ASSESSING PERFORMANCE

Using AAPPL to Improve Language Learning

Paul Sandrock Danielle Tezcan

ACTFL

TEACHING TO THE TEST IS …1. Good

2. Bad

3. Either – Depends on the Test

2

PROFICIENCY IS….

… the ability to use language in real world situations in a spontaneous interaction and non-rehearsed context

PERFORMANCE IS….

… the ability to use language that has been learned and practiced in an instructional setting and is within familiar contexts and content areas.

PerformanceLanguage is learned and practiced

Familiar contexts and content areas

Curriculum-based, what was taught

ProficiencySpontaneous, non-rehearsed

Broad content and context in authentic situations

Independent of curriculum or when, where, or how the language was acquired

PERFORMANCE TOWARD PROFICIENCY

Documenting Student Growth

NCSSFL - ACTFL CAN - DO STATEMENTS

Bridging performance and proficiency

INTERMEDIATE LOW - INTERPERSONALACTFL Proficiency Guidelines - Speaking

Can-Do Global Benchmark Speakers at the Intermediate Low sublevel are able to handle successfully a limited number of uncomplicated communicative tasks by creating with the language in straightforward social situations. Conversation is restricted to some of the concrete exchanges and predictable topics necessary for survival in the target-language culture. These topics relate to basic personal information; for example, self and family, some daily activities and personal preferences, and some immediate needs, such as ordering food and making simple purchases. Speakers are primarily reactive and struggle to answer direct questions or requests for information. They are also able to ask a few appropriate questions.

I can participate in conversations on a number of familiar topics using simple sentences. I can handle short social interactions in everyday situations by asking and answering questions.

SAMPLE OF GLOBAL BENCHMARKS

Global Can-Do BenchmarksGeneral description of the proficiency level for each of the modes

SCREEN SHOT BOLD

Global Can-Do BenchmarksGeneral description of the proficiency level for each of the modes

SCREEN SHOT BOLD

Bold statementsMain indicators for the level and the mode

SCREEN SHOT BOLD

Target statements/Check listProvide instructional focusCreate class evidenceShould emphasize “re-spiraling”

ASSESSING: HOW FAR IS YOUR GAZE ON THE HORIZON?

OPI/WPT AAPPL

Summative Assessments

Formative Assessments

BRIEF HISTORY

• 2006 – Survey of Assessment Uses and Needs

• 2007 – Analysis of best practices within the assessment industry

• 2008 – AAPPL Framework and Prototype

WHAT IS AAPPL MEASURE?

TheACTFLAssessment of

Performance toward

Proficiency inLanguages

Interpersonal Listening/Speaking

AAPPL MEASURE: Modes of Communication

Interpretive Reading

Interpretive Listening Presentational

Writing

INTERPRETIVE MODE

• Understand, interpret, and analyze what is heard, read, or viewed on a variety of topics.

• No active negotiation of meaning with the writer, speaker, or producer

INTERPRETIVE READING - NOVICEThe Novice-level learner

•Comprehends written texts by recognizing key words and formulaic phrases, ranging in length

– Words– Lists– Phrases– Simple sentences

•Derives meaning when authentic texts are– supported by visuals - graphically organized information– on familiar topics

INTERPRETIVE READING - INTERMEDIATE

The Intermediate-level learner•Generally comprehends simple texts that are organized in individual sentences and strings of sentences containing mostly high-frequency vocabulary on highly familiar topics in

– Simple stories– Routine correspondence– Short descriptive texts – Other selections within familiar contexts – announcements, notices, online

forums, etc.•Comprehends information-rich texts with a highly predictable order and format

INTERPRETIVE READING - ADVANCEDThe Advanced-level learner•Generally comprehends paragraph-length discourse such as that found in

– stories– straightforward literary works– personal and work-related correspondence– written reports or instructions– descriptive texts– other texts dealing with topics of a concrete nature

INTERPRETIVE LISTENING - NOVICEThe Novice-level learner•Comprehends speech by recognizing key words and formulaic phrases, ranging in length

– Words– Lists– Phrases– Simple sentences

•Derives meaning when speech is– Highly contextualized– Highly predictable, such as those found in introductions, basic courtesies and high frequency

commands.

INTERPRETIVE LISTENING - INTERMEDIATE

The Intermediate-level learner•Generally comprehends speech on familiar topics that consists of

– Simple, sentence-length speech– Straightforward announcements– Short messages – Simple instructions or directions

•Comprehends information-rich speech –where they hear what they expect to hear– with redundancy, restatement, paraphrasing, and contextual clues

INTERPRETIVE LISTENING - ADVANCED

The Advanced-level learner•Generally comprehends paragraph-length discourse such as that found in

– Stories– Oral presentations (news)– Instructions– Anecdotes– Descriptive texts– Other speech dealing with topics of a concrete nature

INTERPRETIVE LISTENING - ADVANCED

The Alpenhorn. Is there anything more Swiss than that? Love it, hate it, this word immediately calls to mind images of men in Lederhosen standing on the side of a mountain. But now there’s Eliana Burki, an Alpenhorn player who completely breaks that stereotype.

Eliana could pass for a rock star—a new Lady Gaga. She is young, beautiful, and fashionable. And she’s the first Alpenhorn player to reach a worldwide audience. Coincidence? Explore this web site and you will find that there’s more to Elaina than meets the eye.

But behind the image that Elaina creates is a woman who is a scholar of her instrument. She can talk to you at length about the great Alpenhorn players—people like Joszef Molnar, Hans-Jürg Sommer, and William Hopson. However, she denies that any of them have influenced her.

Find out more. Look at Eliana’s extensive tour- and television schedule. She is touring Switzerland extensively this summer and would welcome the chance to perform for you. She’s performing in each of the cities on the map. She loves to greet audiences after her shows. You can meet and get autographs of Eliana’s latest CD.

