Discussion on Issues Related to the Use of Dynamic Assessment of Learners of a Spoken or Signed Language

2021 ◽  
pp. 113-116
Author(s):  
Wolfgang Mann ◽  
Joanna Hoskin ◽  
Natalie Hasson ◽  
Hilary Dumbrill
Keyword(s):  
Interdisciplinary Collaboration ◽  
Dynamic Assessment ◽  
Language Assessment ◽  
Spoken Language ◽  
Narrative Discourse ◽  
Sentence Structure ◽  
Children And Families ◽  
Signed Language ◽  
New Research ◽  
Different Parts

This chapter is a joint discussion of key items related to the use of dynamic assessment (DA) in spoken and signed language assessment contexts that were discussed in Chapters 3.1 and 3.2. One aspect of spoken language assessment with great potential to inform new research in signed language is the number and detail of available approaches that test different parts of the language system. Whereas DA with signing children has been used exclusively for assessing vocabulary, approaches in spoken languages have also targeted morphology, phonology, sentence structure, and narrative discourse. In comparison, an area where the available research from signed language could help inform the use of DA for spoken language is the involvement of children and families in co-producing goals to guide assessment and intervention. The authors also raise a couple of aspects that are of equal relevance for both fields and which provide opportunities for increased interdisciplinary collaboration.

Discussion on Scoring Issues in Second Signed or Spoken Language Assessment

2021 ◽  
pp. 329-332
Author(s):  
Tobias Haug ◽  
Ute Knoch ◽  
Wolfgang Mann
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Nonverbal Communication ◽  
Rasch Analysis ◽  
Language Assessment ◽  
Spoken Language ◽  
Rater Training ◽  
Signed Language ◽  
Language Assessments ◽  
New Research

This chapter is a joint discussion of key items related to scoring issues related to signed and spoken language assessment that were discussed in Chapters 9.1 and 9.2. One aspect of signed language assessment that has the potential to stimulate new research in spoken second language (L2) assessment is the scoring of nonverbal speaker behaviors. This aspect is rarely represented in the scoring criteria of spoken assessments and in many cases not even available to raters during the scoring process. The authors argue, therefore, for a broadening of the construct of spoken language assessment to also include elements of nonverbal communication in the scoring descriptors. Additionally, the importance of rater training for signed language assessments, application of Rasch analysis to investigate possible reasons of disagreement between raters, and the need to conduct research on rasting scales are discussed.

The Handbook of Language Assessment Across Modalities

2021 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Assessment ◽  
Spoken Language ◽  
Assessment Literacy ◽  
Signed Language ◽  
Key Issues ◽  
Relevant Field ◽  
The Common ◽  
New Perspective ◽  
First Time

In Language Assessment Across Modalities: Paired-Papers on Signed and Spoken Language Assessment, volume editors Tobias Haug, Wolfgang Mann, and Ute Knoch bring together—for the first time—researchers, clinicians, and practitioners from two different fields: signed language and spoken language. The volume examines theoretical and practical issues related to 12 topics ranging from test development and language assessment of bi-/multilingual learners to construct issues of second-language assessment (including the Common European Framework of Reference [CEFR]) and language assessment literacy in second-language assessment contexts. Each topic is addressed separately for spoken and signed language by experts from the relevant field. This is followed by a joint discussion in which the chapter authors highlight key issues in each field and their possible implications for the other field. What makes this volume unique is that it is the first of its kind to bring experts from signed and spoken language assessment to the same table. The dialogues that result from this collaboration not only help to establish a shared appreciation and understanding of challenges experienced in the new field of signed language assessment but also breathes new life into and provides a new perspective on some of the issues that have occupied the field of spoken language assessment for decades. It is hoped that this will open the door to new and exciting cross-disciplinary collaborations.

