These three examples of performance indicators are from my school’s curriculum docs:
I can often understand words, phrases, and simple sentences related to everyday life.
I can sometimes understand the main idea in short messages.
I can recognize a few memorized words and phrases when I hear them spoken.
These don’t ring true with me in the Palm sense. They are not true indicators. How to even begin measure them? And yet they are used enough for Pearson to put a copyright on them.
I would want a list of behaviors and that is what jGR really is.
My thinking is that if observable non-verbal behaviors are there, then we can know that the language is being learned.
I like this from Claire:
“The scope and sequence of a foreign or second language classroom should focus on the metacognitive and cognitive processes to acquire language, not just what words and structures are created. If you look at Common Core’s strands, you can see a movement in our country away from the content “what we’re teaching” towards the cognitive processes used for comprehension. The same is true for language learning. Self-monitoring comprehension, perceptual processing, engaging an interlocutor, elaborating from personal experiences, etc. need to be things on our Scope and Sequence, not individual words.”
Here are some examples from [Claire’s] Scope and Sequence, copied and pasted WIDA performance indicators used in 38 states:
Examples of cognitive processes made into observable skills:
Demonstrating comprehension with nonverbal Total Physical Response
Co-creating novel perspectives or ideas visually, orally, or in writing
Possible Assessments: TPR Rubric; Story Retell rubric
Examples of metacognitive processes made into observable skills:
Attuning to an oral conversation with eye contact and appropriate gestures or body language.
Self-monitoring comprehension and communicating the need for clarification of messages, verbally or nonverbally
Possible Assessments: jGR, self-assessments.
Claire continues:
In short, I like Lance’s idea of juxtaposing his and my curriculum planning documents: Lance’s is a rationale of why the old way doesn’t work; mine is an alternative that aligns our assessments and curriculum without tying us down to targets.