Studies in Language Testing
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Load more
Recommended publications
-
Why Is Language Typology Possible?
Why is language typology possible? Martin Haspelmath 1 Languages are incomparable Each language has its own system. Each language has its own categories. Each language is a world of its own. 2 Or are all languages like Latin? nominative the book genitive of the book dative to the book accusative the book ablative from the book 3 Or are all languages like English? 4 How could languages be compared? If languages are so different: What could be possible tertia comparationis (= entities that are identical across comparanda and thus permit comparison)? 5 Three approaches • Indeed, language typology is impossible (non- aprioristic structuralism) • Typology is possible based on cross-linguistic categories (aprioristic generativism) • Typology is possible without cross-linguistic categories (non-aprioristic typology) 6 Non-aprioristic structuralism: Franz Boas (1858-1942) The categories chosen for description in the Handbook “depend entirely on the inner form of each language...” Boas, Franz. 1911. Introduction to The Handbook of American Indian Languages. 7 Non-aprioristic structuralism: Ferdinand de Saussure (1857-1913) “dans la langue il n’y a que des différences...” (In a language there are only differences) i.e. all categories are determined by the ways in which they differ from other categories, and each language has different ways of cutting up the sound space and the meaning space de Saussure, Ferdinand. 1915. Cours de linguistique générale. 8 Example: Datives across languages cf. Haspelmath, Martin. 2003. The geometry of grammatical meaning: semantic maps and cross-linguistic comparison 9 Example: Datives across languages 10 Example: Datives across languages 11 Non-aprioristic structuralism: Peter H. Matthews (University of Cambridge) Matthews 1997:199: "To ask whether a language 'has' some category is...to ask a fairly sophisticated question.. -
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. -
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 -
Research on Language and Learning: Implications for Language Teaching
Research on Language and Learning: Implications for Language Teaching EVA ALCÓN' Universitat Jaume 1 ABSTRACT Taking into account severa1 limitations of communicative language teaching (CLT), this paper calls for the need to consider research on language use and learning through communication as a basis for language teaching. It will be argued that a reflective approach towards language teaching and learning might be generated, which is explained in terms of the need to develop a context-sensitive pedagogy and in terms of teachers' and learners' development. KEYWORDS: Language use, teaching, leaming. INTRODUCTION The limitations of the concept of method becomes obvious in the literature on language teaching methodology. This is also referred to as the pendulum metaphor, that is to say, a method is proposed as a reform or rejection of a previously accepted method, it is applied in the language classroom, and eventually it is criticised or extended (for a review see Alcaraz et al., 1993; Alcón, 2002a; Howatt, 1984; Richards & Rodgers, 1986; Sánchez, 1993, 1997). Furthermore, * Addressfor correspondence: Eva Alcón Soler, Dpto. Filología Inglesa y Románica, Facultat Cikncies Humanes i Socials, Universitat Jaume 1, Avda. Sos Baynat, s/n, 12071 Castellón. Telf. 964-729605, Fax: 964-729261. E-mail: [email protected] O Servicio de Publicaciones. Universidad de Murcia. All rights reserved. IJES, VOL 4 ((1,2004, pp. 173-196 174 Eva Alcón as reported by Nassaji (2000), throughout the history of English language teaching methodology, there seems to be a dilema over focused analytic versus unfocused experiential language teaching. While the former considers learning as the development of formal rule-based knowledge, the latter conceptualises learning as the result of naturalistic use of language. -
Foreign Language Teaching and Learning Aleidine Kramer Moeller University of Nebraska–Lincoln, [email protected]
University of Nebraska - Lincoln DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln Faculty Publications: Department of Teaching, Department of Teaching, Learning and Teacher Learning and Teacher Education Education 2015 Foreign Language Teaching and Learning Aleidine Kramer Moeller University of Nebraska–Lincoln, [email protected] Theresa Catalano University of Nebraska-Lincoln, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/teachlearnfacpub Part of the Bilingual, Multilingual, and Multicultural Education Commons, Educational Methods Commons, International and Comparative Education Commons, and the Teacher Education and Professional Development Commons Moeller, Aleidine Kramer and Catalano, Theresa, "Foreign Language Teaching and Learning" (2015). Faculty Publications: Department of Teaching, Learning and Teacher Education. 196. http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/teachlearnfacpub/196 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Department of Teaching, Learning and Teacher Education at DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln. It has been accepted for inclusion in Faculty Publications: Department of Teaching, Learning and Teacher Education by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln. Published in J.D. Wright (ed.), International Encyclopedia for Social and Behavioral Sciences 2nd Edition. Vol 9 (Oxford: Pergamon Press, 2015), pp. 327-332. doi: 10.1016/B978-0-08-097086-8.92082-8 Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. Used by permission. digitalcommons.unl.edu Foreign Language Teaching and Learning Aleidine J. Moeller and Theresa Catalano 1. Department of Teaching, Learning and Teacher Education, University of Nebraska–Lincoln, USA Abstract Foreign language teaching and learning have changed from teacher-centered to learner/learning-centered environments. Relying on language theories, research findings, and experiences, educators developed teaching strategies and learn- ing environments that engaged learners in interactive communicative language tasks. -
