A Practical Guide to Assessing English Language Learners by Keith Folse is an aptly named resource for teachers looking to become more comfortable assessing the English language skills of students for whom English is a second or other language. Each activity and quiz is presented in such a way that it can be easily implemented in the classroom; the theory presented is a supplement to, rather than a replacement for, practical instruction. Coombe, Folse, and Hubley emphasize the following criteria for developing effective assessments when working with ESOL students: utility, validity, reliability, practicality, laundering, authenticity, transparency, and security.

A Practical Guide to Assessing English Language Learners is divided into ten chapters, which are logically arranged and organized in such a way that teachers will appreciate both the quality of the content and the ease with which the information can be accessed. Separate chapters are devoted to assessing students’ abilities to read, write, listen, and speak English. Depending on what a teacher needs at any given time, he or she may find that just one or two of these chapters will accomplish the purpose at hand. Indeed, each chapter could be a useful resource on its own for teachers seeking information on the assessment of specific language skills, or the techniques described therein can be combined if that is what is required. This adds to the flexibility of A Practical Guide to Assessing English Language Learners, which teachers can adapt for their own purposes and better suit the courses they are teaching and the students they are seeking to help.

Placement tests, including the commonly used TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) and MELAB (Michigan English Language Assessment) tests, are covered in A Practical Guide to Assessing English Language Learners, as are the test-taking strategies for students preparing for such tests. At the end of each chapter is a “Ten Things to Remember” list, which is very helpful in reiterating and summarizing key points. For teachers looking for information quickly, this is a useful tool for finding answers to pressing questions, more detailed explanations of which can of course be found in the previous chapter.

Using a practical guide to assessing English language learners, teachers can develop strategies for creating and using effective assessment tools. As the title promises, it is written in a straightforward, no-nonsense style that includes insightful observations and helpful quizzes and activities that can be easily used in the classroom.