricter than usual. The goal is to get the same, or nearly the same result, no matter how many times the test is performed and no matter who gives the test. Here is some more info about reliability.

Validity
Something is valid if it measures what it's supposed to measure. Now let's take that same speaking test. If you give that test and use it to score a student on their writing, it's not valid. Here's some more info about validity.

Reliability and Validity
These do not go hand-in-hand. Just because something is reliable does not mean it's valid and vice versa.

From fortbendrc.com

3 Ideas to Help

1. One thing that I do, that may draw criticism from others, is that I don't learn by students' names. By doing this I can ensure not to show favouritism and to be objective when grading.
2. Rubrics can also be useful when you're grading subjective items, such as paragraphs or essays.
3. Proofreading and asking for imput is very important. We may not want someone else looking over our work. Maybe we think that we don't need any input or we don't want to bother someone, however, it is essential that you have at least one person check what you've done. Looking over a test you've created, how you're grading students, or what they think about the feedback you've given students is one great way to keep you on your toes and help you with your professional development.

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10 Tips for Teaching ESL / EFL to Adults

Teaching adults can be difficult due to their busy lifestyles and reasons for learning English. Here are 10 tips to help you out in your adult English classes.

1. Set goals. Adults, and especially business people, are usually very goal orientated. They know what they want to do this year and often have a five year plan. Use this to your advantage in the classroom and have students set both short and long term goals focusing on their English language learning.

2. Give homework. Adults are busy. They have to deal with work and family and now English, however, you still should give your students homework. Why? It's simple, most people won't review what was done in class unless they have a reason, so give homework. Keep homework short, simple, and relevant. 10 to 30 minutes is all it should take to finish an assignment.

3. Have fun. After working all day or having to get up early for an English class, students want to have fun. Now don't think that by having fun students can't learn. Quite the contrary, students who have fun will be more motivated to learn. Make sure you met your objectives when you have fun in class and both you and your students will enjoy class more. Look into using different learning styles in class.

4. Ask for feedback. It can be hard to ask your students to be candid about your teaching, but it'll help. By asking your students about your classes you can ensure that you're tailoring your lessons to their needs. In addition, they will be more likely to learn if you're teaching something that's useful to them .

5. Make it relevant. Many adults are taking English for a specific reason. Some may want to go to your classes, others are forced to by their superiors. Find out why they are attending your class and what they expect after the class is done. Maybe they want to pass an international exam or be able to give presentations in English. Focus your class on their needs.

6. Focus on technology. Answering emails, talking on the phone, or giving business presentations is one reason why adults take English classes. You might want to look at emails your students have written or have to write. You can also give them hypothetical situations and have them answer an email, role play a telephone conversation, or give a short presentation in class.

7. Give them feedback. Just like you should ask your students for feedback, you should give them feedback. If possible, you could give feedback at the end of each class. If that's not possible, try to give thorough feedback after they hand in assignments, quizzes, tests, or exams.

8. Assess your students. Short quizzes and tests are particularly useful for letting both you and your students know what they've understood and what they have to work on more.

9. Keep a portfolio. By showing your students how their English was at the beginning of class and what it's like a couple months later will help keep your students motivated.

10. Prep for the future. Often your students will have a specific project that they have to complete. Try to work on that in class and help them out as necessary.

Here are some more ideas and lesson plans for teaching adults. 

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10 More Exam Tips for Teachers

From teacherplus.org

A couple years ago I wrote 10 tips for assessing students. Since then I have thought of 10 more tips, so here you are!

1. Schedule students: if you're giving oral exams, don't just tell the whole class to show up at 9am. Give them a specific time. That way they won't waste time waiting nor will they make tons of noise in the hallway. 
2. Have a waiting room: it's annoying for both the teacher and the student when other students are in the hallway making noise.
3. Bring exta materials: white out, pens, pencils, and erasers.
4. Have different exams: give exam A to one row of students and exam B to another row. It'll cut down on cheating.
5. Use rubrics: especially if you have a subjective exam.
6. Walk around the room: before you give the test make sure there are no answers on the desk, walls, chairs, etc. Walk around during the exam to cut down on cheating and afterwards to make sure no one forgot anything.
7. Have a place for their stuff: since backpacks, coats, books, etc aren't allowed at desks you need to provide a space where students can put them.
8. Don't use names: if you have a subjective test you might favour students you know. Have them use their student ID instead.
9. Write new tests: don't re-use old tests, you're just asking for trouble.
10. Make sure students leave: there's no reason they need to linger outside the classroom when they finish. If they want to wait, send them to the waiting room. 

