1. ASSESSMENT FOR LEARNING. Assessment for learning involves teachers using evidence about students' knowledge, understanding and skills to inform their teaching. Sometimes referred to as 'formative assessment', it usually occurs throughout the teaching and learning process to clarify student learning and understanding.

What is assessment for learning?

Assessment for learning is best described as a process by which assessment information is used by teachers to adjust their teaching strategies, and by students to adjust their learning strategies.

Assessment OF learning occurs when teachers use evidence of student learning to make judgements on student achievement against goals and standards. It is usually formal, frequently occurring at the end of units of work where it sums up student achievement at a particular point in time. It is often organised around themes or major projects and judgements may be based on student performance on multi-domain assessment tasks. It has a summative use, showing how students are progressing against the Standards, and a formative use providing evidence to inform long term planning. These are often known as summative assessments. Assessment AS learning is the use of a

task or an activity to allow students the opportunity to use assessment to further their own learning. Self and peer assessments allow students to reflect on their own learning and identify areas of strength and need.

Assessment FOR learning is more commonly known as formative & diagnostic assessments.  Assessment FOR learning is the use of a task or an activity for the purpose of determining student progress during a unit or block of instruction.  Teachers are now afforded the chance to adjust classroom instruction based upon the needs of the students.  Similarly, students are provided valuable feedback on their own learning.  Assessment OF learning is the use of a task or an activity to measure, record and report on a student's level of achievement in regards to specific learning expectations.  These are often known as summative assessments.Assessment AS learning is the use of a task or an activity to allow students the opportunity to use assessment to further their own learning.  Self and peer assessments allow students to reflect on their own learning and identify areas of strength and need.  These tasks offer students the chance to set their own personal goals and advocate for their own learning.

Skimming is one of the tools you can use to read more in less time.Skimming refers to looking only for the general or main ideas, and works best with non-fiction (or factual) material. With skimming, your overall understanding is reduced because you don’t read everything. You read only what is important to your purpose. Skimming takes place while reading and allows you to look for details in addition to the main ideas.

Scanning is another useful tool for speeding up your reading. Unlike skimming, when scanning, you look only for a specific fact or piece of information without reading everything. You scan when you look for your favorite show listed in the cable guide, for your friend’s phone number in a telephone book, and for the sports scores in the newspaper. For scanning to be successful, you need to understand how your material is structured as well as comprehend what you read so you can locate the specific information you need. Scanning also allows you to find details and other information in a hurry.Scanning means knowing what information you need to find before you read. You have something in your mind, your eyes, then, move quickly to find that particular information. You scan when you are looking for a fact or a detail or a particular vocabulary word. When you are scanning, you don’t have to read every word to answer the questions and don’t have understand every word.Skimming means reading quickly for general meaning. You skim reading material to find out about topic, the main idea, and generic structure of passage. For this kind of reading, you only want to find out something and don’t want to know and memorize everything you read. In fact, you should leave out everything except a few important words. There are the words that tell you the general idea.

Inference is the act or process of deriving logical conclusions from premises known or assumed to

be true.[1] The conclusion drawn is also called an idiomatic. The laws of valid inference are studied in

the field of logic.Alternatively, inference may be defined as the non-logical, but rational means,

through observation of patterns of facts, to indirectly see new meanings and contexts for

understanding. Of particular use to this application of inference are anomalies and symbols. Inference,

in this sense, does not draw conclusions but opens new paths for inquiry. (See second set of

Examples.) In this definition of inference, there are two types of inference: inductive

inference and deductive inference. Unlike the definition of inference in the first paragraph above,

meaning of word meanings are not tested but meaningful relationships are articulated.

Human inference (i.e. how humans draw conclusions) is traditionally studied within the field

of cognitive psychology; artificial intelligence researchers develop automated inference systems to

emulate human inference.: the act or process of reaching a conclusion about something from known

facts or evidence

: a conclusion or opinion that is formed because of known facts or evidenceSummarizing teaches students how to discern the most important ideas in a text, how to ignore irrelevant information, and how to integrate the central ideas in a meaningful way. Teaching students to summarize improves their memory for what is read. Summarization strategies can be used in almost every content area.

To summarize is to put in your own words a shortened version of written or spoken material, stating the main points and leaving out everything that is not essential. Summarizing is more than retelling; it involves analyzing information, distinguishing important from unimportant elements and translating large chunks of information into a few short cohesive sentences. Fiction and nonfiction texts, media, conversations, meetings, and events can all be summarized.to combine or produce by synthesis : to combine or cause to combine into a whole.When you synthesize, you combine two or more things to create something more complex. 

Test Segments

In addition to the various forms of dictation analysed above, there are many listening activities (and others that could involve the interpretation of gestures and pictures) designed to test the learner’s ability to discriminate phonemes or groups of phonemes. Following are a few examples:

1. Same or Different? The testees listen to a pair of words or pairs of sentences and indicate whether they are the same or different; e.g.,

a. suck - sock

b. but - bought

c. seat - seat

d. hut - hurt

e. Is that my pen? Is that my pan?

f. He was severely beaten by his wife. He was severely bitten by his wife.

The exercise can also be done by showing the testees a set of pictures corresponding to words that elicit contrasting sounds; one of the words is spoken by the examiner or played on tape.

