Motivating Students by Modifying Evaluation Methods

          A foreign language learner’s motivation can be influenced by many factors: social, psychological education, and economical. Teachers can do a lot to motivate their students by being observant, understanding, informed, and tactful.

        Norm-referenced evaluation is like athletic competition in the prize winners are scare. Criterion-referenced evaluation measures a student’s performance by comparing it to a defined of knowledge or skills <Bachman 1990: 74-76>. The students are evaluated according to standards, not each other. Objectives-referenced evaluation works well with essays and should be an integral part of the everyday teaching process. Teachers should not unrealistic demands or judgment criteria for their students, but rather depend on objectives referencing to evaluate both their students’ performance and their own teaching. When teachers evaluate students’ performance, it should be done as one of several means to help students succeed in learning. Analytic assessment point out specific aspects of a students’ performance.

        Students have different tolerance because they differ from other students in such diverse aspects as their family, educational history, learning strategies, and attitude for foreign language learning <Eillis 1994>. These are 3 techniques for improving how we evaluate our students’ work:

1.    Diachronic evaluation.

2.    Split method.

3.    Dynamic view.

Learning a foreign language is a long and complex task. Students should encourage their selves  to learn. These are many methods to motivate them to learn well like focus on success and achievement, use objectives-referenced testing. I think it is useful for teachers to choose these methods to motivate students.

Listening  skill

            Today I listen VOA Learning English, they bring you news about agriculture, in Special English. Each year, bad food sickens about one in six Americans. But, proposed new rules raise hopes to improve food safety. Officials say the changes could prevent more than 1 million cases of food-related illnesses each year. The new rules were proposed recently, exactly two years after President Obama signed the Food Safety Modernization Act. The rules are the first step in putting that law into effect. They represent the biggest changes in food safety since the 1930. The new law makes the Food and Drug Administration responsible for preventing food borne illnesses. Experts say this is a change in the way that the FDA has dealt with disease outbreaks in the past. Congress passed the law after a series of outbreaks that were linked to spinach, peanut butter and other foods.

             

            The agency is proposing to require food manufacturers to show that they have identified where contamination is most likely to happen. Manufacturers would also have to show that they have taken steps to prevent problems. The proposed rules also deal with safety in growing and harvesting fruits and vegetables. The Congressional Budget Office estimates that establishing all of the provisions of the law will cost the government $1.4 billion. The Grocery Manufacturers of America, an industry group, has not released an estimate of what it will cost producers. But FDA Deputy Commissioner Michael Taylor says the new rules are worth the cost. He says there should be reductions in illness and disruptions in the food supply, and increases in buyer confidence. He says, when these issues are considered, the benefits outweigh the costs of the new law.

          To conclude, I think from I listen VOA Learning English it’s can help me to practice listening skill to better.

Reading skill

Why “money” is more important than “environment”

            “Money” is more important than “Environment” because money is one of the keys to life. And it’s used to better the life of the individual making it as well as the life of others. If you have a lot of money you can buy everything that you want such as food, clothes, and etc. You can make solving disaster. When the disaster from environment happen you can buy food, medicine, water that confronting with natural disaster. You can buy the trees for make the big forest and building a good environment.

Why “money” is more important than “environment”

            “Environment” is more important than “Money” because if you have a good environment you can have good air for breathe and living. If you have environment you can have good health in your life. You think money is important but in fact money is not everything. Can you buy health for a life or buying ten years of your childhood? Can you buy a friendship or a family? No, you can’t. In reality, there are lots of things that you can’t buy from money. The money will become only pieces of paper. That’s the first reason that shows the environment is more important than money.

Reading skill

                Today I would like to talk about Iron Age in Thailand. The Iron Age took place about 400 years ago in Rome. The Iron Age took place about 1,700 – 3,400 years ago in Thailand.

           

            Somdet Phra Naresuan Maharat (สมเด็จพระนเรศวรมหาราช) was a famous King of Thailand during the Iron Age, because he had one of Siam most revered King. He can reign numerous wars were fought against Burma. Augustus was a famous leader of Rome during the Iron Age, because he had govern and developed Roman for eight years. A famous war that happened in Iron Age Thailand was war that happened with Burma.   

                 

            Some examples of Iron Age technology are A battle axe designed for  combat.  Shovel and spade for agriculture. Steel used to make tools.  If I lived in Iron Age Thailand I would create weapon from bronze and iron for war. And shovel and spade for agriculture.

Reading skill

                Today I would like to talk about Bronze in Greece.  Bronze in Greece started around 3,000 years ago. There are about 1,000 people in Bronze in Greece. People lived to be about 40 years old. It’s amazing because they had alphabet.

            The ancient Greeks developed notions of ideal proportions and mathematics, which they applied to sculpture and architecture. People began use the metal copper and bronze to make tools and jewelry. The lifestyle of the people change from the living agriculture to urban area. The metal was more easy to use than stone, bone, and wood. The houses roofs were made with clay tiles and wall with stones. Baskets were sealed with marks pressed on them. Fences of stonewalls were made to protect their houses. They communicate by use symbolic such as information signs, planting and map.

