Sakai and Language Assessment

Ken Romeo, Ph.D.Academic Technology Specialist / Lecturer

Stanford Language Center / Academic Computing June 14, 2010

Background• Me• ESL instructor (20 years)• Academic Technology Specialist (2006)• CourseWork (Sakai) team meeting observer / participant

(2008)• Stanford Language Center• Language requirement• 1995 – new director: Prof. Elizabeth Bernhardt• Emphasis on assessment and professional development

• This presentation• American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages

(ACTFL 2007) Bernhardt, Molitoris, Miano, Gelmetti, Tsethlikai, Romeo

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Assessment Program

• Objectives• Improve student performance• Enhance credibility (students and the public)• Programmatic consistency

• Methods• ACTFL Oral Proficiency Standards (ACTFL, 1999)• Oral Placement and Exit exams• More face-time for instructors put diagnostic

assessment online (CourseWork)

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Foreign Language Placement

• 800 unregistered students: not in Sakai

• Online tests during the summer

• Oral assessment on campus: 1 hour, cassette tapes

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Exit Assessment: SOPI Definition

• Based on live Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI)• Simulated Oral Proficiency Interview (SOPI):

Instructions + Image Thinking Prompt Response Next

• Software requirements• High stakes: content security and reliability• Enrollment from existing courses (Sakai)• Non-standard roles: Coordinator, instructor• No student control = no web delivery• Securely archive audio recordings (Sakai)

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SOPI Software (Project Manager: Makoto Tsuchitani)• Application (Developer: Casey Dunn)• Desktop Java application• Quicktime for Java – play and record• WebServices to communicate with Sakai

• SOPI Monitor (Developer: Zach Thomas)• Realtime progress of each student• UI depends on role• Packaging for further dissemination

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SOPI Application

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SOPI Monitor Tool

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Technology Integration: Key Points

• Each part has a pedagogically valid purpose and is not focused on technology.

• Uses a standalone application with connection to Sakai to do what the web can’t.

• All instructors create material based on the same standards-based framework.

• Implementation takes a huge number of human hours and coordination across many different groups.

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Thank you!

Ken Romeo :: kenro at stanford dot edu

10Stanford Language Center / Academic Computing11th Sakai Conference - June 15-17, 2010