Tandem MOOC english

Let us now study three methods of self-assessment together: self-assessment rubrics, daries, and portfolios. 

It is important to experiment with the different methods we present here but also to discover other methods. This will make you a better teacher and help your students become more autonomous and independent. 

Self-assessment rubrics

Self-assessment rubrics are a list of criteria by which students can assess their own performance. They usually have a structure that includes different levels of results and emphasise quality and not quantity of learning. In other words, rubrics focus on 'how' a student has learnt and not on 'how much'.

Usually, rubrics are designed to assess learning outcomes at the end of the task. However, we can give them to students before doing the task to help them plan their self-assessment. 

To create a rubric, you must be clear about the task and its learning objectives.

Also, you have to imagine what a student's final work will look like based on their level of performance. Indeed, the work produced by an excellent student is not the same as that produced by an average student, and so on. 

Therefore, you must list the type of knowledge and skills required to complete the task and describe the pattern of work. 

If you have doubts, you can always discuss with fellow teachers and involve students. 

Rubrics encourage self-assessment. However, it is crucial to make students understand how to use them well and explain to them which elements are most important. 

Diaries

Diaries are a valuable method to help teachers collect data for assessment in TBLT. But they are also beneficial for students. Indeed, diaries help students think about their learning strategies and set goals for themselves. 

To use this method, you can give students a series of questions to answer in their diaries. The questions should prompt the students to think about their learning process. For example: 

• What is the most important thing you learnt today?
• What strategies did you use during today's lesson? Were they appropriate?

In addition, it is crucial to devote enough time to this activity during the lessons to accustom the students to self-reflection. 

The portfolio

The portfolio is a collection of individual students' work that can be updated as language learning continues. The portfolio helps students understand their interests and define how they prefer to study.

You need to give students clear guidelines on what to include in their portfolio (e.g. writing assignments, project work, tests, etc.) to illustrate their learning process. 

Portfolios can be either digital or paper-based. Regardless of the form, however, it is not enough to collect material. You have to remind students to analyse and reflect on the material they have collected. For this, you can give the students a series of reflection questions based on learning as a long process and not as an instant effort.

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