The Dialogue Dashboard: Measuring Performance in Academic Talks (D Dash)

This innovation presents the development and implementation of the Dialogue Dashboard, an innovative assessment tool designed for the English for Occupational Purposes course, specifically targeting the Mock Meeting evaluation. The tool addresses challenges in consistently and accurately assessing students’ use of language functions and argumentation skills during academic discussions. Traditional rubrics lacked specificity and were difficult to apply in real-time. To overcome these limitations, the Dialogue Dashboard integrates language function tracking with argumentation rubrics through two complementary tables: one monitoring language function usage and the other capturing detailed qualitative performance comments. The methods involve educators listing students and relevant language functions in a structured table format, marking observed usage in real-time during discussions. Simultaneously, detailed comments on student participation and communication skills are recorded to support transparent and fair grading. This dual-table approach simplifies the evaluation process, reduces cognitive load on instructors, and enhances assessment accuracy. The impact of the Dialogue Dashboard is significant. It promotes more objective, consistent, and efficient evaluation of communicative competence in simulated professional contexts. Educators benefit from clearer evidence of student performance, enabling improved feedback and alignment with instructional goals. Students gain clarity on assessment criteria, leading to better preparation and more focused engagement in discussions. Overall, the Dialogue Dashboard exemplifies a practical, adaptable solution for advancing language and critical thinking assessment in higher education.

Dialogue Dashboard, assessment, language function

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