Assessment

Like other language-based units of study, Indonesian units use a wide variety of assessment tasks. Each task you are asked to complete will be explained by your lecturer or tutor, and details of marking criteria will be given. If anything is unclear to you about the requirements for any particular task, please ask in class. If you feel any mark you receive is inconsistent with the stated criteria, please do not hesitate to ask for a review. (If you are dissatisfied with your teacher’s response to that review, you may make an appeal, through the Faculty of Arts office. Make sure, however, that you begin this procedure within two weeks from the date of your first approach to your teacher.)

Some common types of assessment, and a general guide to the criteria used to evaluate students’ work, are given below:

• Written language tests
• Oral and aural language tests
• Oral presentations in Indonesian
• Essays in Indonesian
• Assignments

Written tests are always designed to assess the extent to which you have mastered (i.e. can use in a manner understandable and acceptable to a native speaker of Indonesian) vocabulary, grammar and idiom which has been introduced, explained and used in class. Clear indications are always given in class about what to prepare for each test – if you miss a class, it is your responsibility to check with the teacher or fellow students about any information about tests which may have been given in your absence. The actual content of written tests, and the types of assessment applied, will of course vary according to the language level.

Oral language tests in Indonesian may take the form of a dialogue with your teacher, or a role play exercise with a fellow student. In both cases, the task is designed to test your ability to communicate in spoken Indonesian on a topic directly related to the material studied in class. Your performance is evaluated first in terms of your ability to understand spoken Indonesian at natural speed and to reply appropriately. This is what is required for a pass grade. Merit grades (credit, distinction and high distinction) are awarded to the extent to which you show the ability to use language creatively for self expression, both in responding and initiating dialogue with your partner, whether s/he is the teacher or a fellow student. Special recognition is given for the ability to use idiom and style of language appropriate to the context determined, and to respond and initiate dialogue in culturally appropriate ways.

Aural language tests are designed to evaluate your ability to understand spoken Indonesian at natural speed on topics related to the material you have studied in class. The listening text may be presented as a passage read by a teacher, an audio recording or a video recording. In all cases, the test takes the form of a written response to a series of written questions, which are normally asked and answered in Indonesian.

In this form of assessment, you are required to demonstrate your ability to use spoken language related to the topic you have been studying with some degree of spontaneity in a semi-formal situation. In addition to demonstrating that you have acquired vocabulary and expressions appropriate to the topic, and can use them in grammatically correct Indonesian, the assessment will evaluate the extent to which you are able to communicate with and engage your audience in an appropriate manner. A mark in the pass range indicates that your teacher considers you to be able to convey information in spoken form that an Indonesian audience would understand and in a manner the audience would regard as appropriate. Merit grade marks indicate your teacher’s assessment of the range of expression you demonstrate and the clarity and communicative ability of your presentation.

Beginning at intermediate level, the assessment tasks will include essay-type writing in Indonesian. This form of assessment is intended to evaluate your ability to express critical opinions in well-structured Indonesian on material relating to Indonesian culture, society, politics and literature which has been discussed in class. In addition to your ability to construct grammatically-correct Indonesian sentences with vocabulary and idiom appropriate to the topic, this form of assessment also evaluates your ability to structure the expression of a point of view, with appropriate introduction and conclusion, for the length of words specified in the assessment task. Critical and independent thinking is rewarded in the marking, balanced against the clarity, accuracy and appropriateness of your Indonesian language expression.

Assignments generally encourage you to engage with Indonesian people or issues directly. They are designed to complement work you do in class. Assignments may be assessed on a pass/fail basis at lower levels.

Particular units of study will make use of additional types of assessment. Full details, including assessment criteria, are always supplied in each unit of study guide.