At the Idaho Association for Teachers of Language and Culture conference held at Boise State on Oct. 25-26, Kelly Arispe (professor of Spanish and teacher educator), Ziortza Gandarias Beldarrain (associate professor of Basque studies), Fatima Cornwall (clinical assistant professor), Yookyung Lee (Korean instructor) and Karen Wadley (Latin instructor) from the Department of World Languages presented a panel titled “Performance Assessments in Action: Concrete Strategies for Language Classrooms.”
This session highlighted the critical role of performance assessments in enhancing language teaching by focusing on practical and adaptable assessment strategies that measure student abilities across interpretive, interpersonal and presentational modes of communication. The panel began with an overview of performance assessments, explaining their significance in fostering authentic language use and boosting student motivation and learning outcomes. Each panelist shared classroom-tested formative and summative assessments that aligned with real-world communicative tasks, such as project-based evaluations and situational language activities. These strategies are informed by research and have proven effective in evaluating students’ capacity to use language meaningfully in authentic contexts.
Following the presentations, the session included a collaborative discussion with the audience, where the presenters addressed questions, shared resources and offered strategies to tailor these assessments to diverse language teaching environments. Attendees received access to a Padlet with examples of performance assessments and additional resources to support the integration of these tools into their own classrooms. This engaging session empowered other K-16 language instructors across Idaho with actionable ideas for performance assessments that foster meaningful language learning experiences.