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Documents Teachers Usually Need for Work Visas

From 123rf.com

Gone is the day of the backpacker teacher. Ok, for the most part. Countries are requiring more and more documentation and exams in order to get a work visa. Here's a list of things that are often required, thank goodness there's no Chinese test yet!

Behaviour Test: China just started this with their Evaluation System for Foreign Language Expert just started this. You've got about 20 minutes to answer 100 questions. You're supposed to put 1 (strongly agree) to 5 (strongly disagree). It's basically to see how well you'll fit into Chinese life. They have statements such as "I like being in crowds" or "I like to spend time alone" I did poorly on that part since I hate crowds and love spending time alone. If you want to score high, just think like a Chinese person. You're scored on warmth / friendliness, gregariousness (aka sociable), positive emotions, trust, straight-forwardness, altruism, cooperation, sympathy, competence, orderliness, dutifulness, self-discipline, anxiety, anger / hostility, depression, self/consciousness, impulsiveness, and vulnerability.

Criminal Background Check: If you have small offenses it might be ok. Depends on the country. See teaching with a criminal record.


Degree: you often need the original, an apostillised / authenticated copy, and original sealed transcripts. Korea's fanatical about this.

General Knowledge Test: Another requirement from China. More like trivia than general knowledge. You'll be asked stuff such as "what's the music capital of the world?" and "Who wrote the Leaves of Grass?" Not sure how either of those will help with life in China. They also have questions related to China, such as "Which of the following is a traffic law in China?" and "When is the official first day of class?" Even though they're related to China, I'm pretty sure they're not much help since people don't follow traffic rules and I have never, ever been asked about Chinese trivia. They should put up realistic questions like "what do you think of Taiwan, Tibet, etc?" or "What do you think of China?"

Medical check: blood, urine, EKG, height, weight, vision, X-ray, sonogram to make sure you have all your organs

Recommendation Letters: Always have extras.

Transcripts: Sealed, originals are needed. Get them ahead of time so you're not scrambling for them last minute.

Written test: multiple choice, short answer, matching, essays (another requirement for China), etc.

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Hot Topic: How Heavily Should Grades Be Based on Exams?

From collegetocareers.com

When I was in school I hated tests. I simply didn't test well. As a result, my ACT and SAT scores were lower than my brothers, but my grades were much higher. Many schools weigh exams, tests, and quizzes pretty highly.

As a teacher I can understand this. It's less work for the teacher if they don't have to constantly grade homework, participation, etc. It also makes sure the students understand the concepts they've studied and can use them.

Of course there are problems as well. Making a test that's reliable and valid is difficult. And you also have to think about objectivity and subjectivity. Not to mention that some students simply don't test well.

How heavily a class is based on exams depends on a lot of factors, such as the class, the teacher, and the admin. It's hard to find a balance that pleases everyone.

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I Love Midterms and Finals

From ed.ac.uk

Midterm week just finished. I have to say I really love midterms and finals. It's a bit of a break for me. I know that some teachers get these weeks off. They write the exams, but don't have to proctor / invigilate them. Some of them have it even better, they have their TA do everything: write, proctor, and grade.

I have to do everything myself, but I don't mind. I like midterms and finals because it's a bit of a break from teaching. In the past when I taught writing, we also got one class off for grading. So if our class met twice a week, during midterms and finals we had the exam one day and I got the second day to grade, which was definitely needed.

I'm also able to spend more time in the office grading and catching up on things. Exams often take a bit less time than teaching. Although I plan for each oral exam to last 15 minutes, some students talk a lot less so that means I can relax between students.

This time around most of my exams have been oral exams and presentations, so I didn't get a day off for grading. It's still fun though. I put students in groups of three for oral exams and it's nice to be able to talk one-to-one with students. Smaller groups means less fear. I'm also able to gauge their language better and give them feedback; something that's hard to do in a classroom.

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Quick Tip: Open Book Grades

Open-book management is taking the world by storm and there's no reason why this method can't be carried into the classroom. Students deserve to know how they're being graded and what their grades are. They shouldn't be surprised when the end of the term comes.

While it's not necessary to hand your gradebook over to your students, you can have them keep track of their grades. By doing this, you're creating responsible students and as an added plus, they won't be coming to you all the time asking you about their grades.

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Quick Tip: Have Students Grade Themselves

More often than not even though teachers are trying to create student centred classrooms, they often fail when it comes to assessment. The teacher is seen as having all the answers and the final word over grades. Try switching things up in your classroom.

