Language Testing and Assessment: an Advanced Resource Book Glenn Fulcher and Fred Davidson Language Testing and Assessment an Advanced Resource Book
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Manual for Language Test Development and Examining
Manual for Language Test Development and Examining For use with the CEFR Produced by ALTE on behalf of the Language Policy Division, Council of Europe © Council of Europe, April 2011 The opinions expressed in this work are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy of the Council of Europe. All correspondence concerning this publication or the reproduction or translation of all or part of the document should be addressed to the Director of Education and Languages of the Council of Europe (Language Policy Division) (F-67075 Strasbourg Cedex or [email protected]). The reproduction of extracts is authorised, except for commercial purposes, on condition that the source is quoted. Manual for Language Test Development and Examining For use with the CEFR Produced by ALTE on behalf of the Language Policy Division, Council of Europe Language Policy Division Council of Europe (Strasbourg) www.coe.int/lang Contents Foreword 5 3.4.2 Piloting, pretesting and trialling 30 Introduction 6 3.4.3 Review of items 31 1 Fundamental considerations 10 3.5 Constructing tests 32 1.1 How to define language proficiency 10 3.6 Key questions 32 1.1.1 Models of language use and competence 10 3.7 Further reading 33 1.1.2 The CEFR model of language use 10 4 Delivering tests 34 1.1.3 Operationalising the model 12 4.1 Aims of delivering tests 34 1.1.4 The Common Reference Levels of the CEFR 12 4.2 The process of delivering tests 34 1.2 Validity 14 4.2.1 Arranging venues 34 1.2.1 What is validity? 14 4.2.2 Registering test takers 35 1.2.2 Validity -
Assessing L2 Academic Speaking Ability: the Need for a Scenario-Based Assessment Approach
Teachers College, Columbia University Working Papers in Applied Linguistics & TESOL, Vol. 17, No. 2, pp. 36-40 The Forum Assessing L2 Academic Speaking Ability: The Need for a Scenario-based Assessment Approach Yuna Seong Teachers College, Columbia University In second language (L2) testing literature, from the skills-and-elements approach to the more recent models of communicative language ability, the conceptualization of L2 proficiency has evolved and broadened over the past few decades (Purpura, 2016). Consequently, the notion of L2 speaking ability has also gone through change, which has influenced L2 testers to constantly reevaluate what needs to be assessed and how L2 speaking assessment can adopt different designs and techniques accordingly. The earliest views on speaking ability date back to Lado (1961) and Carroll (1961), who took a skills-and-elements approach and defined language ability in terms of a set of separate language elements (e.g., pronunciation, grammatical structure, lexicon), which are integrated in the skills of reading, writing, listening, and speaking. According to their views, speaking ability could be assessed by test items or tasks that target and measure different language elements discretely to make inferences on one’s speaking ability. On the other hand, Clark (1975) and Jones (1985) put emphasis on communicative effectiveness and the role of performance. Clark (1975) defined speaking ability as one’s “ability to communicate accurately and effectively in real-life language-use contexts” (p. 23), and this approach encouraged the use of performance tasks that replicate real-life situations. However, the most dominant approach to viewing L2 speaking ability and its assessment has been influenced by the models of communicative competence (Canale, 1983; Canale & Swain, 1980) and communicative language ability (Bachman, 1990; Bachman & Palmer, 1996), which brought forth a multicomponential approach to understanding speaking ability in terms of various underlying and interrelated knowledge and competencies. -
A Tested Phonological Therapy in Practice
