Assessing Young Learners

Abstract

Young learners, typically described as aged between 5 and 12 years old, have very different characteristics from older learners and must therefore be assessed in different ways. Depending on the age they start learning the L2, young learners' cognitive skills will normally be developing at the same time as their linguistic knowledge. Young learners usually have different interests from adult learners and will be motivated to learn languages in different ways. It is important to take these factors into consideration when designing assessments for this age group. The age that formal language testing should start with young learners is often questioned, as is the issue of what type of assessments to use. While testing receptive language skills may not present undue problems, testing of productive skills can be hampered by learners' still‐developing literacy, motor coordination and pronunciation skills in the L1. However, many opportunities present themselves for creative assessment, using methods such as diagnostic testing of literacy skills, portfolios, task‐based assessments and child observations. These methods can be successfully combined to form an overall assessment of a child's capabilities, strengths, weaknesses, and areas where further work is necessary.