Students can evaluate themselves as well as their peers
You can start small, for example, with a quiz. You could have the answers on the board or on a Power Point and have them check their own work. They just have to see if the answer is correct or not. Later on you could move to more open ended questions. You'll find that this is very rewarding for both the students and the teacher. The students are given more responsibility and the teacher has less grading to do.


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Quick Tip: Have Students Create Assessments

With the push towards more student centred classrooms comes the push towards student created assessment. While some teachers think that students will give themselves straight As, this couldn't be further from the truth. Of course you will have some students like that, but many of them will be tougher on themselves and their fellow students than you will be.

The next time a paper or project has to be graded, try creating a rubric as a class. It's a good way to get input from students and see what they think is important. You can help them out if necessary. When time comes for grading, have them grade their own work or another student's. It allows students to become more autonomous and take more responsibility for their learning.

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Cool Link: PreKinders

If you teach young learners, then take a look at PreKinders. It's full of resources for Pre-K teachers.They have material for themes, math, literacy, science, art, fine motor skills, music, worksheets, technology, assessment, cooking, activity centres, teaching tips, Christian resources, and miscellaneous tips for the classroom.

It's got everything you need all in one place. It's easy to navigate and has a simple theme. There aren't flashy adverts either, just good resources. It's no wonder they've won awards for their site.


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Cool Link: 1-Language

Although it looks like a site that you have to pay for in order to access, 1-Language actually has a lot of info available for free.

There's a free English course which mostly contains grammar, they also have ESL flash games, quizzes, essay writing, a reading library, and more. If you're teaching beginners, try scrolling down a bit and you'll see flashcards, alphabet, and phonics worksheets. They have writing sheets for more advanced levels as well as articles about learning English, proverbs, English dialects, and methods for learning English. You can use the material in class or have your students work on their own.


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Cool Link: Activities for ESL Students

Part of iteslj (The Internet TESL Journal), a4esl.org (Activities for ESL Students) has lots of material that might interest you if you're looking to test and assess your students.  They have grammar quizzes, vocab quizzes, crossword puzzles, bilingual quizzes, podcasts and videos, and links to other sites. If you're looking for quizzes, then this website it perfect for you.


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Cool Link: ESL Partyland

Having fun while learning English as a Second Language is what ESL Partyland is all about. With info for both English learners and English teachers, you could use it with your students or tell them about it as a resource they can use outside of class.

With English lessons, tips on learning English, quizzes, games, grammar, idioms, slang, and phrasal verbs, reading, trivia, useful expressions, and vocabulary there's lots you can use in your class.

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Cool Link: English Banana

With free podcasts, downloads, books, games, quizzes, worksheets, and more, English Banana is worth checking out.

Their website is very clutter but they make up for it with all the teaching resources they have.  They've got books and CD-ROMs about English conversation, grammar, activities, resources, and much more. With over a million visitors per month, they definitely have material worth checking out.

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Cool Link: My English Printables

It used to be a blog, but now it's a dot com, My English Printable Worksheets has free worksheets for those teaching ESL and EFL. They've got grammar, vocabulary, tests, games, power points, flashcards, other activities, and lessons.

They also have tags and categories on the right so you can easily find what you're looking for. The only issues I have is that the website takes a while to load and you might have to proof-read some of the material since it's written by a non-native speaker.

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Cool Link: School House Tech

There are two different editions available at School House Tech, there's a free version and a paid version. Obviously they want you to purchase their resources, but you can try them before you buy them.

They have worksheet generators for math, vocabulary, tests, and bingo. They also have spell check dictionaries, word lists, as well as free sample worksheets. If you or your school is willing to purchase their materials, all the better, if not, then try to find free resources on other sites.


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Cool Link: English Test dot net

While not the most organised website out there, English Test dot net has free English tests for EFL and ESL students. They say their tests will help students with TOEFL, TOEIC, SAT, GRE, and GMAT.

They've got grammar, synonyms, Business English, common errors, as well as idioms. At the moment they have over 2000 English tests available for your students to take. This website is useful for students who want to practice on their own and get the results then and there.

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Cool Link: QuizStar

Making quizzes can be boring, but with QuizStar you can make fantastic quizzes easily. It's free and you can organise your classes and quizzes, use multimedia on your quizzes, make quizzes in a variety of languages, access your quizzes from anywhere that has internet, and allow students to review their quizzes afterwards. Best of all? It'll grade your quizzes for you. Try it out. What have you got to lose? It's free.


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