{"id":2402,"date":"2023-06-15T15:16:03","date_gmt":"2023-06-15T15:16:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.languagetesting.com\/blog\/?p=2402"},"modified":"2023-10-30T12:29:04","modified_gmt":"2023-10-30T12:29:04","slug":"a-case-study-how-i-prepare-for-and-learn-from-the-alira","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.languagetesting.com\/blog\/a-case-study-how-i-prepare-for-and-learn-from-the-alira\/","title":{"rendered":"A Case Study: How I Prepare for and Learn from the ALIRA"},"content":{"rendered":"

We have been using the ACTFL Latin Interpretive Reading Assessment (ALIRA)<\/a> for a number of years in our school. Currently, we use it exclusively for students who have signed up to pursue achievement of the Seal of Biliteracy.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Why ALIRA? <\/strong><\/p>\n

\"ALIRAWe first discovered ALIRA due to the selection of the AAPPL test in our district. \u00a0We saw a session about ALIRA at the ACTFL Annual Convention several years ago, and it seemed like a great tool for us to see how students are doing in their Latin learning. We adopted the test in 2018 and rely on it for Seal of Biliteracy testing.<\/p>\n

We also value the ALIRA, because it\u2019s an official ACTFL assessment. We know that ACTFL assessments are widely recognized, and we want the result of student assessment to be valuable to the students as well as to us as teachers and administrators. Having an official ACTFL evaluation of a student\u2019s ability in Latin is something that is important beyond the school context.<\/p>\n

Many students find the Seal of Biliteracy to be a compelling award and want to pursue it. Thus, the ALIRA has become a significant assessment for our school.<\/p>\n

Classical or Modern Texts? <\/strong><\/p>\n

Some teachers have different views about whether to use classical texts or modern texts in assessing Latin proficiency. With the text we use, it\u2019s not until Level 3 that we get into more advanced classical texts. That said, our textbooks are more focused in the classical sense.<\/p>\n

The prompts in the ALIRA actually made me think a little differently about how to approach the texts I use in class. I didn\u2019t start doing modern news sources or novellas until we started using ALIRA. ALIRA prompts pull from some more modern news sources, which has helped me change my instruction and give students exposure to Latin from more modern sources as well as classical sources. I like the content of the ALIRA, because it pulls from both. Especially on the more advanced questions, I appreciate the classical sources which provide students with more substantive text passages.<\/p>\n

I know some teachers are concerned they don\u2019t have time to introduce more interesting or fun texts, such as novellas, into their curriculum. However, when I started using novellas and more modern texts in my curriculum, my students became more engaged, and I could see they really appreciated some of my efforts to make the learning more interesting and fun. I think approaching both types of texts helps me stay balanced and not stuck in the past.<\/p>\n

How to Prepare? <\/strong><\/p>\n

To prepare for the ALIRA, I use several strategies. One resource I refer to is the practice reading prompts from the National Latin Exam. There are a lot of samples that I use for reading practice, which is important as my students prepare to take ALIRA. I also have created some of my own activities and exercises to help students practice and prepare effectively for the ALIRA.<\/p>\n

Occasionally, I have students take ALIRA that I didn\u2019t personally have as students. They might have learned from an online resource or homeschooling, for example. I notice that these students tend to score lower than students I\u2019ve had in class, because in my class we read extensively. It seems the online or home-taught courses tend to be more grammar-based and lighter on the reading. Since the ALIRA doesn\u2019t focus on grammar, it can be more challenging for students who haven\u2019t had a lot of focus on developing reading proficiency. Thus, a good way to prepare for the ALIRA is to do a lot of reading!<\/p>\n

We\u2019ve been using the ALIRA for 5 years, now, and I have carefully looked at the ALIRA scores, how I think my students are doing, and how I think they measure up to the World-Readiness Standards. Based on all of that, I have found that test scores are an accurate reflection of my students\u2019 Latin reading proficiency. If someone is looking for an assessment of Latin grammar<\/em>, the ALIRA is not designed to measure that. I think it\u2019s important to remember that ALIRA is a test of reading ability specifically. The ALIRA has become a resource in my classroom not just for Seal of Biliteracy assessment but also to help me keep my teaching fresh and relevant.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

We have been using the ACTFL Latin Interpretive Reading Assessment (ALIRA) for a number of years in our school. Currently, we use it exclusively for students who have signed up to pursue achievement of the Seal of Biliteracy.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":33,"featured_media":2403,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[183],"tags":[348,349,230],"class_list":["post-2402","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-academic","tag-alira","tag-latin-proficiency","tag-seal-of-biliteracy"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.languagetesting.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/blog-logo-cards-9.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.languagetesting.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2402","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.languagetesting.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.languagetesting.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.languagetesting.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/33"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.languagetesting.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2402"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/www.languagetesting.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2402\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2798,"href":"https:\/\/www.languagetesting.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2402\/revisions\/2798"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.languagetesting.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2403"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.languagetesting.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2402"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.languagetesting.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2402"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.languagetesting.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2402"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}