This article explores the implementation of an online high-stakes language proficiency test during the COVID-19 pandemic through a narrative inquiry of a test-designer, Eda (pseudonym). Situated in the context of Turkish higher education, this study examines Eda's narrative accounts with regard to the development of test adaptation and…

The COVID-19 pandemic led to rapid innovation among language assessment developers who had to adapt their testing processes to address various restrictions from governments and institutions. This overview introduces some of the challenges and opportunities test developers grappled with during this period as well as introduces the six commentaries…

In 2016, the Office of the Higher Education Commission issued a directive requiring all higher education institutions in Thailand to have their students take a standardized English proficiency test. According to the directive, the test's results had to align with the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR). In response to this…

This paper will deal, firstly, with the South African context, that cries out for attention to responsible language assessment. The renewed interest in language testing in South Africa is well illustrated in assessments of language ability for educational purposes generally, and more specifically in the assessment of academic literacy. Secondly,…

Despite the increasing discussions on quality and professionalism in the field of language assessment, limited empirical research is currently available on whether language testing practice conforms to the best practice model prescribed in professional standards. Situated in the context of Chinese higher education, this study examined how English…

The underlying methodological approach of the CEFR is defined as being "action-oriented" and task-based (Council of Europe. 2001. "Common European Framework of Reference for Languages: Learning, teaching, assessment." Cambridge University Press: 9), although it explicitly leaves room for a variety of approaches, since the CEFR…

In recent decades, with an increasing application of computer technology to the delivery of oral language proficiency assessment, there have been renewed debates over the appropriateness of two different testing modes, namely, (a) face-to-face, or direct, testing, and (b) person-to-machine, or semi-direct, testing. Previous research conducted in…

Investigates potential presence of a topic effect for the Canadian Academic English Language (CAEL) Assessment using the mechanism of choice. Sought to determine whether test-takers given a choice of topic perform significantly differently from test-takers not given a choice. English-as-a-Second-Language university applicants were assigned one of…

Discusses the purpose of a French-as-a-Second-Language (FSL) placement test designed for students enrolling in FSL at the postsecondary level. The test measures proficiency level in French and consists of three parts: comprehension of a short paragraph, selection of the appropriate statement in a situation, and a fill-in-the-gap part. (JL)

A study investigated the relationship between two factors, native language and language learning experience, on university students' performance on the English Placement Test used at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Subjects were 203 students who took the test in August 1994 and completed a questionnaire about their learning…

Explores the role of task and task-based assessment in a collegiate foreign language department that shifted its entire undergraduate curriculum from a form-based normative approach to a language-use and language-meaning orientation for instruction. Examines how demands for specificity that characterize task-based assessment contributed…

In part one of a two-part essay, a broad view of foreign language testing and a comprehensive philosophy for meaningful pragmatic tests are advocated. (10 references) (JL)

Describes a first-year German course at Portland State University whose dominant feature is regular, frequent individual oral testing using the Interagency Language Roundtable model of the oral interview. Each student was individually tested every two weeks. Describes the testing procedure, giving sample test scripts and the transcript of an…

Describes the Indiana University French Communicative Ability Test, developed to test communicative ability at a relatively low level (beginning university French), and in a large, multi-section program. (AM)

Investigated the nature of second-language proficiency with respect to its divisibility and components. The correlated-traits and second-order hypotheses were evaluated using 354 students learning English-as-a-Second-Language, a wide range of language proficiency measures, and comfirmatory data-analytic techniques. (36 references) (Author/OD)