Using the assessment criteria
You will be able to obtain a report illustrating how your student performed immediately after the assessment. The simplest report will provide information about which questions the student answered correctly as well as descriptions from the Victorian Curriculum F-10 EAL for each question. This report should provide confirmation about your students’ reading and vocabulary knowledge and skills as well as point to areas for further learning and teaching. The information in the report should be used with the results of other assessments you have conducted to provide a fuller picture of your student’s English language proficiency.
Look carefully at the details of the report.
- Which type of questions did the student answer correctly? Is there a particular skill or indicator in which the student shows weakness or strength?
- Is there a pattern? For example, does the student answer most questions based on imaginative texts correctly but not those based on informative or persuasive texts, or does the student answer most vocabulary questions correctly but get those on prepositions wrong?
Such information provides input into how classroom teaching and learning may be individualised.
You will also be able to generate a class level report. Again, look for patterns. These patterns provide input into how classroom teaching and learning may be modified to better cater to the strengths and weaknesses of the group.
It is important to remember that students do not have to achieve all the indicators at a particular level to be classified at that level. Students will generally achieve some indicators at the teacher-estimated level, not achieve some at the lower level and achieve some at the higher level. What is important is to be aware of patterns of non-achievement where students are on numerous occasions not achieving a particular indicator. This would then demonstrate a clear gap in their literacy knowledge and skills.