[etni] more about Cloze
- From: "Lev Abramov" <lev@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <etni@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Tue, 27 Jul 2004 13:25:07 +0200
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This was intended to be sent to the list - but I missed the ReplyAll button,
so it turned into an offlist exchange. I'm posting it to teh list so as to
share it with the rest of its subscribers.
Lev
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1. Ellen Schur wrote:
If you delete every nth word from a passage, that means that some of your
deletions will be function words, i.e., determiners, prepositions, etc.
Others will be content words with a fixed form (nouns, adjectives, and
adverbs); still others will be verbs which would then need to be conjugated
and/or put in the correct tense. On a limited item test, this variation
raises the question of what you are testing: grammar? Spelling?
collocational knowledge? the student's ability to retrieve and produce a
particular word in its correct form? And we could all point to additional
linguistic elements as well that get included in the cloze soup.
---snip---
2. I responded:
That's exactly the point. The way cloze is used today, it is not "every nth
word" removed - it's mostly content words (well, determiners, prepositions
and conjunctions sometimes, too!). And if used properly, cloze can test
knowledge in an intergrative manner - grammar, syntax, spelling,
collocational knowledge, the student's ability to retrieve and produce a
particular word in its correct form, as well as some additional linguistic
elements.
In diagnostic testing this sort of instrument would probably be of lesser
importance, as we'd want to know exactly what the person taking the test can
achieve in every one of these fields separately.
But in a summative test like Bagrut, cloze is probably the method of choice.
No-one says cloze should replace other methods. But to remove the cloze from
the Bagrut was irresponsible, to say the least.
-----------------------------------
3. Ellen wrote back to me:
Yes, I know that it isn't every nth word that's deleted. The problem is the
mostly and the sometimes. Unless you give me a test, i.e., with enough items
per category to be reliable, that says x percentage of the items are of this
type and y percentage of another, how do I know what is being tested?
On the other hand if you do a selected deletion with only content words of a
particular frequency band, then I can make some meaningful statement of a
student's semantic knowledge at a certain level. But before I gave them this
type of test, I would want them to work with clozes with a bank of content
words so that (1) they are familiar with the format and (2) I know that they
have reviewed the vocabulary in context.
---------------------------------
4. I responded:
You know this. I know this. A few others do.
The question is, what do those who write actual Bagrut tests know? I have a
feeling these tests are written by people who could use some courses in
theory and practice of language testing. No doubt properly qualified
specialists are available; the question is what to do with the tenured
Ministry employees?
No-one can write an ideal test. But trying to get as close to that point as
possible is commendable. The Ministry should simply try harder...
-------------------------
PS: I also attached a cartoon which will not pass the ETNI listserv; if you
want to view it click here:
http://schiffman.biz/gallery/view_album.php?set_albumName=Try-Harder
Lev
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