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| Category | Number | Question / Comment | Answer / Reply |
|---|---|---|---|
| Misc. | 001 | Esperanto . . . do you think it will ever become practical? | Probably not, but it does come in handy in teaching a person who has never been taught the mechanics of language construction. When learners are already in an ESL environment, it is often too late to teach the "structure" of their L1; consequently, the researched advantages of bilingual learning are impossible to duplicate. It is for such cases that Esperanto is better than anything. The secret is to use an Esperanto introduction that is written in their L1. Once they understand the language of UG (Universal Grammar), they can be taught right along with regular students (with a little help from Esperanto-speaking tutors, of course). |
| E:P:N | 002 | I am trying to understand the E:P:N project, but I can’t. It must be me. | It’s not you; it’s the concept. Without a basic understanding of particle physics (the study of atoms), this E:P:N approach to teaching is strained to say the least. However, once students have some semblance of knowledge about what goes on inside of a stable atom, they begin to realize that we would do well to seek a similar state of "balanced diversity" (at least in our work place) to create conditions that produce the best overall results. Whether we, as teachers, like a competitive environment or not, trust me, workplaces are competitive. When they are not, they are soon replaced by those who compete (for their business). You can't have a productive classroom when all students want to lead, and you can't get much accomplished when no one wants to lead. Neither can you boast much progress when everybody (or nobody) wants to help others. You need to have roughly one third of the students in each of these three categories. It happens to be that the atom is nature's best role model of how to balance that needed trinity. Psychologists have come up with all kinds of fancy words to explain the difference we observe around us, but none, I believe, are as valid as those given to the main constituents of the atom. Teachers who don't learn to distinguish between the characteristics of electrons, protons and neutrons, are not learning FROM nature as well as they could. Howard Garner's "multiple intelligences" (MI) theorem as well as all other balanced theorems are great, but none are as simple and logical as nature's own role models of how things need to be done to remain stable. Atoms are not the life force itself, but they are its only building blocks. Particle physics is like the Esperanto of psychology. Once we understand its basics, we have a better chance of understanding the various sets of terms that fill our library shelves on personality differences. I make you a wager of any size that students who learn diversity issues though the E:P:N theorem will grasp psychological rhetoric more comprehensibly than those who don't. |
| Misc. | 003 | The Learning Cycles . . . how did you use them? | They are invaluable for private/remedial tutoring, in that they help a teacher determine which of the cycles are as yet incomplete. Learning FIRSTHAND is a requisite for self-confidence. Learning SECONDHAND is a requisite for good grades. Learning to REASON is often a requisite for solving problems, and so on. Click the link and read the verses. You'll find that answer more quickly yourself. Just look around. Those with a lack of confidence in certain areas or whose reasoning keeps them from being successfull have virtually always an early learning cycle that is incomplete. |
| Misc. | 004 | On the U.S. Navy Research Question: Should we use a general reading program to try to increase sailors' overall reading comprehension or use a reading program made up of Navy-related texts? Any comments? | The outcome of that study was the same as we found to be true in the dance business: Learning general slow dancing did not improve one's ability to dance the Tango, but learning the Tango did improved the ability to slow dance. Correlated to Krashen's i+1 theorem: the i+1 improves the general knowledge (safely and methodically); whereas the other equates, at least in my opinion, the i+2 theorem, which was always my preferred method. Meaning, the learning of the complex improves the complex and, in most cases, the simple as well. At least my students' motivation was always such that they thought they had learned more. |
| C-Test online | 005 | Do you have C-Test samples used by the researchers in Germany? | There are a large number of samples that Dr. Raatz gave me. The first one is a little too British, but the rest are excellent. They are in the RAATZ folder. Try them. ClozeOnline.us |
| C-Test online | 006 | Can I use a spreadsheet to process the scores? If so, how will I retrieve them? | Each student’s test results are sent to you twice: Once by email (notifications that most teachers route via Tools > Message Rules to the various student folders), and once directly to a secure teacher directory that collects the various tests and keeps them for later retrieval to a spreadsheet. Naturally, this collection of scores does not include formulas, but if you paste the data into a spreadsheet that already contains the formulas, it is an easy process. Your free self-installing CTEST file has a sample included. |
| C-Test online | 007 | Do the students get to see their scores? | The answer is Yes and No: YES, if they just practice or do any of their weekly tasks. It is NO, if they do an “official” test. The program knows the difference. Of course, after a real test, most teachers print their spreadsheet, cut the pages into strips, and then hand each student their scores (to let them see the words they missed and also contest the words they deem to have been unfairly included). |
