Course title: ASSESSING LINGUISTIC AND COMMUNICATIVE COMPETENCE
Instructor: Marta Medved Krajnović, PhD
ECTS credits: 3
Language: English
Semester: X
Status: elective
Enrollment requirements: none
Exam: written
Content: Defining the terms assessment, evaluation, testing, language proficiency and communicative competence; comparison of Croatian and English terminology. The construct of communicative language competence. Testing purposes and characteristics of language tests: reliability, validity, authenticity, interactivity, practicality. The process of development, validation and standardisation of tests of communicative language competence. Testing communicative competence in the four language skills (listening, reading, speaking and writing). Communicative competence in grammar and vocabulary tests. Test construction: selecting types of tests and testing tasks. Administering, analysing and evaluating tests of communicative language competence. Problems in evaluating language production.
Purpose: Students will gain insight into the process of defining and assessing communicative language competence. They will develop basic test construction skills and will be able to critically evaluate existing tests. They will develop basic research skills in the area of language testing. The students will understand the concept and role of assessing communicative language competence in foreign language learning and teaching.
Obligatory readings:
– Bachman, L. F. i A. S. Palmer (1996). Language Testing in Practice: Designing and Devoloping Useful Language Tests. Oxford: OUP.
– Council of Europe (2001). Common European Framework of Reference for Languages: Learning, Teaching, Assessment. Cambridge: CUP.
– Douglas, D. (2010). Understanding Language Testing. London: Hodder Education.
– Hughes, A. (2003). Testing for Language Teachers. Cambridge: CUP.
Additional readings:
– Bachman, L.F. (1990). Fundamental Considerations in Language Testing. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
– Cohen, Andrew D. (1994). Assessing Language Ability in the Classroom. Heinle & Heinle.
– McNamara, T. (2000). Language Testing. Oxford, New York: OUP
Quality evaluation: Anonymous student questionnaire; analysis of student success at the end of the course.
