English Language Activities
English Language Specialist Focuses on Assessment (07/05/2008)
English Language Specialist Dr. Christine Coombe visited Uzbekistan from June 30 to July 5 to hold workshops on language assessment and testing techniques. While in Uzbekistan she worked with teachers who are members of the national teachers’ association and also with secondary school English teachers in Ferghana.
The Office of English Language Programs within the U.S. Department of State administers the short-term English Language Specialist program, which sends highly qualified English language professionals overseas for 2-6 weeks to conduct training on targeted topics in the field of English language instruction. Dr. Coombe’s visit offered a wonderful opportunity to address English teachers’ needs in teaching English and American Studies. Dr. Coombe noted, “Teachers were extremely receptive to the theoretical and practical work that was presented in the course and interactive workshops. As far as my own field, assessment, is concerned, I was particularly struck by the desire of teachers (both novice and experienced) and teacher trainers to improve their knowledge and skills in this area. Response to my workshops and presentations was very enthusiastic.”
While in Uzbekistan, Dr. Coombe focused her training on three areas that are of interest to English language teachers: Fundamentals of Language Assessment, Test Preparation Strategies and Public Speaking/Presentation Skills. During her various training sessions, Dr. Coombe worked with almost 60 teachers of English, and all of her workshops were interactive, providing the teachers with opportunities to ask questions and participate in their learning. They found Dr. Coombe's presentations, including "10 Characteristics of Highly Effective ES/FL Teachers” and "Public Speaking and Presentation Skills" very relevant, as they were interested in improving their teaching and assessment skills. Through these workshops, Dr. Coombe strives to provide an overview of important issues involved in the development, selection, use, and evaluation of objective and subjective language assessments. Her practical, hands-on sessions cover issues related to (a) the cornerstones of good assessment practice, (b) types of objective and subjective test items, (c) guidelines for writing good objective test items and (d) common item violations. After Dr. Coombe finished her presentations, she also gave teachers an opportunity to put their new knowledge into practice by critiquing a sample test. Through this practical approach, the participants were able to review and critique various assessment techniques and understand the fundamentals of language assessment. Dr. Coombe also provided teachers with ideas on how to assess different skill areas (reading, writing, listening, speaking), alternative assessments, administering assessments, statistics, and test-taking strategies.
Dr. Coombe has a Ph.D in Foreign/Second Language Education and Testing from The Ohio State University. She is currently on the English faculty of Dubai Men's College and works as an Assessment Leader for the Higher Colleges of Technology. She has lived and worked in the Arabian Gulf for the past 15 years. During that time she has served as President of TESOL Arabia and as the founder and co-chair of the TESOL Arabia Testing, Assessment and Evaluation Special Interest Group who organize the Current Trends in English Language Testing (CTELT) Conference.
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