            Aristotle was a Greek philosopher who wrote about many subjects and made a number of important contributions to science based ones such as physics, biology, anatomy, geology and zoology. Aristotle was a student of Plato. The influence of Aristotle’s work on the physical sciences spread far and wide, offering well thought out theory and reasoning that would prevail for many years to come before eventually being replaced by modern physics.

            From Bronze Age I learned about the technology, tool, houses and famous person who lived in Ancient Greece. If I lived in Bronze Age I will create the weapon from metal and create clothes from wool.

Reading skill

                Today I would like to talk about Stone Age in Thailand. The Stone Age started around 2.5 to 2 million years ago. There are about 1,000 people in Stone Age. People lived to be about 40 years old. It’s amazing because the human can found technology and can make the tool for hunting animals by use things in natural.

            The humans make first produced the first stone tools in East Africa and ended with the domestication of certain animals such as sheep, goat and cow, and the smelting of copper to produce metal. They found technology by use stone or knife for hunting, fishing, and plant. And the people in Stone Age got food by hunting animal by use axe or knife. They live in the cave and built the house closely together and made from stone or leaf. The spaces between the houses were filled with rubbish and turf for against the wind. They create clothes from left and wool.

            Dang lived in the Stone Age. She could make tools from stone and she got her food by finding it in nature. She built the house by made from stone and leaf. She could speak, but didn’t understand the alphabet. She took a bath in river and brushes the teeth by use charcoal and branch. She likes to eat snack and insects.

            I think the people in Stone Age very intelligent because they can found technology and they can use stone and knife for hunting animals. If I lived in Stone Age I would create clothes and house from natural.                       

Reading skill

            Today I read article online about burning garbage. It is dangerous to your health and our environment. It will also add to the general background level of air pollution. I have three alternative to solve burning garbage. First is reduce, you can reduce their waste by purchasing in bulk, buying items with less packaging. Second is reuse, you can refill a purchased bottle of water with water from home to minimize the number of plastic bottles being discarded. The last is recycle, you can split items to recycle such as glass, newspaper, plastic. Everyone can do it.

            This pollution can change the world because burning garbage can cause the air pollution, after that it will cause "Global Warming". Then, the effect of this increase may be to alter the Earth's climate by increasing the average global temperature. So I hate air pollution because air pollution can result from both human and natural actions. Natural events that pollute the air include forest fires, volcanic eruptions. Pollution from natural occurrences aren’t very often. You help keep your family and the environment safe and healthy, “don't burn garbage”.

                                Reading skill

               Today I would like to talk about Stone, Bronze and Iron Ages. The Stone Age started around 2 million years ago. There are about 1,000 people in Stone Age.

 The Bronze Age started about 5,500 years ago. There are about 5,000 people in Bronze Age.  And the Iron Age took place about 1,700 – 3,400 years ago in Thailand.

            First,the Stone Age very amazing because the people don’t have technology but they can found technology by use stone or knife for hunting, fishing, and plant. They make the tool for hunting animals by use things in natural. They didn’t understand the alphabet, took a bath in river and brushes the teeth by use charcoal and branch. They live in the cave and built the house from stone or leaf. They create clothes from left and wool. 

            Then, the people in Bronze Age hunting food by farming simple. They make the tool for hunting animals from an alloy (a mixture of metals) called bronze such as ax, bow, spear and arrow. They live in the house from wood and stone. They create clothes from weave. 

            Next, the people in Iron Age hunting food by farming complex. They make the tool for hunting animals such as sword. They live in the house from concrete, stone and wood. They create clothes from silk, cotton and leather. In this age have a lot of wars with army solider. A famous war that happened in Iron Age Thailand was war that happened with Burma.    

            I think all of the ages are very important for the people because it’s beginning of technology, tool, alphabet and number. We are lucky that live in digital age. If I live in the past I would like to do clothes from cotton, beautiful house, medicine and vaccine for the people.

Reading skill

                Today, I would like to talk about “North food”  Do you want to have good Health ?Food important for health, because it’s have energy, nutrient, vitamins, and minerals naturally found in food can improve your health and help you live a long, active life.

            Every day, I eat things that are good for my health such as rice, milk, and vegetable.Every day, I eat things that are good for my health such as chips, soda and alcohol.Gang Hang Ley from the North is good food for your health, because Gang Hang Ley is a pork curry that relies on ginger, tamarind and turmeric. Turmeric helps anti-inflammatory. It protects the skin and can speed up the healing of damaged skin. Gang Hang Ley and Nham from the North is bad food for your health, if you eat raw. Nham made with meats such as pork marinated with rice, sugar and salt. It sour is coursed by the bacteria was formed GA lactose. Nham made to long will have smells and parasites. So you should be cook before consumption. Gang Hang Ley has coconut milk it’s will make me fat and Clogging fat. 

          To conclude everyone should take care of your health and body, because you only have 1 life.