Contributors
Contributors Editors Xuesong (Andy) Gao is an associate professor in the School of Education, the University of New South Wales (Australia). His current research and teaching interests are in the areas of learner autonomy, sociolinguistics, vocabulary studies, language learning narratives and language teacher education. His major publications appear in journals including Applied Linguistics, Educational Studies, English Language Teaching Journal, Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, Language Teaching Research, Research Papers in Education, Studies in Higher Education, System, Teaching and Teacher Education, TESOL Quarterly and World Englishes. In addition, he has published one research mono- graph (Strategic Language Learning) and co-edited a volume on identity, motivation and autonomy with Multilingual Matters. He is a co-editor for the System journal and serves on the editorial and advisory boards for journals including The Asia Pacific Education Researcher, Journal of Language, Identity and Education and Teacher Development. Hayriye Kayi-Aydar is an assistant professor of English applied linguistics at the University of Arizona. Her research works with discourse, narra- tive and English as a second language (ESL) pedagogy, at the intersections of the poststructural second language acquisition (SLA) approaches and interactional sociolinguistics. Her specific research interests are agency, identity and positioning in classroom talk and teacher/learner narratives. Her most recent work investigates how language teachers from different ethnic and racial backgrounds construct professional identities and how they position themselves in relation to others in contexts that include English language learners. Her work on identity and agency has appeared in various peer-reviewed journals, such as TESOL Quarterly, Teaching and Teacher Education, ELT Journal, Critical Inquiry in Language Stud- ies, Journal of Language, Identity, and Education, Journal of Latinos and Education, System and Classroom Discourse. -
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. -
Dictionary Writing System
Dictionary Writing System (DWS) + Corpus Query Package (CQP): The Case of TshwaneLex Gilles-Maurice de Schryver, Department of African Languages and Cul- tures, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium; Xhosa Department, University of the Western Cape, Bellville, Republic of South Africa; and TshwaneDJe HLT, Pretoria, Republic of South Africa ([email protected]), and Guy De Pauw, CNTS — Language Technology Group, University of Antwerp, Belgium; and School of Computing and Informatics, University of Nairobi, Kenya ([email protected]) Abstract: In this article the integrated corpus query functionality of the dictionary compilation software TshwaneLex is analysed. Attention is given to the handling of both raw corpus data and annotated corpus data. With regard to the latter it is shown how, with a minimum of human effort, machine learning techniques can be employed to obtain part-of-speech tagged corpora that can be used for lexicographic purposes. All points are illustrated with data drawn from English and Northern Sotho. The tools and techniques themselves, however, are language-independent, and as such the encouraging outcomes of this study are far-reaching. Keywords: LEXICOGRAPHY, DICTIONARY, SOFTWARE, DICTIONARY WRITING SYS- TEM (DWS), CORPUS QUERY PACKAGE (CQP), TSHWANELEX, CORPUS, CORPUS ANNO- TATION, PART-OF-SPEECH TAGGER (POS-TAGGER), MACHINE LEARNING, NORTHERN SOTHO (SESOTHO SA LEBOA) Samenvatting: Woordenboekaanmaaksysteem + corpusanalysepakket: een studie van TshwaneLex. In dit artikel wordt het geïntegreerde corpusanalysepakket van het woordenboekaanmaaksysteem TshwaneLex geanalyseerd. Aandacht gaat zowel naar het verwer- ken van onbewerkte corpusdata als naar geannoteerde corpusdata. Wat het laatste betreft wordt aangetoond hoe, met een minimum aan intellectuele arbeid, automatische leertechnieken met suc- ces kunnen worden ingezet om corpora voor lexicografische doeleinden aan te maken waarin de woordklassen expliciet worden vermeld. -
Macro-Sociolinguistics Page 1 MACRO SOCIOLINGUISTICS
MACRO SOCIOLINGUISTICS: INSIGHT LANGUAGE Rohib Adrianto Sangia Abstract: Language can be studied internally and externally. As externally, Sociolinguistics as the branch of linguistics looked or put position in relation to language speakers in the community, because in human society is no longer as individuals, will remain as a social community. Sociolinguistics concerns with two aspects of civilization, language and society, there are appropriate terms which are micro and macro in sociolinguistics. The main differences of them are micro-sociolinguistics or sociolinguistics –in narrow sense- is the study of language in relation to society, while macro-sociolinguistics or the sociology of language is the study of society in relation to language. Macro-sociolinguistics focuses such as social factors, exactly the interaction between language and dialect, the study of the decline and stabilization of minority languages, bilingualism developmental stability in a particular group. Keywords: Language, Sociolinguistics, Macro Sociolinguistics, Bilingualism. INTRODUCTION Language is a communication tool that people use to interact with each other. By mastering the language of humans can know the content of the world through science and new knowledge and had never imagined before. As a means of communication and interaction that is only possessed by humans, language can be studied internally and externally (Thomason and Kaufman, 1988: 22). Internally means the study made against internal elements such as language course, the structure of phonological, morphological, and syntactical alone. While externally meaningful study was conducted to things or factors outside the language, but in the use of language itself, speech community or the environment. Language may refer to the specific capacity in humans to obtain and use a complex system of communication, or to a specific agency of a complex communication system.