www.postersession.

com
The current interest in alternative forms in
assessment is based on a number of untested
assumptions (Sheppard, 1995). Classroom
assessment includes all the processes involved in
making decisions about students learning
progress. It includes the observation of students
written work, their answers to questions in class,
and performance on teacher-made and
standardized tests.

The study

This poster session is a comparative research
study that attempted to determine the differences
in terms of assessment methodologies,
procedures, classroom management and also
teaching approaches used by teachers who have
received formal instruction in assessment and
evaluations in ELT, and teachers who lack this
knowledge, in order to find out how they are
assessing their students in the English
classroom.

Methodology
Conclusions
The Impact Of The Assessment class in ELT teachers in Colombia
Silvia AndreaTarazona and Yulin Andrea Prez
Universidad Industrial de Santander
Bucaramanga, Santander, Colombia.


References
Observations: During the observation process,
students were aware of our presence in the
classroom while we observed the teachers.
However, there was no intervention involving their
active participation. The observations provided us
with detailed and non-judgmental notes describing
the situation. Also, they were useful to have a better
understanding of the class interaction held in their
natural social setting.








Rubrics: Were designed to complement the
observations by establishing specific aspects and
criterion to take into account when we were in the
classroom.











Semi-structured Interviews: We carried out two
types of interviews to obtain more information about
the impact of assessment procedures in teachers
and students. Firstly, we interviewed both teachers
about their educational background, academic
interests, teaching approaches and assessment
procedures used in class to evaluate their students.
Next, we selected some random students and asked
them questions in Spanish related to their attitudes
to the English class, and the perception they have
about their own learning process through their
teachers assessment methods.












1. Lpez, Alexis and Bernal Ricardo (2009). Language Testing in Colombia: A Call for
more Teacher Education and Teacher Training in Language Assessment.
Universidad de Los Andes. Bogota, Colombia.

2. Brown, Sally (2005) Assessment for Learning: The Changing Method of Assessment.
Learning and Teaching in Higher Education. Journal, Issue 1.

2. Brown, H. D. (2000). LanguageAssessment: Principles and ClassroomPractice. (4
ed.). New York: Pearson ESL.

The overall findings from this observations
suggest that the teacher who previously took
assessment and evaluation in ELT class, tended
to value the students growth process over the
grades they obtained.

It was noticeable that the teacher trained in
assessment was empowered to implement
different alternative assessment methods to keep
track of the process in a more informal manner,
which was helpful to optimize decision-making
throughout the teaching and learning process.





Abstract
Results
DATA COLLECTION:

This research project was carried out at Faster
English School, a private institute located in
Bucaramanga, Colombia. Data was collected by
means of qualitative methods such as
observations, interviews and rubrics.
One student from the teacher who has no
assessment instruction said: teacher is always
nice and polite, but classes are based on book
practice and quizzes, i can write sentences and
translate texts but i cant speak in English well

One student from the teacher who took the
assessment class at Universidad Industrial de
Santander claimed: teacher always brings
different activities and we speak in English
during the class, we do some grammar exercises
in class, but the book is to practice at home

DATA ANALYSIS:

Data was analyzed merely by means of
qualitative methods:

Observations and rubrics were analyzed by
using color coding. Specific colors (blue, orange,
green, red and purple) were given to the
categories that we considered relevant to make
process of learning English consistent.

Interviews were analyzed by recording and
transcribing participants answers, we also
focused on body language to find deeper
information and to triangulate those responses
with the previous information obtained in the
observations.













Teachers with no training in language
assessment, tend to contemplate assessment
as a tool of power and control to reinforce his
authority in the classroom, giving the
summative process a bad reputation that
makes students feel anxious when an exam
date is approaching. Brown (2002).

Richards (2011) claimed that assessment
education is important because it gives
teachers conceptions of teaching, learning and
curricula, and it has a strong impact on how
teachers teach and what students learn or
achieve.


DATE AND TIME

TEACHER

DESCRIPTION OF
THE SITUATION

REFLECTIVE
NOTES
ASPECTS FIELD NOTES
Formative Assessment Procedures
Summative Assessment Procedures
Feedback
Classroom Management
Teachers Approaches

The teacher who was not trained in
assessment only used the traditional
methods (exams, standardized test and
quizzes) to measure students progress. He
regarded assessment as an isolated
procedure.

It was evident that the teacher who had not
taken the assessment class at Universidad
Industrial de Santander, never provided
feedback to their students and their learning
progress was slower and less creative than
students from the other class.