Assessing English competences in the language program at Universidad de Cartagena

Abstract

The assessment process in language teaching is an essential aspect to guarantee success in the teaching and learning process. When the process is continuously assessed it helps not only the students but also the teacher because it shows valuable information that needs to be analyzed in order to improve the teaching practice and make the students be aware of their progress. When it comes to assessing competences a set of principles need to be taken into account in order to establish an appropriate evaluative instrument and be able to measure the capacity a student could have to communicate. The objective of this study is to analyze the way the assessment process is carried out at Universidad de Cartagena, as the students from the languages program are showing problems with their English levels and the reasons why the students are unable to communicate in English. The sources to obtain the information necessary for analysis were observation, interviews, and tests analysis. These instruments showed the pertinent information to determine the causes of the low level of the students and the types of competences the students were taught in classes.