Advantages and disadvantages of using a network compared to a stand alone

computer
Some Advantages Some Disadvantages
A user can logon to a computer anywhere
on the network and access their work files
from the file server
If something goes wrong with the file server
the whole network is unable to operate
Computers can be managed centrally - with
the same software installed on each one
The technical skills needed to manage a
network are much higher than working on a
stand-alone computer
Time - it is much faster to install an
application once on a network - and copy it
across the network to every workstation
It would take a long time to install software
applications on each computer - one at a
time!
Sharing printers, plotters, modems etc
saves money and time
It can be frustrating to print to a printer in
another room - and then find after a long
trek - that there is no paper in the printer!
Security - the Network Manager can
allocate usernames and passwords to all
users to try to prevent unauthorised access
Users may use up too much of the storage
space and this may cause problems on the
network
I is easy and convenient to monitor users -
for example websites visited or documents
printed - this can be done using software
running on the server
Users may use too much bandwidth - for
example when listening to music files or
watching video clips - preventing others
from using the network facilities properly


What do we mean by Computer Aided Assessment?
Computer Aided Assessment (CAA) covers a range of assessment procedures and is a
rapidly developing area as new technologies are harnessed. In essence, CAA refers to
any instance in which some aspect of computer technology is deployed as part of the
assessment process. Some of the principle examples of CAA in language learning are:
Interactive exercises and tests completed on a computer: see Section 2.1
Use of computers to produce coursework, e.g. using a word-processor
On-screen marking of students' word-processed writing: see Section 3
Using a spreadsheet or database to keep a record of students' marks:
see Section 4.2
Use of email to send coursework to students and (for students) to receive
marks and feedback: see Section 14, Module 1.5, headed Computer Mediated
Communication (CMC).
Use of Web pages to set tasks for students and to provide tutor support:
see Module 1.5 and Module 2.3
Use of plagiarism detection software: see Section 7
1.3 Which skills can be assessed?
Skill Assessment by computer Assessment of electronic output by
human being
Listening Computer can assess a limited range of
different types of responses to test
comprehension.
Listening tests can be presented on a
computer, students' answers can be stored
electronically and assessed by a teacher.
Self-assessment and peer assessment are
also possible.
Speaking Very limited as yet. Automatic Speech
Recognition (ASR) software is developing
rapidly but it is still too unreliable to be used
in accurate testing.
Students can record their own voices on a
computer for assessment by a teacher.
Self-assessment and peer assessment are
also possible.
Reading Computer can assess a limited range of
different types of responses to test
comprehension.
Reading tests can be presented on a
computer, students' answers can be stored
electronically and assessed by a teacher.
Self-assessment and peer assessment are
also possible.
Writing Very limited as yet, but spellchecking,
grammar checking and style checking are
possible, and some progress is being made
in the development of programs that can
assess continuous text.
Students' answers can be stored
electronically and assessed by a teacher.
Self-assessment and peer assessment are
also possible.
1.4 Exercise or test?
Computer-based exercises and tests often take the same kind of format. The essential
difference between an exercise and a test is the purpose to which it is put. An exercise
usually offers instant feedbackto the learner and an opportunity to correct any errors
that are made, whereas a test may offer little feedback to the learner apart from a raw
score at the end of the test, or no feedback at all, e.g. where the results of the test
might be stored for analysis by a teacher or examination body. Exercises are usually
designed to offer the learner practice in specific areas and to motivate and encourage,
whereas tests are usually designed to assess the learner's progress in specific areas,
i.e. for self-assessment purposes, for the teacher or for an examination body. But
sometimes these distinctions become blurred. The main kinds of tests include:
Placement tests: These are designed mainly to sort students into teaching
groups so that they are approximately at the same level when they join the
group. Placement tests may take the form ofadaptive tests (see below).
Diagnostic tests: These are designed to enable the learner or teacher to
identify specific strengths and weaknesses so that remedial action can be take.
See Section 2.2.1 on DIALANG. Diagnostic tests may take the form of adaptive
tests (see below).
Adaptive tests: See Section 2.3 on WebCAPE.
Achievement / attainment tests: These are usually more formal, designed to
show mastery of a particular syllabus rather than as a means of motivating the
learner or reinforcing specific language skills.
Proficiency tests: These are designed to measure learner's achievements in
relation to a specific task which they are later required to perform, e.g. follow
a university course delivered in language other than their mother tongue.
Proficiency tests do not normally take account of any particular syllabus that
has been followed. The driving test is a typical example of a proficiency test,
i.e. it assesses whether you are competent to be in control of a car on public
highways.
Aptitude tests: Such tests aim to predict how a student might perform in a
specific subject or specific areas of a subject. See Section 6.