3. Which Definition? A word is read twice, and several different definitions, including one that is correct for the word, are given; the testees are asked to select the correct definition for the word heard; e.g.,

1. bought - bought

a. a vehicle that moves in the seab. past participle of buyc. coordinating conjunction

2. hid - hida. not to like [hate?]b. placed where it cannot be seen c. knock

This type of exercise has the extra advantage that it tests vocabulary at the same time.

Vocabulary and Prior Knowledge

Learning to read written texts is not the same as learning to understand written texts. Reading

comprehension involves understanding the vocabulary, seeing relationships among words and

concepts, organizing ideas, recognizing the author’s purpose, evaluating the context, and making

judgments

Many children who successfully learn to read in grade one or two are unable to understand books they

need to read by grade three or four. One of the reasons for this is lack of adequate vocabulary.

Prior knowledge is an important aspect to successful reading and studies have shown that lack of

cultural familiarity with the subject matter has a greater impact on reading comprehension of a

passage than the pre-teaching of vocabulary.

The child’s ability to recall information and make inferences is enhanced when they are familiar with

the subject matter.

1. lack of control over the speed at which speakers speak ,2. not being able to get things repeated,3. the listener's limited vocabulary,4. failure to recognize the "signals,"5. problems of interpretation,6. inability to concentrate, and7. established learning habits.

Day-to-Day ActivitiesMake sure your child sees you writingShe will learn about writing by watching you write. Talk with her about your writing so that she begins to understand why writing is important and the many ways it can be used.Encourage your child to write, even if she's scribblingGive your child opportunities to practice writing by helping her sign birthday cards, write stories, and make lists.As your child gets older, write togetherHave your child help you with the writing you do, including writing letters, shopping lists, and messages.Suggest note-takingEncourage your child to take notes on trips or outings, and to describe what she saw. This could

include a description of nature walks, a boat ride, a car trip, or other events that lend themselves to note-taking.Encourage copyingIf your child likes a particular song, suggest that she learn the words by writing them down. Also encourage copying favorite poems or quotations from books and plays.Encourage your child to read her stories out loudAs your child gets older, ask her to share her stories with you. Listen carefully without interrupting, and give her positive feedback about her ideas and her writing!Hang a family message board in the kitchenOffer to write notes there for your child. Be sure that she finds notes left there for her.Help your child write letters and emails to relatives and friendsThese may include thank you notes or just a special note to say hello. Be sure to send your child a letter or card once in awhile too so that she is reminded of how special it is to get a letter in the mail. Consider finding a pen pal for your child.Encourage keeping a journalThis is excellent writing practice as well as a good outlet for venting feelings. Encourage your child to write about things that happen at home and school, about people she likes or dislikes and why, and about things she wants to remember and do. If she wants to share the journal with you, read the entries and discuss them together.The primary step in reading comprehension is identfying facts directly stated in the passage. Listed on this page are some strategies to help students with learning disabilities in this area.

The literal comprehension skills are directed at the actual words written by the author. They are:

Selecting the topic sentence of a paragraph

Identifying the main idea of a passage

Identifying the supporting detail of a passage

Determining the meaning of words by context

What words state the main idea of the story?How does the author summarize what she/he is saying?Outlining the first paragraph of the story.What happened first, second and last?How are these things alike? How are they different?What things belong together?

Inferential Question Prompts:

An inferential question asks the reader to read “between the lines” by:

• Comprehending using inference (using information explicitly stated along

with one's own personal experience as a basis for conjecture and

hypothesis)

• Inferring supporting details (suggesting additional facts that might

have made the selection more informative, interesting or appealing)

• Inferring main ideas (providing the main idea when it is not stated

explicitly)

• Inferring sequence (conjecturing about what might have happened or will happen when no explicit

statements are included in the text)

• Inferring cause and effect relationships (inferring the author's

intentions, motivations, or characters)

• Inferring character traits (hypothesizing characteristics of persons)

• Predicting outcomes (predicting what will happen as a result of

reading part of the text)

• Interpreting figurative language (inferring literal meanings from the

figurative use of language).

In your head – go beyond literal meaning to what is implied (why, how did/would/could/do you know…. what if…)

How did… feel?

Why did ... act that way?”

What was the main idea…..?

How would you explain…?

What do you think could have happened next…?

Explain why the character acted in the way that they did……

What do you think………………….means?

How would the story have changed if………?

What were the motives behind……?

How is----similar to------……?

What are the differences between ----and-----…..?

Can you explain what must have happened when…..

What was the turning point…?

What were the motives behind…?

What are some other possible outcomes..?

What might have caused ……..?

Does this text remind you of another text?

What kind of people would read this text?

Find the slogan in this campaign?

What does the term 'aquatic life' mean?

Why did the author choose to use the words - First, Then, Next, Last at the

beginning of the sentences?

EVALUATION : 6 points each

58. Who do you think the author intended to read this book and why?

59. If you could only save one character from the book in the event of a disaster, which one would it be and why?

60. Is the title a good one or a poor one and why?

61. Did you like the way the story ended? Why or why not?

62. Which character in the book would you choose for a friend? Why?

63. What did you think was the most interesting part of the book? Why?

64. Tell about the most exciting part of the book. being sure to give at least three reasons why

Literary Appreciation is simply the ability to understand, enjoy and evaluate works of Literature. Evaluate here means to make judgment about the quality or value of literary work. Evaluation is usually an opinion about a given work, but it must be based on facts

 literary appreciation would be based on impressions rather than on facts empirically obtained from the text. Therefore, literature would have defaulted on its formative function of helping man fulfill his end – to perfect his rational essence;