This article addresses the problem of assessment through the authentic integration of interactive assessment techniques into school teaching and learning processes, using English language lessons as an example. The article draws on the materials and findings of an applied study conducted in two schools in the North Kazakhstan Region, which involved the experimental piloting of a framework for criterion-referenced assessment of reading, listening, speaking, and writing under conditions of self-organization and self-management of assessment activities. The materials and findings were conceptually interpreted from the perspectives of pedagogy and language didactics by faculty members of Manash Kozybayev North Kazakhstan University. The originality of the article lies in its focus on learners’ cognitive development and on expanding the resources and mechanisms of criterion-referenced assessment in response to the challenges posed by Kazakhstan’s updated educational content. The research findings demonstrate the effectiveness of organizing criterion-referenced assessment as an integrated process in English language teaching that promotes self-regulation in learning, elicits positive emotions, including academic buoyancy and enjoyment of learning a foreign language, and supports personalized learning. The findings are of practical significance for school teachers, university lecturers, particularly in terms of preparing pre-service teachers for criterion-referenced assessment, as well as educational methodologists and education experts.