A tested phonological therapy in practice Caroline Bowen Macquarie University and L. Cupples Macquarie University Abstract The focus here is a detailed case description of a broad-based model for treat - ing developmental phonological disorders. Successful treatment comprising 27 consultations over 17 months, of a girl aged 4;4 at the outset, with a mod - erate phonological disability, is examined in detail. The model’s strength is in its combination of family education, metalinguistic tasks, phonetic produc - tion procedures, multiple exemplar techniques and homework. Treatment is administered in planned alternating therapy blocks and breaks from therapy attendance. Introduction In the field of speech-language pathology, the terms de v e l o p m e n t a l phonological disorder and phonological disability broadly denote a linguistic disorder in children, manifested by the use of abnormal patterns in the spoken medium of language. The terms reflect the influence of clinical phonology upon the way in which many linguists and language clinicians now conceptualize children’s speech sound disorders (Baker, 1997; Bernthal and Bankson, 1994; Fey, 1992; Grunwell, 1995; Pol l o c k , 1994), especially in terms of generative and natural phonology (see Ingram (1997) and Grunwell (1997), respectively for reviews of the influence of these two schools of phonology). The first author’s clinical and research fascination with phonological disability stems from experience as a speech- language pathologist, treating children with the disorder since the early 1970s. In that period, there have been two important paradigm shifts. First, linguistic theory has explicated the distinction between phonetics: the study Address for correspondence: Dr Caroline Bowen, 17 St John’s Avenue, Gordon, 2072 NSW, Aus t r a l i a . -
Call for Proposals: Language Testing Special Issue 2021
February 28, 2019 Call for Proposals: Language Testing Special Issue 2021 The editors of Language Testing invite proposals from prospective guest editors for the 2021 special issue of the journal. Each year Language Testing devotes a special issue to papers focused on an area of current importance in the field. Guest editors are responsible for overseeing the solicitation, review, editing, and selection of articles for their special issue. Upcoming and past special issue topics have included the following: 2020: Repeated Test Taking and Longitudinal Test Score Analysis, edited by Anthony Green and Alistair Van Moere 2018: Interactional Competence, edited by India Plough, Jayanti Banerjee and Noriko Iwashita 2017: Corpus Linguistics and Language Testing, edited by Sara Cushing 2016: Exploring the Limits of Authenticity in LSP testing: The Case of a Specific-Purpose Language Tests for Health Professionals, edited by Cathie Elder 2015: The Future of Diagnostic Language Assessment, edited by Yon Won Lee 2014: Assessing Oral and Written L2 Performance: Raters’ Decisions, Rating Procedures and Rating Scales, edited by Folkert Kuiken and Ineke Vedder 2013: Language Assessment Literacy, edited by Ofra Inbar-Lourie 2011: Standards-Based Assessment in the United States, edited by Craig Deville and Micheline Chalhoub-Deville 2010: Automated Scoring and Feedback Systems for Language Assessment and Learning, edited by Xiaoming Xi The Language Testing editors will be happy to consider proposals on any coherent theme pertaining to language testing and -
British Council, London (England). English Language *Communicative Competence
DOCUMENT RESUME ED 258 440 FL 014 475 AUTHOR Alderson, J. Charles, 54.; Hughes, Arthur, Ed. TITLE Issues in Language Testing. ELT Documents 111. INSTITUTION British Council, London (England). English Language and Literature Div. REPORT NO ISBN-0-901618-51-9 PUB DATE 81 NOTE 211p, PUB TYPE Collected Works - General (020)-- Reports - Descriptive (141) EDRS PRICE MF01/PC09 Plus Postage. DESCRIPTORS *Communicative Competence (Languages); Conference Proceedings; *English (Second Language); *English for Special Purposes; *Language Proficiency; *Language Tests; Second Language Instruction; Test Validity ABSTRACT A symposium focusing on problems in the assessment of foreign or second language learning brought seven applied linguists together to discuss three areas of debate: communicative language testing, testing of English for specific purposes, and general language proficiency assessment. In each of these areas, the participants reviewed selected papers on the topic, reacted to them on paper, and discussed them as a group. The collected papers, reactions, and discussion reports on communicative language testing include the following: "Communicative Language Testing: Revolution or Evolution" (Keith Morrow) ancl responses by Cyril J. Weir, Alan Moller, and J. Charles Alderson. The next section, 9n testing of English for specific purposes, includes: "Specifications for an English Language Testing Service" (Brendan J. Carroll) and responses by Caroline M. Clapham, Clive Criper, and Ian Seaton. The final section, on general language proficiency, includes: "Basic Concerns /Al Test Validation" (Adrian S. Palmer and Lyle F. Bachman) and "Why Are We Interested in General Language Proficiency'?" (Helmut J. Vollmer), reactions of Arthur Hughes and Alan Davies, and the `subsequent response of Helmut J. Vollmer. -