PRESENTATIONAL MODE

• Present information concepts and ideas on a variety of topics to– Inform– Explain– Narrate– Persuade

PRESENTATIONAL MODE - NOVICE

The Novice-level learner• Produces

– words and phrases and highly practiced sentences or formulaic questions– simple, basic information on very familiar topics

• May show emerging evidence of the ability to express own thoughts and preferences.

PRESENTATIONAL MODE - INTERMEDIATE

The Intermediate-level learner•Produces sentences and series of sentences•Expresses own thoughts and presents information and personal preferences on familiar topics by creating with language primarily in present time •May show emerging evidence of the ability to tell or retell a story and provide additional description

PRESENTATIONAL MODE - ADVANCED

The Advanced-level learner•Produces narrations and descriptions –in all major time frames on familiar and some unfamiliar topics–Using full paragraphs that are organized and detailed

•May show emerging evidence of the ability to provide a well-supported argument, including detailed evidence in support of a point of view.

INTERPERSONAL MODE

In Interpersonal communication, individuals– interact and negotiate meaning in spoken,

signed or written conversations– share information, reactions, feelings, and

opinions

Interpersonal Listening/Speaking – Novice

The Novice-level learner• Understands and produces

– highly practiced words, lists and phrases and an occasional sentence• Can ask and respond to highly predictable, memorized and

formulaic questions• May show emerging evidence of the ability to express own

thoughts and preferences.

INTERPERSONAL LISTENING/SPEAKING - NOVICE

Prompt• Hello! My name is Antonia.

What’s your name? • I am from Colombia. Where

are you from?• I’m in my room. Where are

you? • I take English and math

classes. What classes do you take?

Novice-level Response• My name Sam.• I am in the United States.• in Spanish class• Science, Spanish, English,

math.

Interpersonal Listening/Speaking - Intermediate

The Intermediate-level learner•Can communicate by understanding and creating personal meaning on –Familiar topics–Using sentences and series of sentences

•Can understand, ask and answer a variety of questions•Consistently able to initiate, maintain, and end a conversation to satisfy basic needs and/or to handle a simple transaction•May show emerging evidence of the ability to communicate about more than the here and now.

INTERPERSONAL LISTENING/SPEAKING -INTERMEDIATE

Prompt• Let’s talk about music. Tell me what

kind of music you listen to. Why do you listen to this music?

• I listen to music on my iPod. How do you listen to music?

• Listen to this. This is The Zodiacs - my favorite group. Tell me about a group that is popular with young people in America.

• Your school has music programs, doesn’t it? Tell me about one of them. What do the students do who participate in this program?

Intermediate-Level Response• I like all music, um, without classical

music. It is boring. • Ah, I listen to my music on my telephone,

but I have an I-Phone and also I have an I-Pod and, uh, my computer.

• Ah, a group that is very popular with young people in the United States and North America, um, is the Black-Eyed Peas group. All the members in the group are young and the music is, um, very good and all, um, like them.

• Ah, there is a band and an, ah, and, um, piano and guitar classes. Um, many people go to the school in order to see the band.

Interpersonal/Listening Speaking - Advanced

The Advanced-level learner•Can communicate with ease and confidence by understanding and producing narrations and descriptions of –paragraph-length –in all major time frames

•Can deal efficiently with a situation with an unexpected turn of events.•May show emerging evidence of the ability to participate in discussions about issues beyond the concrete.

INTERPERSONAL-LISTENING/SPEAKING – ADVANCED - PROMPT

Prompt1. It’s been great talking to you in Spanish. Tell me, why did you decide

to study Spanish? Why did you make that decision?2. Do you remember an occasion when you needed to speak Spanish?

What happened? Tell me the whole story—I want to know all the details.

3. How do you plan to continue improving your Spanish? How do you plan to use your Spanish in the future?

4. I want to learn English. Can you recommend a television show that will help me learn English? Why do you think this program will help me improve my English?

INTERPERSONAL LISTENING/SPEAKING – ADVANCED - RESPONSE

2. Well, I use my Spanish a great deal in my work because I work in a pharmacy where I have to speak with patients that don’t speak English almost every week. But one very special time was when I was like nine years old, I think. I was in Cancun, Mexico with my family for Christmas. And we were, um, we went by bus and we wanted to visit the city. Then, we went on the bus and my mother didn’t know when we had to leave the bus. Then we were there for like three hours. Then, I, when I was 9 years old, had to talk with the, ah, the uh, the one who drives the bus and he, he finally told me that we forgot to leave the bus two hours ago and he took us to, to the street that we needed and we were very [attempts unsuccessfully to say thankful] because we were the last ones the last ones on the bus and no one else was there and we didn’t know what to do. Well, because I could speak Spanish with the, with the man, umm, he drove to, to the street. Thank you.

AAPPL - DEMO

http://aappl.actfl.org/

LESSONS TO APPLY TO INSTRUCTION

• Learn to communicate

• Practice communicating

• Assess communication

HOW LEARNING FACILITATORS USE CAN-DO STATEMENTS

• Curriculum and daily lesson planning• Creating performance assessment and task-specific

rubrics– Functions, text type, content, expectations for accuracy

BOTH LEARNERS AND FACILITATORS

Can use statements to show progression of a specific task:– Can set as a goal– Can do with help– Can do independently, but not all the time– Can do independently and consistently

STRATEGIES FOR USING AAPPL

• Feedback to teacher and learners• Analysis of students meeting course - level

proficiency target• Review of appropriateness of proficiency

targets• Improvement of articulation – based on what

students can do

HOW IS THIS MODEL OF ASSESSMENT BENEFICIAL?

43

Students You as a Teacher

Administrators/Community

Next Level’s Teachers