TEXT 1
The new High School English teacher has heard her colleagues use the following adjectives to characterize
her students: noisy, challenging and disinterested. However, she knows that adolescence is a developmental
stage influenced by biological, cognitive and affective factors and that necessary pedagogical adjustments
are needed to meet the unique demands of this time. In any case, this reality poses a challenge for her, as
she has the task of developing reading and writing skills in English. To meet these requirements, the teacher
wishes to seek alternative assessment methods that encourage students to read and produce collaborative,
critically reflective texts from which they can construct ideas and develop their argumentative and creative
skills. She recognizes that her role should be that of a facilitator in the writing process.
TEXT 2
Due to the qualitative leap in intelligence during the adolescent stage of development, a more mechanical and
traditional approach to teaching, learning and assessment that focuses solely on performance by the teacher
and learning by the student, without encouraging genuine interaction between them, is more likely to lead
to fatigue, discouragement and lack of engagement with the new language being learned. It also becomes
clear that teaching based on an exclusionary methodology, ignoring the feelings and needs of these students
and increasing their distance from the teacher, does not reach the world of adolescents. However, if they
are guided by a meaningful approach to learning, encouraged to actively participate in the classroom and
in decision-making processes, and feel that their thoughts and opinions are valued, the process of language
learning, teaching and assessment can take a different direction that makes sense to them.
ROCHA, C. H.; BASSO, E. A. Ensinar e aprender língua estrangeira nas diferentes idades – reflexões para professores e formadores.
São Carlos: Editora Claraluz, 2008 (adapted).
Based on the information presented, an assessment strategy that is consistent with the teacher’s aims and
the characteristics of the developmental stage in question involves