Discussion of Issues Related to Assessment of Signed or Spoken Language Development in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder

2021 ◽  
pp. 145-152
Author(s):  
Amy Kissel Frisbie ◽  
Aaron Shield ◽  
Deborah Mood ◽  
Nicole Salamy ◽  
Jonathan Henner
Keyword(s):  
Language Development ◽  
Developmental Disorders ◽  
Language Assessment ◽  
Spoken Language ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Pragmatic Language ◽  
Signed Language ◽  
Pragmatic Language Skills ◽  
Language Assessments ◽  
Hearing Children

This chapter is a joint discussion of key items presented in Chapters 4.1 and 4.2 related to the assessment of deaf and hearing children on the autism spectrum . From these chapters it becomes apparent that a number of aspects associated with signed language assessment are relevant to spoken language assessment. For example, there are several precautions to bear in mind about language assessments obtained via an interpreter. Some of these precautions apply solely to D/HH children, while others are applicable to assessments with hearing children in multilingual contexts. Equally, there are some aspects of spoken language assessment that can be applied to signed language assessment. These include the importance of assessing pragmatic language skills, assessing multiple areas of language development, differentiating between ASD and other developmental disorders, and completing the language evaluation within a developmental framework. The authors conclude with suggestions for both spoken and signed language assessment.

Dynamic Assessment of Learners of a Signed Language

2021 ◽  
pp. 101-112
Author(s):  
Wolfgang Mann ◽  
Joanna Hoskin ◽  
Hilary Dumbrill
Keyword(s):  
Dynamic Assessment ◽  
School Setting ◽  
Language Assessment ◽  
The Other ◽  
Deaf Children ◽  
Future Directions ◽  
Signed Language ◽  
Dynamic Language ◽  
Anecdotal Information

In this chapter, the authors discuss the use of dynamic language assessment with signing deaf children. This is a fairly new area, and, in spite of the growing interest on behalf of researchers and practitioners, there is very limited research. Given the lack of available studies, the authors use anecdotal information that draws on observations made by two of the authors from their own work with signing deaf children, one in a hospital and the other in a school setting. Some of the questions that will guide the discussions are: What makes dynamic assessment useful for signing deaf children? And, how do we determine that dynamic assessment is appropriate for a particular child, and how do we evaluate whether it works? The authors finish with a look at possible future directions and present recommendations on how to make dynamic assessment (more) meaningful for use with signing deaf children.

Discussion on New Technologies in Spoken and Signed Language Assessment

2021 ◽  
pp. 431-436
Author(s):  
Sarah Ebling ◽  
Phuong Nguyen ◽  
Volker Hegelheimer ◽  
Necati Cihan Camgöz ◽  
Richard Bowden
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
New Technologies ◽  
Language Assessment ◽  
Spoken Language ◽  
Management Systems ◽  
Language Recognition ◽  
Interactional Competence ◽  
Signed Language ◽  
Technological Developments

This chapter discusses the implications of second language (L2) spoken assessment technologies and signed language assessment technologies. Specifically, the authors discuss how signed language recognition technology can be applied for the assessment of interactional competence in L2 spoken language assessment. The chapter outlines assessment management systems and the improvement of signed language recognition and animation technologies as important steps to support L2 signed language assessment. The authors also propose directions for future technological developments in both spoken language and signed language assessment. This chapter is a joint discussion of key items related to the use of new technologies in signed and spoken language assessment that were discussed in Chapters 12.1 and 12.2.

Discussion of Validation Issues in Signed and Spoken Assessments for Adult L2 Learners

2021 ◽  
pp. 295-298
Author(s):  
Carol A. Chapelle ◽  
Peter C. Hauser ◽  
Hye-won Lee ◽  
Christian Rathmann ◽  
Krister Schönström
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Test Development ◽  
Language Assessment ◽  
Spoken Language ◽  
Functional Communication ◽  
Validity Argument ◽  
Signed Language ◽  
L2 Learners ◽  
Test Use

The use of argument-based validity as a framework for discussion of validity issues in spoken and signed second language (L2) assessment reveals many areas of commonality. Common areas include the role of systematic test development practices in the validity argument, the complexity of rating issues, the need to define and assess a construct of functional communication of meaning, and the centrality of test use in the validity argument. Examining these areas of commonality in this chapter reveals the fundamental similarities in the basic validity issues faced in spoken and signed language assessment. This chapter is a joint discussion of key items related to validation issues related to signed and spoken language assessment that were discussed in Chapters 8.1 and 8.2.

