The Challenge of Student Self-assessment in Language Education

• The main aim of this paper is to illustrate some ways in which learners of a language may engage in the monitoring and assessment of what they are learning. Traditionally it has been held that a learner cannot, for logical reasons, have much to say in such matters. The basic argument of that position is that self-assessment is subjective and therefore unreliable and of little value. This paper represents a challenge to this view. While it is true that a person’s estimate of his/her own ability is inherently subjective, that does not necessarily mean that it is unreliable, or that it is unimportant or without value. Both theoretical work and practical advances indicate that subjectively grounded assessment can yield reasonably dependable results, as well as have other positive effects. In this paper, I will first briefly review some theoretical arguments and research findings which have contributed to the development of self-assessment practices and will then deal with the practical side of the approach. In so doing, I will describe some concrete self-assessment strategies and materials and indicate how they have been presented and used, both in classroom work and in assessment more generally. Finally, I will sum up the most important points of my paper and formulate some arguments that challenge the competing and fairly common view that students should not have a role in the assessment of something they are still learning.

Ämnesord

SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP  -- Utbildningsvetenskap -- Didaktik (hsv//swe)

SOCIAL SCIENCES  -- Educational Sciences -- Didactics (hsv//eng)

Nyckelord

FL assessment

language assessment

self-assessment materials

Publikations- och innehållstyp

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