Language Assessment Literacy – a collaborative approach (2016-ongoing)
Here at the Languages Centre, we perceived the need to revise our tests and exams (see project above). In order to develop test specifications, tasks, and rating scales that operationalise the targeted CEFR scales, we felt that we wanted to extend our existing knowledge and skills, and to reflect the existing approaches to assessment.
The exams reform described above is embedded within a systematic professional training programme to deepen existing knowledge, skills and competences in the area of language assessment. We took a collaborative approach in which teachers, course coordinators and researchers are learning from and with each other about our context, needs, constraints, and quality standards.
In order to tailor the programme to our needs, we accompany it with research: regular online questionnaires and interviews help finding out current practices and needs, tailoring and evaluating the programme, and monitoring effects and learning gains. The research is presented and published nationally and internationally.
Sibylle Seyferth (2016-2019), and our visiting scholar Salomé Villa Larenas (2018) are cooperating with Claudia Harsch on this project. We are grateful to our teachers and course coordinators who were and are willing to fill in the questionnaires and attend the interviews.