Chapter 8 presents testing reading comprehension. The main contents in this chapter includes: The nature of the reading skills, initial stages of reading: matching tests, Intermediate and advanced stages of reading: matching tests, true/false reading tests,...
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Nội dung Text: Bài giảng môn Phương pháp kiểm tra và đánh giá học tập: Chapter 8 - Phan Thị Thu Nga
- Chapter 8
Testing reading
comprehension
- Chapter 8
Testing reading comprehension
I. The nature of the reading skills
II. Initial stages of reading: matching tests
III. Intermediate and advanced stages of
reading: matching tests
IV. True/false reading tests
V. Multiple choice items
VI. Completion items
VII. Rearrangement items
VIII. Cloze procedure
IX. Open – ended and miscellaneous items
X. Cursory reading
- IV. True/false reading tests
one of the most widely used tests of
reading comprehension
The scoring: straightforward & quick
scoring obtained by the testees
very reliable indices of reading
comprehension if well constructed
and tests & enough items
- Disadvantages of True/False items
(1) encourage guessing- 50%
chance of giving a correct answer
for each item;
(2) the base score is 50%, so the
average test difficulty is 75 %
the test may fail to discriminate
widely enough among the testees
unless a lot of items.
- Some guidelines for True/False
items
Each item should be as clear and
concise as possible.
True/false reading tests are classified
into 2 categories:
(1) independent of a reading text;
(2) depending on a text.
- Notes
The construction of true/false items
based on a reading extract (type 2)
forms one of the most widely used
types of reading tests.
This kind of item is effectively used
at both elementary and more
advanced levels.
- V. Multiple choice items
Short texts: (p.116-117)
(1) at elementary, intermediate and
advanced levels
(2) described as a test of
comprehension of grammatical
structure
(3)consisting of a very short reading
extract of only a few sentences;
The testees to answer only
one comprehension test item on
each reading passage (see in
TOEIC tests).
- Longer texts
a useful way of testing reading
comprehension, but not all
multiple choice reading tests are
necessarily good tests of reading
comprehension
The sample of the reading
passage: the most important &
related to the broader aims of the
language teaching situations
- Notes
In a test of proficiency, the text
should contain the type of reading
task which will be demanded of
the testees in later real life
situation.
In a class progress test or
achievement test, the reading
passage should be similar to the
type of reading material which
students have done at school.
- The length of the reading extract
elementary level: 50-100 words
intermediate level: 200-300 words
advanced level: 400-600 words
- Passages dealing with a series of
events, a collection of facts, or
different opinions and attitudes
suitable for multiple choice items.
The number of items depending
on the length and complexity of
the text.
- VI. Completion items
(p.124-129)
requiring the testees to supply a
word or a short phrase, but the
test constructors must ensure that
there is only one correct answer
Type 1: consisting of blanks for
completion in the items following
the text.
Type 2: consisting of blanks in the
text itself. The blanks have been
substituted for what the test writer
considers the most significant
content words.
- VII. Rearrangement items
useful for testing the ability to
understand a sequence of steps in
a process or events in a narrative
Type 1 (jumbled sentences): Ss
have to unscramble or arrange
sentences in the correct order.
Type 2: The jumbled sentences of
this type are based on a reading
comprehension text and should be
unscrambled in the light of the
information contained in the text.
- VIII. Cloze procedure
In cloze tests, words are deleted
systematically & the construction
of a cloze test is purely
mechanical.
The most common purpose of
cloze test is to measure reading
comprehension; it measures
textual knowledge (an awareness
of cohesion in a text).
A true cloze text is generally used
to measure global reading
comprehension although insights
can undoubtedly be gained into
particular reading difficulties.
- IX. Open – ended and
miscellaneous items
The term ‘open-ended’ refers to
questions which elicit a completely
subjective response on part of the
testees.
The response required may range
from one-word answer to one or two
sentences.
When marking open-ended items, at
least two or three marks should be
awarded for each correct answer.
- Test constructors should write
down precisely how marks should
be awarded as the marking
scheme will serve as a reminder
all the times.
Brief guidelines are essential if
more than one examiner is
marking the items.
- The text itself can determine the
types of items.
A reading comprehension
passage may be followed by one
or two multiple choice items,
several true/false items, a few
completion items and one or two
open-ended items.
- X. Cursory reading
‘cursory reading’- a general term
to denote the skills involved in
reading quickly: skimming &
scanning
Skimming: glancing through the
text to get the gist / main idea of
the content
Scanning: skills used in reading to
locate specific information
- The actual reading speed
considered necessary will be
largely determined by the type of
the text and will be vary according
to the purpose for which it is being
read
poor readers: below 200 wpm;
average speed: 200-300 wpm;
fast readers: 300-500 wpm
- A small number of questions
concerning only the major points
and general outline of the text are
given in tests of skimming.
Testees are not allowed to refer
back to the text while skimming
but to jot down notes.
Tests of speed reading should be
administered only when students
have been prepared for the tasks
involved in such tests.