By:
Marwa & Erlik
Widiyani Styati
A
commonly advocated best practice for classroom assessment is to make the
assessments authentic. Authentic is often used as meaning the mirroring of
real-world tasks or expectations. There is no consensus, however, in the actual
definition of the term or the characteristics of an authentic classroom
assessment. Sometimes, the realistic component is not even an element of a
researcher’s or practitioner’s meaning.
Simply testing an isolated skill or
a retained fact does not effectively measure a student's capabilities. To
accurately evaluate what a student has learned, an assessment method must
examine his or her collective abilities. The term authentic assessment
describes the multiple forms of assessment that reflect student learning,
achievement, motivation, and attitudes on instructionally relevant classroom
activities.
There are several challenges to
using authentic assessment methods. They include managing its time-intensive
nature, ensuring curricular validity, and minimizing evaluator bias. Despite
these challenges, efforts must be made to appropriately assess all LEP students
and to welcome the possibility of assessment strategies that can empower
students to take control of their own learning and to become independent thinkers
and users of the English language.
REFERENCES
O’Malley,
J.M. and Pierce, L.V. 1996: Authentic
Assessment for English Language Teachers:
Practical Approaches for Teachers. New York:Addison-Wesley Publishing Company.
