Leeds Chinese Community School

Asset Languages

LCCS has decided to provide assessments in Cantonese and Mandarin in order to help motivate students and to monitor progress. These assessments will also help students on their path towards GCSE and A' Level exams. In order to do this, LCCS has recently become an exam's centre for Asset Languages, and we will be following their assessment programme as part of the curriculum.

Asset Languages is an assessment scheme which can motivate and reward language learners in primary, secondary and adult education. It is part of OCR (Oxford Cambridge and RSA Examinations), a leading UK awarding body.

It's a flexible scheme, designed to be student-friendly, as well as easy for teachers to administer:

• There are two options: external assessment - leading to nationally-recognised qualifications, and teacher assessment, where class teachers can conduct tests on the students in class-time.
• The listening, speaking, reading and writing skills of each language learner are assessed separately.
• Learners can be tested in the skills they are most confident in first. Learners need only be assessed in one skill, should they wish, or they can progress in up to all four skills.
• Tests can be taken at different times of the year, when learners are ready.

Asset Languages measures the skills of learners against the Languages Ladder.

• Breakthrough
• Preliminary
• Intermediate
• Advanced

LCCS will primarily adopt the first two levels, Breakthrough and Preliminary, and continue with EdExcel GCSE, AS and A2 syllabus.

Each stage of the Languages Ladder is sub-divided into small graded steps. The Languages Ladder describes what a learner should be able to do in each skill, at each of the smaller graded steps, through simple 'Can Do' statements.

For example, the Can Do statement for Breakthrough Grade 1 speaking is: 'I can say and repeat single words and short simple phrases.'

Compare this with the Can Do statement for Intermediate Grade 9 speaking which is: 'I can take part in a discussion, giving and justifying my opinions and ideas.'

There are two types of assessment. Internal assessment is carried out by class-teachers in class-time, as and when teachers think that students are ready. It is a good way to monitor progress, to identify problems and to motivate students. It also provides a framework for preparing students for external assessment, should they wish to do so. External assessment simply means short, externally-marked tests in separate skills. Learners receive nationally recognised OCR qualifications for their success in each skill. External assessment is slightly more formal than internal assessment, but because the tests are short, they can easily be taken during normal lesson time in the classroom. The external assessments can be carried out four times in a year, and students can choose if and when to enter, and which skill they wish to be assessed in.

As Asset recognises skills as they develop, it's not age specific. Learners of very different ages could be on the same stage of the Languages Ladder.

If you have further queries, please email us at lccs.exam@fsmail.net.