| C-Test online | 008 | Tell me again how I start making my own tests . . . just the standard C-Test. | Well, ClozeOnline.us gets you to the screen that requires your name and password. If you want to practice in the GUEST directory, simply press [LOGON]. If you were working with word lists from a book, you would now enter these keywords in the textbox and click [LIST UPDATE] before giving the test a name. In your case, you are doing a straight C-Test, so you won't have to do that. Simply type in the name you want to give this set of tests and click [CREATE NEW TEST]. Europeans often use "A1, A2, B1, B2, C1 or C2" in the first box and "official” in the second. The program adds the hyphen, so it will read "A1-official", etc. At the next screen, all the settings are already done for you, simply paste in the text, separate the paragraphs with >>>, and press [MAKE TEST]. That's it. On the next screen, I always press the last of the yellow links to see the HTML output. The first link is the one the students see. The second link is for an emergency situation where you have to use a paper version of the test. The third link is for teachers who want to have a cheat sheet on their desk when they mark a paper test. |
| C-Test online | 009 | Is it better to have four or five tests? | The main consideration in the “four vs. five” debate is diversity. The C-Test creators had the fewest complaints when they used 5 x 20 rather than 4 x 25. For whatever it's worth, I always use 5 x 20. |
| C-Test online | 010 | I also prefer 5 x 20, but the fact is that people always think my tests will be too easy for first year undergraduate students. I then find that 25 deletions are more sensible and appropriate to the level I deal with. Do you agree? | The opposite argument would make more sense. To me, 25 is easier than 20. Think about it: After you labored to get the first five, worked hard to get the next five, and breezed through the next ten, the extra five restorations are probably just good guesses. |
| C-Test online | 011 | My question to your grade level tests: Grade2 and Grade3, etc.: Do you really mean the levels? If so, my students must be classified as grade 13, after high school (G 12). As NNS, I might lower the level of my students to around grade 9 up to 10. However, I don't see other grade levels of your tests. | I had quite a few of the higher grades, but I deleted them because it was pointed out to me that grade levels are not that accurate once people can read. For the higher grades, including yours, teachers should take their textbook(s), browse through all of the introductions and summaries, then scan and paste them into the C-test creator. |
| C-Test online | 012 | Can we set the tests to run from 1 to 4? | Of course. The program will present only as many tests as it has in memory. Simply build your file with four paragraphs that are separated by this string of three characters: “>>>” If you don't want them presented randomly, you'll have to make four separate test. Since each will have a time stamp, you will know whether someone ignored your instructions. However, I know of no research with C-tests that suggests that the order of the five paragraphs affects the overall score. If the five topics were related, that would be a valid concern, but when they are not related, it shouldn't matter. |
| C-Test online | 013 | Where will I find the scores? | The scores will be in your directory, accessible through the path I sent you, i.e., http://www.clozeonline.us/xxx/XXX/scores.csv. |
| C-Test online | 014 | You have given me the idea of making 102 items to allow SEM (Standard error of measurement). Did you mean that? | If you intend to allow them to contest the fairness of certain words, start with more. The problem is, you can’t add just a fraction of a word; meaning, you’ll have to add one deletion on each of the paragraphs, which means you’ll have 104 or 105, depending on how many paragraphs you use. My opinion: Once you know that your test is fair, start with 100 deletions. If you have to “give” a word that most everyone missed, compute everyone’s grade from the remaining uncontested deletions. |
| C-Test online | 015 | What about apostrophes and contractions? NNS may have a problem with that. | That’s true, but C-tests are meant to be more than just a word-level assessment tool. If you don’t want contractions, take them out (replace them with full words). If you wish to leave contractions intact, precede them with an asterisk (*). The program will respond by printing the contracted term without the asterisk, meaning, *that’s becomes that’s. |
| C-Test online | 016 | Is there any other way of avoiding ambiguities (without loosing authenticity)? | Yes, one of the easiest ways to shift text is by adding or deleting the word "that". When left out, it is presumed; when added, it is equally correct. It is, therefore, one of the easiest modifiers; and using or not using it does not appreciably affect authenticity. |