Discussion of Issues Related to Assessment Constructs in Spoken and Signed Languages

2021 ◽  
pp. 261-270
Author(s):  
Susy Macqueen ◽  
Tobias Haug
Keyword(s):  
Developmental Trajectories ◽  
Language Assessment ◽  
Spoken Language ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Assessment Practices ◽  
Language Abilities ◽  
Significant Challenge ◽  
Signed Languages ◽  
Signed Language ◽  
Language Assessments

Thinking about what is assessed—the construct—in any language assessment raises questions about the nature of language use, the nature of developmental trajectories, and whose language patterns determine what is ‘standard’. The assessment of signed languages draws attention to assessment practices and understandings that are entrenched, for better or worse, in the assessment of spoken languages. Spoken language assessments of standardized varieties tend to value the written sentence as an ideal unit, a legacy of standardization. Signed language assessments, on the other hand, may be emerging alongside processes of standardization. Capturing semiotic complexity in the construct remains a significant challenge for both signed and spoken language assessments, despite the development of corpora which exemplify it. This chapter discusses these theoretical, ideological, and practical challenges for assessing signed and spoken language abilities. It brings together key ideas from chapters Chapters 7.1 and 7.2 and offers future directions in the development of theory and practice in signed and spoken language assessments.

Introduction

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-12
Author(s):  
Tobias Haug ◽  
Wolfgang Mann ◽  
Ute Knoch
Keyword(s):  
Adult Learners ◽  
Language Assessment ◽  
Spoken Language ◽  
Young Learners ◽  
Signed Language ◽  
Insight Into

The first part of this chapter provides an overview of how the idea of this edited volume on spoken and signed language assessment came about. The chapter also gives an insight into the different histories of spoken and signed language assessment and test research with their different backgrounds and contexts. It shows that very little interaction between signed and spoken language assessment communities exist so far. The second part of this chapter outlines the structure and the 12 themes that are addressed in this volume. While themes 1–6 focus one the assessment of young learners, the themes 7–12 focus on the assessment of adult learners....

Discussion of Issues Related to Spoken and Signed Language Test Design for L1 Children

2021 ◽  
pp. 41-48
Author(s):  
Shula Chiat ◽  
Rosalind Herman ◽  
Katherine Rowley ◽  
Penny Roy
Keyword(s):  
Critical Reflection ◽  
Language Assessment ◽  
Spoken Language ◽  
Test Design ◽  
Specific Recommendation ◽  
Language Experience ◽  
Language Abilities ◽  
Language Tests ◽  
Signed Language ◽  
The Common

This chapter is a joint discussion of key items related to the development of spoken language tests (Chapter 1.1) and signed language tests (Chapter 1.2) for L1 children and the ways in which they have been addressed. We highlight the common issues and challenges in spoken and signed language assessment as well as the differences, e.g., availability of tests. In so doing, we consider how experience with spoken language assessment—for example, the development of methods for assessing language abilities that are independent of language experience—may inform test development in signed language. We also consider how awareness of issues in signed language assessment may increase awareness of similar issues that are easily overlooked in spoken language assessment—for example, the range of communication contexts and partners that children regularly encounter—and stimulate critical reflection on the use of language tests in general. One specific recommendation the chapter has for developers of signed language tests in the future is to consider areas that are unique to signed communication and critical to signing children’s language development.

Epilogue

2021 ◽  
pp. 437-446
Author(s):  
Wolfgang Mann ◽  
Tobias Haug ◽  
Ute Knoch
Keyword(s):  
Language Assessment ◽  
Spoken Language ◽  
New Approaches ◽  
Signed Language ◽  
Language Assessments ◽  
The Difference

The preceding chapters on signed language assessment and spoken language assessment have demonstrated that the two fields may have different roots and contexts of application, mostly due to the difference in modality, but there are also similarities that may be lesser known. In this chapter, the authors demonstrate how both differences and similarities between the field of signed and spoken languages can create exciting opportunities to rethink old, traditional perspectives and engage in new approaches and collaborations between experts who share the same overall goal: that is, to develop language assessments that are methodologically sound and can be applied to their respective contexts.

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