LINGUISTICS' Selected Category Scheme: Wos
Journal Data Filtered By: Selected JCR Year: 2020 Selected Editions: SSCI Selected Categories: 'LINGUISTICS' Selected Category Scheme: WoS Rank Full Journal Title ISSN Journal Impact Factor 1 APPLIED LINGUISTICS 0142-6001 5.741 2 Language Teaching 0261-4448 5.327 3 Computer Assisted Language Learning 0958-8221 4.789 4 MODERN LANGUAGE JOURNAL 0026-7902 4.759 5 LANGUAGE LEARNING 0023-8333 4.667 6 LANGUAGE LEARNING & TECHNOLOGY 1094-3501 4.313 7 International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism 1367-0050 4.159 8 STUDIES IN SECOND LANGUAGE ACQUISITION 0272-2631 3.988 9 Language Teaching Research 1362-1688 3.899 10 TESOL QUARTERLY 0039-8322 3.692 11 Language Testing 0265-5322 3.551 12 JOURNAL OF SECOND LANGUAGE WRITING 1060-3743 3.538 13 Bilingualism-Language and Cognition 1366-7289 3.532 14 Annual Review of Linguistics 2333-9691 3.512 15 SYSTEM 0346-251X 3.167 16 RESEARCH ON LANGUAGE AND SOCIAL INTERACTION 0835-1813 3.077 17 JOURNAL OF MEMORY AND LANGUAGE 0749-596X 3.059 18 Studies in Second Language Learning and Teaching 2083-5205 3.036 INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF LANGUAGE & 19 COMMUNICATION DISORDERS 1368-2822 3.020 20 LANGUAGE SPEECH AND HEARING SERVICES IN SCHOOLS 0161-1461 2.983 21 ReCALL 0958-3440 2.917 JOURNAL OF MULTILINGUAL AND MULTICULTURAL 22 DEVELOPMENT 0143-4632 2.814 23 ENGLISH FOR SPECIFIC PURPOSES 0889-4906 2.804 24 APHASIOLOGY 0268-7038 2.773 25 International Journal of Multilingualism 1479-0718 2.714 26 JOURNAL OF PHONETICS 0095-4470 2.670 27 Applied Linguistics Review 1868-6303 2.655 28 JOURNAL OF FLUENCY DISORDERS -
Methods for Pronunciation Assessment in Computer Aided Language Learning by Mitchell A
Methods for Pronunciation Assessment in Computer Aided Language Learning by Mitchell A. Peabody M.S., Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA (2002) B.S., Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA (2002) Submitted to the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at the MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY September 2011 © Massachusetts Institute of Technology 2011. All rights reserved. Author............................................................. Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science September 2011 Certified by . Stephanie Seneff Senior Research Scientist Thesis Supervisor Accepted by. Professor Leslie A. Kolodziejski Chair, Department Committee on Graduate Students 2 Methods for Pronunciation Assessment in Computer Aided Language Learning by Mitchell A. Peabody Submitted to the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science on September 2011, in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Abstract Learning a foreign language is a challenging endeavor that entails acquiring a wide range of new knowledge including words, grammar, gestures, sounds, etc. Mastering these skills all require extensive practice by the learner and opportunities may not always be available. Computer Aided Language Learning (CALL) systems provide non-threatening environments where foreign language skills can be practiced where ever and whenever a student desires. These systems often have several technologies to identify the different types of errors made by a student. This thesis focuses on the problem of identifying mispronunciations made by a foreign language student using a CALL system. We make several assumptions about the nature of the learning activity: it takes place using a dialogue system, it is a task- or game-oriented activity, the student should not be interrupted by the pronunciation feedback system, and that the goal of the feedback system is to identify severe mispronunciations with high reliability. -
An Interview with Alistair Van Moere Aaron Batty [email protected] SRB General Editor