| C-Test online | 017 | What do you mean by academic, conventional, research, and “list of my own”? How and when do I need to implement these options? | To use your own list of words from a textbook, for example, you would upload your list of words BEFORE giving the test a name. (The new words are usually in bold type and therefore easy to spot.) To use generic lists (such as Nations' lists), you would select the list you want AFTER you have given the test a name (because those words are already there). Doing the latter, gives you a more standard feedback of the students' knowledge of those words; however, the problem with this is the finding of texts that include words from those lists. Some teachers upload their text and then use the trial-and-error method to see which of the lists give the best results; others click on the list number and glance at all the words on that list. Take your pick. Remember, however, that all of these choices are variations of the C-Test. They are not as fully researched as Klein-Braley’s original C-Test (which tends to bring these words in automatically). |
| C-Test online | 018 | Where on the computer do the students find their scores? | On official tests, the students get their scores from you. On all other restorations, the scores are sent to each student’s personal file (on whatever path they selected) by /StudentName.csv. NOTE: This file gets written over with the next set of scores. I suggest that students retrieve these scores and then use [Save As] to store them by a different name for later retrieval and review. |
| C-Test online | 019 | Does the program create a "scores" list of all students who take a set of official tests on the graded test folders? | Yes, if tests are “official,” they are sent to the teacher's private directory with the "/scores.csv" extension. If they use the pretest or post-test files, the results are sent only to their personal file in a directory they designate. The default directory is the one from which they retrieved the "xxxx-missing.txt" file. |
| C-Test online | 020 | What file format is used for these score reports? | These are CSV files. They'll look like a spreadsheet, but they'll need to be first saved into the format of your spreadsheet program, so you can manipulate the scores and use the formulas I put on the spreadsheet. Remember, spreadsheets can do everything you could possibly want them to do. If you need help with formulas, speak up. There is always someone on our live forum who can help you with this. |
| C-Test online | 021 | I don’t have Internet access; will the program still work? | The paths for finding the output files will be different, but the rest is the same. Each disk contains a [ReadMe] file that explains what you need to do on your computer to find them. In essence, on stand-alone computers, the program looks for a writeable disk first on the A: drive, next on the D: drive, and last on a USB device. On LANs (local area networks), the teacher’s scores go to the server; the students’ scores go, in the same order, to the A:, D:, or USB drive. |
| C-Test online | 022 | What about students sitting next to one another; will they be able to cheat? | They might, if they have accidentally the same test on their screen, but the odds are 5:1 that they won’t with five paragraphs to choose from. In the files like grade2test, grade3test, etc. the odds are hundreds to one that they won’t (get the same one at the same time). |
| E:P:N | 023 | In general, adults like to learn systematically. How does that fit in with your E:P:N theorem? | As long as your "general" approximates 1/3 of the population, whatever one can say, is probably a valid statement. When it exceeds that, it may still be true, but only while tradition dictates that imbalance. Every quasi definitive statement brings to mind instantly an array of students (adults) who would not keep paying the high cost of private lessons, if I were to agree with narrow dogmas. Naturally, at a College of the Arts and Sciences one finds different ratios/averages than one does at a business college, but teaching methods and learning styles are about as varied in human relationships as they are in atomic structures. The 1/3 : 1/3 : 1/3 rule is one, I believe, all teachers should learn to embrace if they intend to develop their full potential as an instructor, teacher, or coach; meaning, if you were hired as a coach, act like a coach; don't use the tool chest of an instructor or teacher to get the job done. Likewise, if you were hired as a teacher, don't act and behave like a coach. You'll get bad reviews. If the house doesn't dictate the color of your hat, so to speak, ask the students what they would like you to be to them for the current term. Then make a contract, wear a different hat for different students if you can, but make sure everyone knows the rules of engagement and plays the game with gusto, honor, and within the framework of their self-chosen rules. This has been the way since the times of Sun Tzu. For the sake of our civilization, I hope it remains valid for another 2,500 years. |
| E:P:N | 024 | Sometimes it sounds like you’re scolding a narrow point of view; is that your E:P:N theorem talking or you? | I don’t intend to scold, no matter how dogmatic or narrow a particular point of view. Without dogma, there probably wouldn't be much discussion going on. But, to preserve a semblance of peace, we need dogma within the context of Disney's EPCOT, where every nation is uniquely displaying a set of values without being permitted to destroy someone else's. I predict that educators will eventually be selected from human "neutrons" (who can passionately argue on all opposing points of view); but until we have matured to that mindset, we'll have the pleasure of listening in on hard-boiled hard-heads who love to duke it out. Let me put it this way: E:P:N analysis attempts to depict imbalances; by sticking up for the underdog, I attempt to keep these imbalances from becoming destructive. Another way of comparing these two is: E:P:N deals with both vortexes and hierarchies; As a neutron soul, I consider it my responsibility to keep the vortexes from becoming too destructive and the hierarchies from becoming too large. E:P:N analyzes all structures, whereas only the “stable” atoms are my role models. |
