Testing grammar and Vocabulary of Language Assessment

I.            Introduction

Since controlling grammatical structures has been seen as the very core of language ability, it is really the main reason for testing the grammar of English. Most proficiency test which is administered on a large scale still retains a grammar section. It has to be accepted that grammatical ability sets limits to what can be achieved in the way of skills performance. It is equal to apply testing vocabulary in testing grammar.

 

II.         Testing Grammar

The following are some of the most common types of objective items used to test awareness of the grammatical features of the language: multiple-choice items, completion items, transformation items, and pairing and matching items. It should always be remembered that such items as the above test the ability to recognize or produce correct form of language rather than the ability to use language to express meaning, attitude, emotions, etc. nevertheless, it is essential that students master the grammatical system of the language they are learning. Thus, classroom tests of grammar and usage can play a useful part in a language program.

1.     Multiple – Choice Grammar Items

The type of multiple-choice item favored by many constructors of grammar tests is the incomplete statement type, with a choice of four or five options. These items may be written in any of the following ways:

Note that distractors should generally be correct both in written and in speech. The following item proved unsuccessful when it was included in a test because many of the more able students selected option D. the reason being that they pronounced used to quite correctly as use to/ju:stә/:

·         I …… to go to my uncle’s farm every weekend.

A. am used                              C. was used

B. used                                     D. use

It may be argued, however, that the choice here is strictly between option A and B at certain levels where students have learned to avoid using ‘a’ and ‘some’ with ‘sun’. in such instances, one useful device (still using the multiple-choice format) is the error-recognition type of item.

·         Each sentence contains four words or phrases underlined, marked A, B, C and D. Select the underlined word or phrase which is incorrect or unacceptable.

       1. I do hope you wouldn’t mind waiting for such a long time.

              A                        B                  C               D

2.     Completion Items

Carefully constructed completion items are a useful means of testing a student’s ability to produce acceptable and appropriate forms of language. They are frequently preferable to multiple-choice items since they measure production rather than recognition, testing the ability to insert the most appropriate words in selected blanks in sentences. The word selected for omission are grammatical or functional words (e.g. to, it, in, is, she): content words may be selected in a vocabulary or reading test.

·         Put a, the, or some in each blank only where necessary. If you think that  no word should be placed in the blank, put a cross (x) there.

1. Can you see ……sun shining through the clouds?

2. I saw your uncle …..day before yesterday.

3. What have you been doing since I saw you ……last summer?

Completion items cannot, of course, be machine-marked but they are very useful for inclusion in classroom tests and for exercise purposes. The following example indicates the wide range of possibilities for one completion item:

·         I go to cinema regularly, but I …… to the theatre for months.

If the aim of this particular item is to force the use of the present perfect tense, there are three ways of restricting the choice available to the testees (although the first two ways depend heavily on reading comprehension):

(a) by providing a context:

Kim usually goes to the cinema about once a week but she …….four films already this month and it’s only the 20^th today. (possible answers: has seen/will have seen/must have seen)

(b) by providing data:

I go to the cinema regularly, but it’s ages since I last saw a play.

I go to the cinema regularly, but I ……….to the theatre for months.

(Possible answers: haven’t been/haven’t gone/haven’t been going/haven’t been able to go)

(c) by using multiple-choice techniques:

I ……to the theater three times since I last saw you.

A. go                                 C. had gone

B. have been                     D. went

3.     Transformation Items

The transformation type of item is extremely useful for testing ability to produce structures in the target language and helps to provide a balance when included in tests containing multiple-choice items. It is the one objective item type which comes closest to measuring some of the skills tested in composition writing, although transforming sentences is different from producing sentences.

Other transformation items giving some idea of the range of areas that can be covered in this way are:

1. It was impossible to work under those conditions.

    Working ………………………………………….

2. I don’t think it’s necessary for you to stay any longer.

    I don’t think you …………………………………..

The following examples illustrate how each of the sentences for transformation can be made to form part of a continuous sentence.

1. Changing sentences according to a given pattern

(a) Very few objective tests allow for choice.

     You have ………………………………………

(b) However, the instruction should be carefully checked.

     However, you ……………………………………….

(c) Different types of questions on the same paper will necessitate changes in the instructions.

     The instructions ……………………………………………………………..

2. Changing sentences by using selected words

a.       Remember that it is not necessary to answer the questions in the order set (NEED)

b.      You are advised to check your answers carefully after each question. (ADVISABLE)

c.       Most teachers also recommend you to leave five minutes spare at the end of the examination in order to check your paper. (SUGGEST)

4.     Pairing and Matching Items

This type of item usually consists of a short conversation: e.g. a stimulus in the form of a statement or question followed by a response often in the form of a statement. It is used to test the ability to select appropriate responses to stimuli which would be presented orally in normal everyday situations. The item is more useful for testing students’ sensitivity to appropriacy and their awareness of the functions of language rather than their knowledge of grammar (although grammatical clues may prove important in completing this item satisfactorily).

