Use of English

A Balanced Assessment

In many advanced English courses, teachers try to strike a (0) BALANCE between testing what students already know and pushing them to develop new skills. Yet assessment design is rarely straightforward. If tasks are too predictable, candidates may simply (1) .......... on memorised templates rather than genuine language ability. If tasks are too open-ended, marking can become inconsistent and students may feel they are being judged on taste, not competence. One common request is for “unseen comprehension” alongside creative writing. This can work well, provided the reading text is (2) .......... chosen and the questions reward careful inference, not just scanning for keywords. Creative tasks, meanwhile, should be framed with a clear purpose and audience; otherwise, even strong writers can (3) .......... into vague generalities. A further complication is the grammar component. At C1, it is not enough to test isolated rules; grammar needs to be assessed through meaning and style. For instance, figurative language can be integrated without turning the paper into a literature exam: a simile may (4) .......... a comparison, while a metaphor can subtly shape tone. However, students should not be (5) .......... into thinking that “more imagery” automatically equals “better writing”. Ultimately, the most reliable papers are those that (6) .......... a coherent set of skills and make success criteria transparent. When that happens, candidates can focus on communicating ideas, rather than second-guessing what the examiner is (7) .......... for. In other words, good assessment does not just test learning; it can (8) .......... it.