| E:P:N | 025 | What’s the simplest way to get an E:P:N designation? | By going online and doing the free mini analysis, of course. The same five scenarios can also be printed out; I use them in that format when I work at shelters. They are at blumenterprise.org/EPNsurvey5.htm with a short lead-in at /5701/9801.html. |
| E:P:N | 026 | I have my students write all the time ... I have them write dialogues between two or three people. And sometimes we "dialogue" back and forth as if we were having a conversation. Is that what you refer to at your WEB's Friends page? | Thank you, Cxxxx. Yes, you're doing what my research is all about. Maybe we can help one another. In fact, I'll pay anyone $600 per semester for having a large-scale student competition on that task. I intend to create authentic (native-like) texts (at various levels) on all issues of controversy, either done formally or in a lunch-break setting. And I prefer trialogues over dialogs, meaning not just the typical two sides of an argument, but also a mediator's point of view . . . the voice of a Dr. Phil, HR specialist, or some revered sage either living or dead. Youngsters may use my characters Eleko, Prot, and Njut (who represent the electron, proton, and neutron points of view in a stable environment). Less scientifically minded learners might prefer to have discussions between technicians, salesmen/leaders, and unity-in-diversity specialists. Eventually, I will have the largest arsenal of rated authentic conversations. If money will help me create that arsenal more rapidly, so be it. And I'll sponsor that task until I run out of money. :-) Hopefully, we'll do this forever. Talk to me. Together, I know we can create something truly worth building and preserving. A sample lunch-break conversation is at blumenterprise.org/NjutAndFriends.htm where workers from different departments debate the topical issues. My own trialogues will build on the one at blumenterprise.org/NjutAndFriends2.html. (Please ignore the format on this last one; the use of Esperanto is a new overseas research project.) |
| C-Test online | 027 | Do you have samples of paragraphs from textbooks? | A few years ago, I did some for one of my professors. You are welcome to use them. If you like, I can put them into a private directory for you. Last I looked, they were also under the name of “Evaluation-Hazards” in the GUEST directory. |
| C-Test online | 028 | I notice each test has a title. Do you think it helps or is it a must for doing c-tests? | In reference to an earlier question: That's the reason why I have the program start deleting after the 2nd period . . . to accommodate the use of a paragraph number, title, or author and title. To answer your question directly: Yes, I think it makes the restoration a fairer process when there is a title. A title also makes it easier to distinguish the texts after the fact. In my case, I use "Title 1. Title 2. Title 3. etc." |
| C-Test online | 029 | The program keeps deleting the blank lines. How can I avoid having that happen? | A blank line needs a "space" to remain blank. Otherwise, text-based programs delete it. |
| C-Test online | 030 | Are you saying that all levels of NNS should take your Grade2 and Grade3 tests? Even university students? ... and have the tests define their abilities? | Defining "abilities" is pushing it; determining "native-like competency" at a particular NS grade level, yes. As to developing paragraphs for NNS grade levels, there is still too much controversy; I wouldn't begin to know how to distinguish a grade7 from a grade8 and a grade8 from a grade9. Their flesh ratings are virtually the same. I originally had paragraphs for grades up to grade10, but I took them out. After six years in school, they either can read or they can't. Subsequent readers are not that different one from the other. My guess is that L-tests, using keyword deletions, are better for these levels. |
| C-Test online | 031 | What do you think about time restrictions for testing? | I believe that both starting and finishing times as well as accuracy should be recorded. This allows for correlating whether a "race against time" enhances or detracts from the test's validity. Remember, if you are testing "ability" and forget to factor in their innate E:P:N differences, you are assuming that a slipshod Proton has less ability, which is not necessarily true. I have observed that P's have a need to be fast, E's have a need to be accurate, and N's don't seem to have a preference. |
| E:P:N | 032 | I observed that your thoughts were full of atomic images. Why? | Because the atomic world role models effective codes of conduct for through stable elements. We would do well to copy them. In essence, there's only one (unfortunately abundant) duality in the universe; all the rest of the elements (over ninety) are trinities. Hydrogen is the only duality. Remember the term "hydrogen bomb"? Dualities are deadly when allowed to multiply in an unrestricted fashion. The universe, evolutionists believe, started as a duality and grew from there into complex trinities. Civilizations, too, seem to have evolved from simple "master and slave" dualities into complex democratic trinities. The problem with Western (trinity) thinking is that they want to turn the entire world into trinities, forgetting that human hydrogen entities (dualities) are an integral and necessary element of life as well. We shouldn't try to do away with autocracies. Instead, we should try to preserve them (without the "bomb" capacity, of course). |