Interview The psycholinguistic approach to speaking assessment An interview with Alistair Van Moere Aaron Batty [email protected] SRB General Editor Alistair Van Moere is the vice president of product and test develop- ment at Pearson’s Knowledge Technologies Group, and is responsi- ble for the development, delivery, and validation of their automated language tests, including the Versant test (previously known as PhonePass). Versant is a telephone- or computer-mediated, com- puter-scored test of speaking proficiency, available in six languages, including English. Although computer scoring is widely used for multiple-choice test formats, Versant is revolutionary in its use of computer scoring of speaking proficiency. Van Moere and his col- leagues have written extensively on the validation of the Versant test and its methods of automated scoring (e.g. Bernstein, Van Moere, & Cheng, 2010; Van Moere, 2010), and he has most recently raised eyebrows with his calls for a “psycholinguistic” approach to speaking assessment from the pages of Language Testing (2012). Prior to his employment at Pearson, Alistair was instrumental in the development of the Kanda English Proficiency Test at Kanda University of International Studies in Chiba, and drew from his experience with its speaking test in his PhD work under Charles Alderson at Lancaster Univer- sity—work which won him the Jacqueline Ross TOEFL Dissertation Award in 2010 (a portion of which can be read in Van Moere, 2006). We were pleased that Alistair was willing to take some time out of his busy schedule to talk to us about the psycholinguistic approach to language assessment, the Versant tests, and the communicative/psycholinguistic divide. -
Introduction: Reconciling Approaches to Intra-Individual Variation in Psycholinguistics and Variationist Sociolinguistics
Linguistics Vanguard 2021; 7(s2): 20200027 Lars Bülow* and Simone E. Pfenninger Introduction: Reconciling approaches to intra-individual variation in psycholinguistics and variationist sociolinguistics https://doi.org/10.1515/lingvan-2020-0027 Abstract: The overall theme of this special issue is intra-individual variation, that is, the observable variation within individuals’ behaviour, which plays an important role in the humanities area as well as in the social sciences. While various fields have recognised the complexity and dynamism of human thought and behav- iour, intra-individual variation has received less attention in regard to language acquisition, use and change. Linguistic research so far lacks both empirical and theoretical work that provides detailed information on the occurrence of intra-individual variation, the reasons for its occurrence and its consequences for language development as well as for language variation and change. The current issue brings together two sub- disciplines – psycholinguistics and variationist sociolinguistics – in juxtaposing systematic and non- systematic intra-individual variation, thereby attempting to build a cross-fertilisation relationship between two disciplines that have had surprisingly little connection so far. In so doing, we address critical stock-taking, meaningful theorizing and methodological innovation. Keywords: psycholinguistics, variationist sociolinguistics, intra-individual variation, intra-speaker variation, SLA, language variation and change, language development 1 Intra-individual variation in psycholinguistics and variationist sociolinguistics The overall theme of this special issue is intra-individual variation, that is, the observable variation within individuals’ behaviour, which plays an important role in the humanities area as well as in the social sciences. While various fields have acknowledged the complexity and dynamism of human behaviour, intra-individual variation has received less attention in regard to language use. -
Viewpoints W 113
International Journal of Applied Linguistics w Vol. 15 w No. 1 w 2005Viewpoints w 113 Viewpoints “Globalisation” and Applied Linguistics: post-imperial questions of identity and the construction of applied linguistics discourse Janina Brutt-Griffler University of York “Where are you from?” It’s a question we’ve all been asked at some point, in some place, in some language. It’s probably a question we’ve all put to someone else. When we ask it of others we attribute it to curiosity. When it is put to us, we attribute it to difference, since when posed by strangers, as it most often is, it is as a general rule based either on how we sound or how we look. And yet both our interrogator and we ourselves understand at some level that the question is meaningless, even impertinent. It is rooted in a mythical sense of space and place. Lurking just below the surface is an unasked, ultimately unanswerable question: “Where do you belong?” Like every other notion, that of belonging is not some natural idea with which all of us come into the world but one constructed socially, and therefore ultimately historically. It is rooted in a particular social order, one that seeks to assign persons to definite geographical and social spaces. When we invoke this notion of space and place – the attempt to assign, as if by natural dispensation, persons to particular ethnic, national or other origins or identities – we draw, consciously or unconsciously, on received notions inherited from the past. Linguistics has long established that any child born into this world can learn any language natively. -
Second Language Pronunciation Assessment
Second Language Pronunciation Assessment SECOND LANGUAGE ACQUISITION Series Editors: Professor David Singleton, University of Pannonia, Hungary and Fellow Emeritus, Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland and Dr Simone E. Pfenninger, University of Salzburg, Austria This series brings together titles dealing with a variety of aspects of language acquisition and processing in situations where a language or languages other than the native language is involved. Second language is thus interpreted in its broadest possible sense. The volumes included in the series all offer in their different ways, on the one hand, exposition and discussion of empirical findings and, on the other, some degree of theoretical reflection. In this latter connection, no particular theoretical stance is privileged in the series; nor is any relevant perspective – sociolinguistic, psycholinguistic, neurolinguistic, etc. – deemed out of place. The intended readership of the series includes final-year undergraduates working on second language acquisition projects, postgraduate students involved in second language acquisition research, and researchers, teachers and policy-makers in general whose interests include a second language acquisition component. Full details of all the books in this series and of all our other publications can be found on http://www.multilingual-matters.com, or by writing to Multilingual Matters, St Nicholas House, 31–34 High Street, Bristol BS1 2AW, UK. SECOND LANGUAGE ACQUISITION: 107 Second Language Pronunciation Assessment Interdisciplinary Perspectives Edited by Talia Isaacs and Pavel Trofi movich MULTILINGUAL MATTERS Bristol • Blue Ridge Summit In Memory of Alan Davies and Danielle Guénette DOI 10.21832/ISAACS6848 Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data A catalog record for this book is available from the Library of Congress. -
Koalas, Kiwis and Kangaroos
http://lexikos.journals.ac.za Koalas, Kiwis and Kangaroos: The Challenges of Creating an Online Australian Cultural Dictionary for Learners of English as an Additional Language Julia Miller, School of Education, The University of Adelaide, Australia ([email protected]) Deny A. Kwary, Department of English Literature, Airlangga University, Indonesia ([email protected]) and Ardian W. Setiawan, The State Polytechnic Manufacture Bangka Belitung, Sungai Liat, Indonesia ([email protected]) Abstract: This article reports on an online cultural dictionary for learners of English as an Addi- tional Language (EAL) in Australia. Potential users studying English for academic purposes in an Australian university pre-entry program informed each stage of the dictionary's creation. Consid- eration was given to the need for such a dictionary; terms to be included; information necessary for each entry (including audio and visual material); use of a limited defining vocabulary; example sentences; notes on each term's usage; and evaluation of user feedback once the dictionary had been launched online. Survey data indicate that users particularly value the dictionary's ease of use, example sentences, and specifically Australian content (including pronunciation given in an Australian accent). It is suggested that more entries be added, and that cultural dictionaries be created for other varieties of English, as well as for other languages. Keywords: AUSTRALIAN, CULTURE, DICTIONARY, ENGLISH AS AN ADDITIONAL LANGUAGE, LEARNER'S DICTIONARY, ONLINE Opsomming: Koalas, kiwi's en kangaroes: Die uitdagings in die skep van 'n aanlyn Australiese kulturele woordeboek vir aanleerders van Engels as 'n addisionele taal. In hierdie artikel word verslag gedoen oor 'n aanlyn kulturele woordeboek vir aanleerders van Engels as 'n Addisionele Taal (EAT) in Australië.