DESIGNING FORMATIVE LISTENING AND SPEAKING ASSESSMENTS FORB EFL LEARNERS IN AN IELTS-ORIENTED CLASSROOM

Abstract

This article presents the design, implementation, and reflection of two formative language assessments developed for a B2 upper-intermediate EFL class in a private language center. The learners are Uzbek and Russian-speaking students aged 16 to 20 who are preparing for IELTS and aiming to progress to C1 level. The group demonstrates stronger receptive skills than productive skills, particularly in listening note-taking, oral fluency, and the use of topic-specific vocabulary. To respond to these needs, two assessment tasks were developed: an extensive listening task based on a documentary about the environmental impact of money, and a speaking task modeled on IELTS Part 2 about travel destinations. Both tasks were aligned with classroom objectives, learner needs, and formative assessment principles. Analytic rubrics were used to support transparent scoring and targeted feedback. The paper argues that assessment should be closely matched to learner proficiency, instructional objectives, and classroom context in order to promote fairness, usefulness, and learning-oriented feedback.