| C-Test online | 033 | Tell me again: what are the advantages and disadvantages of time restrictions? | That’s difficult to answer. If testing is done to make them feel good, give them more time. If it’s done to intimidate them, keep it tight. I have found it helpful to have students leave the room when they are finished. This lets me call “5 more minutes” when about a third of the class is finished. Another variable in this time issue is the difference between the C- and L-test: C-Tests take less time; L-tests take more. |
| L-Tests | 034 | Why does it take longer for the L-test? | L-tests are substitutes for the conventional cloze tests. Seeing just one letter of a long word (with no list of words to select from) is bound to lead students to use dictionaries, which takes extra time. |
| C-Test online | 035 | Do you allow dictionaries during tests? | Yes, I do. I like students to have an online dictionary loaded, so they can toggle to it and get ideas. Also, on my L-tests I use the words they've been working on. If they've been using a textbook (where keywords are highlighted) this reinforces what they’ve already learned. If they have not been using textbooks, this lets you know whether you should be spending time on doing so. The purpose: If they can guess the words from context, why waist their time in belaboring what they already know? It is the boredom created by wasted time that causes most of the problems dealing with discipline. Bored students are hard to work with. |
| C-Test online | 036 | What about readability issues? | I learned English by looking at a newspaper and finding a word that kept catching my eye (a word that I felt would I would recognize again if I saw it) and then made it my project to gather meanings to attach to that word. Trial and error led me to realize that long or hard words were less embarrassing to ask about . . . a process that led me to later teach dancing in the same way. I concluded early in my career that difficult steps were much easier to learn than the easy ones. In short, I never pay much attention to readability issues. I probably should, but I don't. If you can convince me that I should, I will consider it. |
| Misc. | 037 | And regimentation? | I am sorry, but I am not much help with this. I have always praised regimentation, but I have usually managed to stay outside of it. If I were an electron soul, I would probably promote and fight for it. Read what Eleko has to say about this in the eZine. |
| C-Test offline | 038 | I worry about our old computers. What will I do if they don’t run your program? | They will. Besides, ClozeOnline.us creates also a paper version of the tests. |
| C-Test offline | 039 | What do I tell them on the day of the test? | Tell them to enter their (code) name and their email address. If they don’t have one, help them (ahead of time) get one. (Search Google for free email accounts.) The only other thing they need to enter is the name of your test directory (in capital letters, for better readability on subsequent pages). And, they need to press [LOGON] to enter the folder. If you have several choices of tests, tell them which one to use, and then have them click on that (when you are ready to start the clock so to speak). At the resulting first of 5 screens, they simply need to remember to press [F11] to see the full screen, press [Insert] to activate the write-over mode, and then keep their fingers OFF the [Delete] and [Backspace] keys. They must use only the four arrow keys (or the mouse) to navigate. Also, you need to decide and announce whether they are allowed more than one try per page. I wouldn't on the “official” test, because a paper test doesn’t give them more than one chance of getting it right. In other words, if they didn’t restore all of the deletions, they need to press the link that says, "Skip ahead to the next test in this series." After the last one, they need to click "End the tests now" in order to get credit. Encourage them to read the screens; they spell out clearly what needs to be done every step of the way. |
| Misc. | 040 | What should I know about the development of ClozeOnline? | What you see is all there is. It took me and my programmer, Rob Craig, of Rapid Deployment Software, a couple of years to get it to do everything it now does. The [Instructions] link is at the bottom of the teacher's screen. I tested the program with youngsters in grade 2 during tutoring sessions, and I did six months of work with twenty students in the ESL program of the 9th Grade Center at the Apopka Highschool. This was done at their library lab with only five students coming in every fifteen minutes. Their teacher sent them and I worked with them at the five computers that were assigned to me. That's it. It took me almost four month to befriend them, but toward the end, they couldn't wait to get started. It was fun to see them change. Their teacher, Debra Berlan, was very pleased with the experiment's results. To see a whole class change from obstinance to motivation was exciting. I really have nothing to offer other than the largest collection of research on the C-Test and the best C-Test creator available. I hope you consider that to be enough. |
| C-Test online | 041 | Why the names CourseCode and PageCode? | These two name fields have had different names in the past, but I settled on CourseCode and the PageCode because universities use them, bookstores use them, and students use them to write references. All my official grade-level tests are named grade2test-Official, etc., in which case "grade2test" was entered as the CourseCode and "Official" as the PageCode. |
