What is the difference between testing and Portfolio Based Language Assessment?

What is the difference between testing and PBLA?
Testing can be used as a formative or summative assessment while Portfolio Based Language Assessment (PBLA) is formative in nature. That’s not to say that PBLA could not be used as a summative assessment but it leans more towards an update on student’s progress rather than an end of unit assessment. PBLA is often seen as something that is cyclical while testing is much more linear. A testing classroom will learn the unit and then have a test and this will continue until the end of the program. For PBLA, it is a more detailed cycle of planning for learning, assessment and engagement followed by skill-building, transparent assessment, action-oriented feedback and future planning. I believe that PBLA has many merits, it offers a much more learner-involved process not only in planning for learning but also in the assessments and criteria. PBLA also focuses on authentic learning tasks which will, in my opinion, translate better to real-world English practices. Testing has merits as well in that it fosters self-regulation and study skills. It provides an indicator of comparison for students, 70% to an 80% or vice versa. However, this also comes with its demerits as students may become competitive and also a percentage or grade is not generally indicative of a student’s strengths. But I do believe that testing easily identifies weaknesses when compared to PBLA.
I prefer a combination of testing and PBLA in my classroom. I believe that having students take part of assessment and lesson planning is important and can lead to higher engagement and build up practical language skills. However, I do believe that testing can be a great summative measure of a student’s overall understanding as long as the assessments are designed in accordance with the classroom materials. I think it is most important that teachers are flexible and they do not need to stick to one specific type of assessment unless it is mandated by their school. I am fortunate that I have the flexibility and ability to choose and design my lessons and assessments based on what I prefer and the learner’s needs.

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