LEARNER-DRIVEN ORAL ASSESSMENT CRITERIA FOR ENGLISH PRESENTATION

Abstract

Learner-centred assessment has been widely propagated in learner-centred approach. However, learners are rarely given the opportunity to engineer their own assessment. Therefore, this study attempted to gauge (1) the functionality of learner-driven oral assessment criteria scaling structure and (2) the reliability of learner-assessors in applying their own assessment criteria during oral presentation. In this study, 11 participants from an electrical engineering group, which consists of one year programme matriculation students, participated in assessment criteria development. First, participants discussed suitable criteria and scaling structure in small groups. Secondly, each group presented their oral assessment criteria for peer feedback. Thirdly, participants discussed and finalised the oral assessment criteria for the class. Fourthly, to test the learner-driven assessment criteria, three speakers from the group volunteered to present their speech. While presenting, these speakers were assessed by their peers. Participants’ ratings and scores were later analysed using the Many-Facet Rasch Measurement (MFRM) software. Findings show that despite the criteria being developed by learners, the scaling structures were functioning usefully with the Rasch Threshold measure indicated more than 1.4 logits between assessment levels and the learner-assessor reliability was > 0.80. The significance of this study lies in raising awareness for improving learners’ oral presentation skills as well as developing learner autonomy. Keywords: Learner autonomy, learner-centred, oral skills, Rasch measurement. Cite as: Idris, M. & Abdul Raof, A. H. (2019). Learner-driven oral assessment criteria for English presentation. Journal of Nusantara Studies, 4(1), 365-383. http://dx.doi.org/10.24200/jonus.vol4iss1pp365-383