Testing By Any Other Name

Nuance In Language

When I started teaching ESL, although I thought I had accumulated enough knowledge to go into the classroom, I was not sure my college professors would have approved of my performance – not because I was not ready to reconstruct retroactively the best moments of our methodology classes. What I was looking for was a collection of every conceivable piece of information that would allow me to recover bits and pieces from every nook of my memory (and add my imagination) to communicate with my students in a way that they would really benefit from our exchange of ideas.
I was trying to find the best way to get ready for my first classroom assignments, but then came the frightening realization that I could not find all this information in a book. Deep down in my heart I deemed myself unprepared for the uphill battle, and indeed I was groping in the dark with no palpable solution in sight.
One thing I knew for certain: that somewhere along the way I was going to collect, from my own experience, what I thought would be best for my students. The intensity and scope of my perceptions led me nowhere, only to realize that Toni Morrison was right when she said that if you can’t find the book you want to read, you must write it yourself.

 

Uh Oh….

The content you’re trying to access is for members only. Please consider joining our community for exclusive access to all video and written media, plus webinar participation and a free annual conference registration. Already a member? Click here to sign in.

Get featured in our blog

You might also enjoy

Testing in 10 – Barry O’Sullivan

Interview with Professor Barry O’Sullivan, Head of Assessment Research & Development at the British Council

Professor Barry O’Sullivan was responsible for the design and development of the Aptis test service. He has undertaken research across many areas on language testing and assessment and its history.

Testing in 10 – Dr. Ricky Lam

Interview with Dr. Ricky Lam — Associate Professor, Department of Education Studies, Hong Kong Baptist University Assistant Professor, Department of Education Studies, Hong Kong Baptist University Teaching Fellow,

Looking for something?

Type your search term below

Sign In

Directory of Experts

Get listed today
Directory

The English Language Testing Society is compiling a directory of member experts in the field of English language testing. If you are interested in being listed*, please fill out the form below.

*Applicable for members only. If you are not a member, consider joining us by clicking here.

let's talk about english testing

We Would be happy to hear from you