| C-Test online | 042 | Can you give me an example of how to create one? | 1. Goto clozeonline.us/index1.html, scroll down, enter your name and password and click [LOGON]. 2. Enter a name such as "PlacementTest" into CourseCode and "Official" into PageCode then press [CREATE NEW TEST]. 3. Paste your test paragraphs into the text box and press [MAKE TEST]. That's it. If you don't as yet have your own paragraphs together, click on any test already created in the GUEST directory. The resulting screen is virtually the same as you get on a new one. Only the first lines differ. One says: “Test exists already.” The other says: “New Test.” NOTE: If you deleted all the text and pressed [MAKE TEST], you would actually DELETE that test. In fact, that’s the only choice you have for deleting a test. |
| C-Test online | 043 | What made you choose to focus on the weekly use of the C-Test? | Sheer economics. I saw no need to further validate 20 years of solid research. I am simply pursuing the suggested "future" studies in some of the conclusions reached by other researchers, i.e., that the C-Test should be used as a teaching tool on a weekly basis for the "official" test results to be the most meaningful. |
| C-Test Misc. | 044 | What led you to the new title of your proposal? Why dilemma? Why Middle Schools? | It was a change motivated by professional advice "to tie it all together." Well, since the popularizing of the E:P:N theorem is my reason for living, so to speak, the new title refers to the dilemma of passionate disagreements over what methods to use for teaching our youngsters. The answer, of course, is the eclectic approach, hence the lead-in with a quote from the globally recognized Master teacher, Leonard Bernstein, who finished his 1975 Harvard lectures with, “A great new era of eclecticism is at hand.” Why middle schools? Partially, because that's the place where I had collected the most data and partially because it is during the early teens that learners should, I believe, come to some conclusions about what they want to do for a living. In Austria, at age 14, we all went to work in some factory to "learn a trade". That has now changed to age 15, but since most countries keep their youngsters in school several years longer, they need at least artificial exposure to work conditions. I believe that the E:P:N classroom provides such conditions, and the C-Test process, if it includes the creating of texts, resembles what they might be doing if they went to work. Can you think of a reason why middle-schoolers shouldn’t start thinking about work-conditions and life-style preferences? |
| C-Test Misc. | 045 | I noticed a strange anomaly when I pressed the F5 [Refresh] key. Was that intentional? | No, it wasn’t. However, since it adds the convenience of switching out of one paragraph and bringing in another, I left it operational. In essence, the refreshing action triggers a new test. While there are only five tests in memory, changing to a new one won't change much. But on the grade-level tests (grade2test, etc.), switching out of one into another might just be a welcome feature. |
| C-Test online | 046 | I think students are supposed to do the four tests in the same order. How do I do that? | Simply create four separate tests, label them from 1 to 4, and insist that they take them in that order. |
| C-Test online | 047 | For my pilot study, I need to implement 6 passages so that 4 out of 6 can be used in the main study. I have used your clozeonline to shape my tests and they looked beautiful. Thanks. However, two of my tests started the deletions on the third sentences. | Remember that the program starts the deletion process after the second period or question mark. You probably forgot to use one of the two periods for the title or test code. |
| C-Test Misc. | 048 | Sometimes you capitalize C-Test and sometimes you don’t. How come? | Well, C-Test refers to the original Klein-Braley paper version (2,2,2). Everyone else's versions are better referred to as C-tests or c-tests, like one of your professors is doing under the name of Modified C-Test. It's just a legal thing. |
| C-Test Misc. | 049 | I wish to conduct my dissertation on language assessment with a focus on the construction of computerized c-tests to assess my students' English proficiency. Can you give me some advice? | I will do my best, because whatever your study reveals, it is bound to add face validity to the C-Test and enhance my message to the world; i.e., that there is always a better way and that the C-Test is one such "better way". My advice is to keep doing what you are doing. There are several C-Test programs on the Internet, but none are as user-friendly as ClozeOnline, nor do any of them offer our email and administrative services. You already are in the right place on the Internet for creating the tests. To administer them, I will send you a disk for each of the computers you intend to use during the test. When you have settled on what texts you intend to use, send them to me and I will give them a “native” rating. Your students’ objective, then, is to come within ten percent of that rating; i.e., if our native speakers can restore 90 of the 100 deletions, your NNS need to restore at least 81 deletions to get a perfect score (100%). |
| MC-test | 050 | Like C-tests, the MC-tests resulted in being a good test even though it is harder to fill in the missing parts. What do you think? | I don't like it as well as the original because deleting the front (rather than the end) of a word gives you the grammar. Why not learn grammar inductively? It is for this reason that I like the C-Test process. It leads you to ingest grammar by osmosis so to speak. |
