DESIGNING WRITING TEST

Language testing is a field of study related to the assessment of one's proficiency in the mastery of language that includes 4 (four) basic competencies such as listening, speaking, reading, and writing. The assessment toward the four basic competencies of language will determine the level of one’s ability to master a specific language. Writing is one of the language skills that have been considered as necessary in proficiency language testing. In designing a writing task, one needs to carry out three steps, namely: defining the task, exploring the expectations for the task, and providing support and explanatory materials

Teaching with infographics: practising new digital competencies and visual literacies

This position paper examines the use of infographics as a teaching assignment in the online college classroom. It argues for the benefits of adopting this type of creative assignment for teaching and learning, and considers the pedagogic and technical challenges that may arise in doing so. Data and insights are drawn from two case studies, both from the communications field, one online class and a blended one, taught at two different institutions. The paper demonstrates how incorporating a research-based graphic design assignment into coursework challenges and encourages students' visual digital literacies. The paper includes practical insights and identifies best practices emerging from the authors' classroom experience with the infographic assignment, and from student feedback. The paper suggests that this kind of creative assignment requires students to practice exactly those digital competencies required to participate in an increasingly visual digital culture

Exploring The Representation of Scheduling Options and Online Tutoring on Writing Center Websites

Writing centers provide invaluable writing assistance to students, and students who have used writing centers typically come to this conclusion themselves. Despite these positive responses to writing center tutorials, motivating first-time users to go to the writing center can be challenging. Because students turn to the Internet with many of their questions in life, it is likely that a writing center website is the first image of a writing center that many students encounter. Because of this, a writing center’s website can be an important persuasive tool in helping students become excited about visiting the center and using its services. More importantly, it is the first step in a user’s experience with a writing center.University Writing Cente

The influence of peer group response: Building a teacher and student expertise in the writing classroom

New Zealand students in the middle and upper school achieve better results in reading than they do in writing. This claim is evident in national assessment data reporting on students’ literacy achievement. Research findings also state that teachers report a lack of confidence when teaching writing. Drawing on the National Writing Project developed in the USA, a team of researchers from the University of Waikato (New Zealand) and teachers from primary and secondary schools in the region collaborated to “talk” and “do” writing by building a community of practice. The effects of writing workshop experiences and the transformation this has on teachers’ professional identities, self-efficacy, and their students’ learning provided the research focus. This paper draws mostly on data collected during the first cycle of the two-year project. It discusses the influence of peer group response – a case study teacher’s workshop experiences that transformed her professional identity, building her confidence and deepening her understandings of self as writer and ultimately transforming this expertise into her writing classroom practice

STRATEGIES OF CONSTRUCTING APPEALS IN OBAMA’S VICTORY SPEECH

One of important things that a speaker should pay attention in delivering a speech is constructing appeals. By constructing appeals in the speech, it will make the well-organized content of speech to be more influencing and convincing. In addition, constructing appeals in the speech is also primarily essential as it particularly impacts to the audience’s feeling. As Baird stated (1981: 19) the feelings toward the speaker are important determinants of listeners’ acceptance of the speaker’s message. Constructing audience’s appeals is an important point in communication in the objective of persuading audience (Baird, 1981:199). By constructing appeals in the message, the speaker can also motivate the listeners to attend the message and to persuade them. In addition, the speaker not only needs to give people reasons for doing or thinking things, we also need to stir their emotions so that those actions or thought are strong and long lasting. As a matured politician having well experienced in public speaking, Obama has many inspiring speeches which achieved immediate popularity around the world. Many of his speeches are broadcasted in video sharing web site like YouTube, garnering many views and being watched by million views around the world. One of his inspiring speeches is his victory speech delivered right after he won U.S. presidential election. Obama's victory speech is a powerful example speech in communication on how to connect with and inspire audiences. He gave his victory speech at Grant Park in his home city of Chicago, Illinois. There were tears of joy in Chicago when America's new president-elect Barack Obama took to the stage to speak to his supporters. It was watched by an estimated crowd of 240,000. Considered one of the most widely-watched and repeated political addresses in recent history, Obama's speech focused on the major issues facing the United States and the world, all echoed through his campaign slogan of change. Obama’s victory speech consists of influencing people's beliefs, values, attitudes, and behaviors. He persuaded people when he somehow convinced them, to think what he wanted them to think, feel what he wanted them to feel, or do what he wanted them to do. As a learner, I am interestingly interested to analyze strategies of constructing appeals in Obama’s victory speech as it is a model of great powerfully inspiring speech

Self-Evaluation in Youth Media and Technology Programs: A Report to the Time Warner Foundation

This 2003 report documents the self-evaluation practices, challenges, and concerns of the Time Warner Foundation's Community Grantees; reviews the resources available to youth media programs wishing to conduct program and outcome evaluations; and begins to identify useful directions for further exploration

Water Quality Project Evaluation A Handbook for Objectives-Based Evaluation of Water Quality Projects

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