2. Types of Computer Aided Assessment and the Common European
Framework of Reference for Languages
2.1 Interactive exercises and tests
When reading this section bear in mind the distinction that was made earlier
between exercises and tests. See Section 1.4, headed Exericise or test?
2.1.1 The feedback loop
2.3 Adaptive testing: WebCAPE
Adaptive tests aim to assess language competence by asking questions based on the
student's response to previous ones. If the student gets the answer right, a harder
question is asked and vice-versa.
3Figure 5: Microsoft Word screenshot, showing teacher's corrections and a
comment
The teacher can then return the work electronically to the student. The process does
not end there, for there is now an incentive for the student to consider and accept the
teacher's comments and then print a final, error-free product (Figure 6).
3.3 Marking software
As an alternative to using word-processing to mark students' work, there is specialist
software that offers additional facilities, such
Figure 7: Screenshot from Markin
3.6 Further Reading
See Bishop (2004). Graham Bishop covers the use of the following tools that are
available in Microsoft Word:
Superscript
Insert comment
Footnotes and subscript
Tracking
Ticking
Underlining, double underlining and highlighting
Spell check
Word count
Synonyms and thesaurus
Using color

4. Reporting and recording students' progress
4.1 Report Writing
4.1.1 Factors to take into account
What is ethically acceptable?
What will be possible within an overall school policy?
What does the technology offer?
There are a number of facilities built into standard word-processing packages that can
be exploited for report writing. These include:
i. Autotext: this is described in Section 3.5. It is simply a method of speeding up
the typing of comments that are used frequently by replacing the full
comment with a code.
ii. Comment banks: this is simply a file containing lots of comments from which
to choose or
iii. Forms and templates: these allow you to make a standard document that can
be completed for each individual student. A template is just a document that
has some pre-entered text and formatting, e.g. a report card. The teacher can
simply open a new version of the document and then edit at will. 4.2 Recording
Progress
4.2.1 Whole class records
Using a spreadsheet as an electronic mark book enables you to:
record marks (in different skill areas)
record comments
record attendance
generate class lists
organise your records
add up marks and do percentages, averages, etc

5. Using the Web to manage assessment
Increasingly, modern languages departments have their own website or section at their
school or college site. To what extent can a website be used to manage the assessment
of language students? For example:
i. The website can be used to provide students (and parents) with information
about the syllabuses of courses, their aims, and the criteria for achieving their
aims.
ii. The website can be used to provide information about examinations, such as
contents of papers, grade criteria, tasks, sample questions.
iii. Various items can be made available as downloadable files, such as revision
guides, vocabulary lists and sets of questions for oral examination topics.
i. Links to websites that may be useful in the revision process can be listed, e.g.
links to sites offering interactive exercises and tests appropriate to a particular
examination..
ii. Model answers can be posted on the website, for example model
compositions for the GCSE writing examination.
iii. If a website is available with student access via individual passwords, the site
itself can be used by students to upload completed tasks and to download
work that their teacher has marked.
6. Modern Language Aptitude Testing (MLAT)
It takes many hours of study and practice to acquire a reasonable level of proficiency
in a foreign language. This represents a substantial investment for any organisation
considering the selection of people for language training. It would therefore be useful
to predict with reasonable accuracy to what extent an individual who had never
studied a language before would benefit from attending a language course.
Success in learning a foreign language depends on a number of basic aptitudes, for
example:
i. auditory
ii. linguistic
iii. memory
7. Plagiarism: detection, deterrence and avoidance