| S-tests | 051 | There are also the S-tests which the professor created. The S1-test deletes only content words and the S2-test deletes the function words. (S is short for semantic and syntactic). He is still working on his new versions at NIDA. Have you heard of them? | ClozeOnline creates both of these by using the upload feature. For the S1, you would upload the content words; for the S2 you would upload the function words. Their names might be B1-content or B1-funtion respectively. |
| C-Test Misc. | 052 | I questioned Prof Raatz whether the C-test can assess Reading Comprehension regardless of other skills. He insists that it evaluates integrated skills. What do you think? | I agree with Dr. Raatz. With German being my mother tongue, I had the luxury of being able to read whole books on the subject. The evidence, to me, is clear. The C-Test measures considerably more than just reading comprehension. |
| C-Test Misc. | 053 | What is the focus of your classroom project? | As a neutron soul, I am always trying to combine opposites. In this case, it is the obvious opposites in language acquisition: GT & CLL; meaning, Grammar Translation through the bilingual c-test format, and Communicative Language Learning through the E:P:N seating arrangement. Creating and restoring bilingual c-tests on a weekly basis in teams is my focus. It is bound to further prove that two or more heads are better than one when it comes to problem-solving. |
| C-Test Misc. | 054 | I am assessing undergraduate students' English proficiency; do you think the C-Test will help me do that? | That depends largely on the type of texts that you upload. If you use just any one source, such as chapter summaries, testing will not be as integrated as it will be when you use a variety of texts, including content-based E:P:N conversations, which is what I intend to create for the next many years. |
| C-Test Misc. | 055 | What about passages that require a cultural background? | There is no way to totally avoid that. The world is too large and customs too varied. However, since teachers who use our site will probably work out of their own directory anyway, each can take out whatever they deem to be too foreign for their learners. Personally, I see no problem with territorial texts, because a good online dictionary will list all the words that begin with xxx and, thereby, help with the restoration process. It's good to struggle. The joy of having restored difficult words makes up for the frustration of having missed some simple ones. |
| C-Test Misc. | 056 | I found that it is not easy to find appropriate texts as some authentic texts are too English for my students. What is your suggestion? | Study the ones that Babaii used for his study. They are on my site at /Babaii.htm. The ones I used (and still use) for the study at CMMS are at /Research/pilot-A.htm with links at the bottom leading to the two other versions of the same texts. |
| E:P:N | 057 | Do you need to know my EPN rating? By the way, is it E:P:N or EPN? | Knowing your rating would help me greatly in the structuring of the inner sanctum. Like the E:P:N classroom, we'll need 16 P's, 16 E's, and 13 N's distributed over ten groups. You’ll also need to speak up whether you wish to work in a group of 2, 3, 6, or 9 to function at your best. Probably Dr. Raatz should be "on your team" (if you are a 'P') or "on the same team as you" (if you are an 'E' or 'N'). Yes, semantics are very important when it comes to successful business operations. We want to do everything we can to role model "unity through diversity" rather than foster the foolish notion that we can build a world in which everyone thinks alike. It cannot happen. It must not happen. Using E:P:N classrooms will help assure that at least our youngsters will grow to learn, firsthand, that a diverse team that brags on one another and supports each other's expertise (like the offence and defense in a ball game) has advantages far greater than those who don't. Applied to the use of C-tests on a weekly basis, I have no doubt that teams of any size have an advantage over those who are trying to restore texts on their own. Research will uncover the details of what group sizes do consistently better. Your three groups of 30 might even lend themselves to add data to this aspect of the study. Like letting 5 students work alone, letting 10 students work in pairs, and letting 15 students work in threes. My bet would be on that last group. Besides employing the CL process, these last 15 people would have more fun, better memories, and the thrill of winning . . . for only one third of the cost in hardware expenses. On the E:P:N/EPN question: Since file names can’t include colons, either is OK. |
| Misc. | 058 | In my opinion, not a fact, ONLY children have the ability to think in multiple languages. Any comment? | Let me add to this the conjecture that high-level reasoning doesn't really start until after there is a balanced amount of FIRSTHAND and SECONDHAND data stored to "reason" with. I concluded many years ago that confident reasoning is not present when knowledge is based on just one or the other. Those who had not been allowed to acquire firsthand knowledge have no need to think; they simply do what they were trained to do. Similarly, those who have firsthand data but no scholarly (un-experienced) knowledge, have nothing to think about. They are doing things by instinct. That being said, I am convinced that first- and second-hand learning are not confined to the first and second seven years of a child's life. Both can be orchestrated at any age. That’s what private tutoring (coaching) is all about. When both are done in the target language, thinking in that target language is inevitable. Neglect to foster that balanced learning in the L2, and you'll end up with the linguistic mess we see all around us. See mylnn.net/rhymes/cycles.html. |
