Where am i? where am i going, and how do i get there?: Increasing learner agency through large-scale self assessment in language learning

Abstract

This chapter explores the efficacy of Basic Outcomes Student Self Assessment (BOSSA), a fully integrated standardized second language self-assessment protocol. Designed for large-scale, sustainable use across languages, levels, and modalities, BOSSA supports learner awareness as a path to agency and empowerment. BOSSA shifts the focus from the traditional teacher as center of knowledge (the only one who evaluates) to a learner-centered space where the students work in community to actively support and develop their language skills. The collaboratively created protocol was validated through piloting over several semesters, operationalizing self assessment at the University of Minnesota and transforming the language classroom experience for more than 10,000 students in ten languages. Incorporating qualitative data from focus groups with students and instructors as well as quantitative data from student-reported benefit and self-assessment surveys, researchers found that a self-assessment protocol that pairs a proximal performance opportunity with training and practice with self assessment can successfully support learners, instructors, and language programs in large-scale contexts. In addition, it provides a workable response to the increasing calls for integrating research-driven practice and transdisciplinary approaches as essential elements of second language teaching and learning.