Gudrun Erickson

Dimensions of national test performance: A two-level approach

The research project presented in this article was set in the Swedish school context and carried out on a set of compulsory national tests for English, Swedish, and mathematics used at the end of compulsory school. The aims were: (a) to gain a deeper knowledge of the internal structure of the tests and (b) to separate individual performance from school performance. Individual test results from a representative sample of approximately 30% of the cohort (n = 26,360) constituted the data. Factor analysis, of a basically confirmatory nature, was applied in the study. Modelling at the individual level resulted in a theoretically sound, 11-factor model demonstrating good fit. The corresponding analyses at the school level, using 2-level structural equation modelling techniques, generated a similar, although somewhat less complex, model. Approximately 12% of the total variation in performance on the tests proved to be associated with schools.

Learner Identity, Learner Agency, and the Assessment of Language Proficiency: Some Reflections Prompted by the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages

ABSTRACT This article starts from the assumption that education is a process of “people shaping” designed to help learners extend and perhaps in some ways modify their identity while exploiting and developing their agency. This view is harmonious with the approach to language education that the Council of Europe has developed since the 1970s, and especially with its early commitment to learner autonomy and self-assessment. The approach adopted by the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages: Learning, teaching, assessment (CEFR) to the description of language proficiency clearly implicates the user-learners identity and agency, which are also central to the CEFRs companion piece, the European Language Portfolio (ELP), in which self-assessment plays a key role. The article proposes that taken together, the CEFR and the ELP imply an assessment culture in which learning and assessment are reciprocally integrated. From the perspective thus established, the authors review some current trends in language assessment and their potential impact on learner identity and learner agency, focusing in turn on self-assessment, peer assessment, teacher assessment, and large-scale testing and assessment. The article concludes by arguing that although recent developments in language assessment pay significantly more attention to the learner than was previously the case, a great deal of work remains to be done to further increase the engagement of learner agency in processes of self-assessment and peer assessment and to align them with other forms of assessment.

Experiences with Standards and Criteria in Sweden

After decades of norm referencing, a criterion-referenced grading system was introduced in Sweden in the mid 1990s. The shift brought about a number of changes at different levels of the educational system. In this, the national tests, with their long tradition and high degree of acceptance, were seen as one way of implementing the new system. Hence, the tests were given several explicit aims, from clarification of subject syllabuses and criteria and active, positive impact on learning, to advisory tools to enhance fair grading at the individual level, as well as stability over time. After a brief introduction of the system and its various developments and challenges, the chapter focuses on the current nature and status of the national tests, including the issue of standard setting. For a number of years, this has been the responsibility of the different universities developing the tests, which has brought about certain differences regarding methods as well as outcomes. Lately, however, attempts have been made to develop a common framework for the tests, including procedures for setting standards. In the chapter, a brief report will be given of this on-going work, which is part of a general analysis of the Swedish national assessment system at large.

'If they'd written more ... ' On students' perceptions of assessment and assessment practices

The focus of the current study is students’ perceptions of assessment and assessment practices. Assessment is understood as practices closely connected to the planning, enactment and evaluation of teaching and learning activities. The data derive from focus group interviews and dialogical meetings with students at a Swedish comprehensive school. Theories of assessment and validity are used as a framework to interpret and contextualise the data. An empirically developed interconnecting data analysis model is used as an analytical tool to connect students’ perceptions, assessment aspects and preconditions in a specific context. Our results indicate that students perceive assessment at different comprehension levels, categorised as performing, understanding and learning. Preconditions affect students’ possibilities of accessing assessment practices and using assessments to improve their performance. In this article we highlight the importance of taking student voice and preconditions into consideration when structuring accessible and meaning-making assessment practices that hold possibilities for enhanced learning.

Offering research education for in-service language teachers

Since 2008, the Swedish government has launched occasional offers of funding for graduate schools aimed at practising teachers. The fundamental purpose of this initiative is to enhance quality in t ...

Dimensions of test performance in English as a foreign language in different European settings: a two-level confirmatory factor analytical approach

The present study explored data from a survey of students’ performance in English at the end of compulsory school in 6 European countries. The aim was to gain deeper knowledge of the internal structure of the test and to discuss similarities and differences between the different settings regarding patterns in language proficiency. The analyses, conducted by a factor analytic approach and 2-level structural equation modelling (SEM) techniques, indicated an overall English achievement factor at both student and school levels. Furthermore, an effect of format differences at the student level, constituted by a factor related to tasks demanding constructed response, was found. Three correlated modality factors related to listening, linguistic, and reading skills were identified but not further elaborated on as they improved the model only modestly. Considerable differences in between-school variation were found in the different settings. The results are discussed in relation to the instrument, student achievements, and the state of English in the participating countries.