| C-Test Misc. | 059 | What's the process for doing the C-Test on a weekly basis? | (1) Each student creates a sentence on a topic, book or story and helps his/her group to create one or two test paragraphs. This is done offline. After ten minutes, they hand a copy of it (on a group disk) to the teacher. (2) The teacher (or a scholarly native assistant): copies the paragraphs into the ctest creator (online/offline), edits them, adds the >>> separators, creates the output, including the encrypted xxx-missing.txt file, and then puts that encrypted file on each of the group disks. (3) The groups now test their restoration skills by: clicking on the ctest.exe (which the teacher probably put on the desktop), entering their group's name, inserting their disk, selecting its newest data file, and then restoring as many deletions as possible in the shortest length of time. (4) The ctest.exe program: sends the result to the group's data disk and puts a copy of the scores to a protected directory on the PC or the school's network. |
| C-Test Misc. | 060 | Which of the two versions would the better choice for me? | The online/offline CTEST program works best when used for creating the tests online (at clozeonline.us/index1.html) and restoring the missing characters offline (with a self-installing program accessible through clozeonline.us/ctest_setup.exe). Small groups are fine for online administration, but for large groups, the automated offline administration is the better choice. Let me tell you the main reason why using the off-line program is better for restoring: The Firefox browser doesn't support the [Insert] key, and when the browser does, students forget to press that key before they begin each paragraph. Also, they tend to use the [Backspace] key, which destroys the integrity of the screen. Teaching them to use ONLY THE ARROW KEYS is rather difficult. Don't ask me why. And this entire problem is non-existent on the offline .exe program. That program is very intuitive. They couldn't ruin it if they tried. |
| C-Test Misc. | 062 | Can you help me test it? | In a few minutes, I'll go to your folder and do the test as though I were a student. First, you'll get email notifications for each of the five tests. Once all five are in, go to http://clozeonline.us/ctest/xxxx/scores.csv and retrieve the data in that batch and paste them into a formatted spreadsheet with whatever formulas you are using to crunch the numbers. A simple formatted spreadsheet is included in the free download. |
| E:P:N Misc. | 063 | It sounds like you want only N's to be teachers. Isn't that counter-productive? | It would be if that were the only type of teacher they'll have, but that's not the case. Only at the primary levels will I have facilitators who can be equally passionate about all points of view. When it's time to plan careers, we'll bring in dogma; it's at that level that dogma will be productive. Brought in too early, it will not be appropriate for children born to become something other than upper-level teachers. Isn't it true that your rebellious students are generally the ones whose uniqueness is not supported by the teacher? |
| E:P:N Misc. | 064 | What about the professions? | Fortunately or unfortunately, the professions attract all soul types. That's why we have a mishmash of opinions and lots of research to support the validity of all of them. :-( |
| E:P:N Misc. | 065 | Developing one's philosphy of teaching is a journey that does not lend itself to putting final thoughts on paper. Let me know your thoughts! | I wrestled with this one for a very long time as well. In fact, those same struggles led to my E:P:N theorem in the first place. As you've learned, it's largely a question of whether we should teach or manage. Teaching (imparting secondhand knowledge) is a fine format for the lower grades but is not nearly as appropriate for the higher levels where reasoning skills should be the only subject left to "teach". The rest of whatever sinks in better and more permanently if it is learned communicatively . . . acquired, as Krashen would call it. |
| eZine | 101 | What will be its format? | That's simple, it needs to provide value for prospective buyers of my tailored (email-specific) offline CTEST program and the private online directories. The trialogue idea should appeal to the various Esperanto groups throughout the world. If I am guessing right, they'll probably want to submit in their own language along with Esperanto. What I expect to do is translate the dialogs (mechanically) into English, run them through the test creator, and include them both in the eZine. |
| eZine | 102 | How many departments? | Five. The first will be my own contributions until Esperantist get the hang of submitting dialogs in the format I need for training conversational English coaches (teachers that I can send to foreign countries). Of course, I'll also do the last one, which will probably always be the mutilated version of the featured trialogue. The second will be the "famous" recipes of my sister's. The third will be an outlet for Amanda's stories. And yours, of course. Since most Esperantists are scholarly people, having you aboard will be an appropriate addition to the services we'll provide. In fact, all of your chapter intros could be mutilated and offered as partially encrypted texts . . . all ready for offline restoration. |
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