To perform the task required, students are simply required to write the letter of the correct response in the space provided.

Column 1                                                         Letter Column 2

Doing to see a film tonight?                             …….    A. No, I haven’t.

Have you ever seen a Japanese war film?        …….    B. So do I.

I can’t stand war film, can you?                       …….    C. I had a lot of work to do.

like them.

It should be remembered, of course, that this is not authentic discourse. However, although the language and situation here are inevitably artificial, the item does serve to help students to associate the language they are learning with real-life situations, albeit to a limited extent.

III.      Testing Vocabulary

A careful selection, or sampling, of lexical items for inclusion in a test is generally a most exciting task. Many of the more traditional types of vocabulary tests are designed in such a way that they test knowledge of words which, though frequently found in many English textbooks, are rarely used in ordinary speech.

The first task for the writer of a vocabulary test is to determine the degree to which he or she wishes to concentrate on testing the students’ active or passive vocabulary. The next task is decided whether the lexical items in the test should be taken from the spoken or the written language.

Test of vocabulary should avoid grammatical structures which the students may find difficult to comprehend. Similarly, tests of grammar should contain only those lexical items which present no difficulty to the students.

·    Group A 

Choose the letter of the word which is the nearest in meaning to the word in italics.

He’s been very feeble since his illness.

A. unwell            B. thin              C. foolish         D. weak

·    Group B 

Choose the letter of the correct or best word to complete each sentence.

Have you heard the planning committee’s ……… for solving the city’s traffic problems?

A. theory  B. design          C. proposal      D. purpose

Following item types are examples of four vocabulary recognition items which fall within the first group.

·         This type of recognition  item the stem is replaced by a picture. The testees see the picture and have to select the most appropriate word relating to the picture from four or five options. This type of item is clearly very appropriate at the elementary stages.

A.       running

B.        jumping

C.        standing

D.       kicking

·         Here the stem consists of a definition: the testees have to select the correct option to which the definition refers.

       A person who receives and pays out money in a bank

       A. broker                 B. accountant               C. creditor        D. cashier

·         The stem consists of a lexical item: the testees have to select the best synonym of definition.

       advocate

       A. support                  B. advise          C. contradict    D. damage

       dilatory

       A. growing gradually larger    C. showing care and effort

       B. slow in getting done                      D. heavy with drops of water.

·         The stem here consists of a sentence. Hence, this type of recognition item is generally to be preferred to the previous three types in so far as the ‘problem’ word appears in context. Vocabulary is much more usefully tested in context since it is the context that gives specific meaning and relevance in the circumstances.

               It’s rained continuously for two whole days.

        A. without stopping                                  C. regularly

        B. heavily                                                D. at odd moments

 Since subtle shades of meaning are, often determined only by the specific context in which a particular word appears, it is generally advisable to provide fairly full contexts for vocabulary testing, especially at an advanced level. The fuller the context, however, the more difficult it sometimes can prove to find plausible distractors. Few good distractors, for example, can be found for the following item:

       We’ve had to put off the meeting until next week. (postpone)

            Synonyms are not always interchangeable in a context (without altering the meaning). However, where a word may be replaced by another in a particular context, testees may easily be misled into regarding synonyms as being generally interchangeable.

·         Recognition

Read each of the following lists of four words. One word does not belong in each list. Put a circle round the odd word in each list.

son                        happy              arrive

father                    married                        depart

boy                       engaged           go away

brother                  single               leave

·         Production

Each group of words is related to a particular subject. Write down the particular subject which is connected with each group of words.

hand                     theatre              volume                                    nursery

wrist                      sister                track                            lift

dial                       bed                  head                             slope

face                      ward                spool                            snow

(- watch)               (-hospital)        (-tape recorder)                        (-skiing)

IV.      Conclusion

Both grammar and vocabulary contribute to communicative skills, they are rarely to be regarded as ends in themselves. It is important that tests should not accord testing grammar and vocabulary too much importance, and so create a backwash effect that undermines the achievement of the objectives of teaching and learning where there are communicative in nature.

REFERENCES

Hughes, Arthur. (1983). Testing for Language Teachers. UK: Cambridge University Press.

Sutrisno. 2011. Testing Grammar Usage and Vocabulary. Retrieved May 03, 2012 from http://bejo-bejosutrisno.blogspot.com