Testing Academic Language Proficiency

This book focuses on the development of the process of teaching and assessing foreign language competence for study purposes in a pluricultural and plurilingual context. It addresses not only the individual who is learning the language for academic purposes (LAP), but also other stakeholders, like teachers, schools and universities, and external boards, such as examination boards for language testing. The book highlights an ongoing research project at the University of Parma, Italy, aimed at developing teaching programs and evaluative tools for language for academic purposes. Starting from a reflection upon the nature of language for study purposes stemming from the tradition of English for Academic Purposes, it describes the model of an LAP test implemented in Italian secondary schools and universities, and shows the findings concerning the performance in the test of both students whose mother tongue is Indo-European and those who speak non-Indo-European languages.

This book focuses on the development of the process of teaching and assessing foreign language competence for study purposes in a pluricultural and plurilingual context. It addresses not only the individual who is learning the language for academic purposes (LAP), but also other stakeholders, like teachers, schools and universities, and external boards, such as examination boards for language testing. The book highlights an ongoing research project at the University of Parma, Italy, aimed at developing teaching programs and evaluative tools for language for academic purposes. Starting from a reflection upon the nature of language for study purposes stemming from the tradition of English for Academic Purposes, it describes the model of an LAP test implemented in Italian secondary schools and universities, and shows the findings concerning the performance in the test of both students whose mother tongue is Indo-European and those who speak non-Indo-European languages.

As the United States continues to be a nation of immigrants and their children, the nation's school systems face increased enrollments of students whose primary language is not English. With the 2001 reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) in the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), the allocation of federal funds for programs to assist these students to be proficient in English became formula-based: 80 percent on the basis of the population of children with limited English proficiency1 and 20 percent on the basis of the population of recently immigrated children and youth. Title III of NCLB directs the U.S. Department of Education to allocate funds on the basis of the more accurate of two allowable data sources: the number of students reported to the federal government by each state education agency or data from the American Community Survey (ACS). The department determined that the ACS estimates are more accurate, and since 2005, those data have been basis for the federal distribution of Title III funds. Subsequently, analyses of the two data sources have raised concerns about that decision, especially because the two allowable data sources would allocate quite different amounts to the states. In addition, while shortcomings were noted in the data provided by the states, the ACS estimates were shown to fluctuate between years, causing concern among the states about the unpredictability and unevenness of program funding. In this context, the U.S. Department of Education commissioned the National Research Council to address the accuracy of the estimates from the two data sources and the factors that influence the estimates. The resulting book also considers means of increasing the accuracy of the data sources or alternative data sources that could be used for allocation purposes.

Language Testing Reconsidered provides a critical update on major issues that have engaged the field of language testing since its inception. Anyone who is working in, studying or teaching language testing should have a copy of this book. The information, discussions, and reflections offered within the volume address major developments within the field over the past decades, enlivened by current "takes" on these issues. The real value of this collection, however, lies in its consideration of the past as a means of defining the future agenda of language testing.

This book addresses the need for tests that can diagnose the strengths and weaknesses in learners' developing foreign language proficiency. It presents the rationale for, and research surrounding, the development of DIALANG, a suite of internet-delivered diagnostic foreign language tests funded by the European Commission. The word 'diagnosis' is common in discussions in language education and applied linguistics, but very few truly diagnostic tests exist. However, the diagnosis of foreign language proficiency is central to helping learners make progress. This volume explores the nature of diagnostic testing, emphasizing the need for a better understanding of the nature of appropriate diagnosis. The book starts with a debate about how diagnostic testing might most appropriately be developed. Charles Alderson argues that the field has neglected to construct diagnostic tests, partly because other forms of testing have dominated the field. Alderson examines how proficiency has been diagnosed in the key areas of language: reading, listening, writing, grammar and vocabulary. The value of self-assessment is discussed and exemplified as a key component in developing learners', and teachers', awareness of the complexity of language learning. The book ends with a consideration of and recommendations for future developments in the diagnosis of foreign language proficiency.

Louis A. Arena University of Delaware Newark, DE This monograph contains select, revised, and invited papers which deal with the topic, Language Proficiency: Defining, Teaching, and Testing. This topic was the theme of the eighth annual symposium held at the University of Delaware. The papers contained in this volume are invited papers or were originally scheduled for presentation and/or presented at the eighth annual Delaware Symposium on Language Studies. The papers combine research con ducted in the areas of teaching, testing, and defining second language pro ficiency within the profession of applied linguistics. They are divided into three principal sections: "Applied Linguistics and Language Pro ficiency", "Language Proficiency in Reading and Writing", and "Testing for Language Proficiency". In Part I, Paul Angelis' "Applied Linguistics: Realities and Projections re the Teaching Profession'; sketches a historical portrait of Applied Linguistics, its definition, presence, and role in the profession that teaches second language proficiency. Angelis concludes that Applied Linguistics is still a young discipline in terms of substance, organization, and strategy, and that these three components will determine the prospects for the future of applied linguistics re the teaching profession. The next six papers address the issue of second language proficiency from various points of view. Kensaku Yoshida's essay "Knowing vs Believing vs Feeling: Studies on Japanese Bilinguals" concludes that some Japanese bilinguals are actually not necessarily bilingual because they very often face problems requiring other kinds of proficiency, i. e.

The volume offers an explanatory account of the progress of academic language proficiency testing in the UK (and later Australia), from the British Council's English Proficiency Test Battery (EPTB), through the revolutionary English Language Testing Service (ELTS) to the present solution of IELTS. The three stages of academic language testing in the UK over the last 50 years move from grammar through real life to features of language use. At the same time, comparison of predictive validities suggests that all three measures account for very similar shares of the variance (about 10%) and that therefore the choice of an academic language proficiency test is determined only in part by predictive validity: other factors such as test delivery, test renewal in response to fashion, research and impact on stakeholders, and assessment of all four language skills are also important.

This book focuses on strategies and procedures for assessing the academic language ability of students entering an English-medium university, so that those with significant needs can have access to opportunities to enhance their language skills.