Language proficiency policies act as critical gatekeepers for multilingual international students (MIS) who intend to pursue an education at English-medium universities. The current study revisits the question of the predictive validity of a standardized English proficiency exam--International English Language Testing System (IELTS)--in comparison…

Drawing on the framework of invariant measurement from Rasch measurement theory, the purpose of this study is to psychometrically evaluate the 20 language and teaching skill domains of the International Teaching Assistant (ITA) Test using the many-facet Rasch model and to empirically explore performance differences between females and males in…

International English Language Testing System (IELTS) scores have been widely used as the language entry requirements for international students in many English-medium universities. However, research on the predictive validity of IELTS on subsequent academic performance has been inconclusive. Additionally, despite the proliferation of IELTS…

Many overseas students in Higher Education in the UK struggle to understand the compulsory texts for their course, and obtain lower scores for their modules than their monolingual peers. While the existence of this achievement gap is well established in the literature, little is known about the ways in which overseas students in HE with limited…

The present article gives an overview of several studies on the predictive validity of the C-test. In the first part of the article, we discuss the construct validity of this test format. Only if the underlying construct of this test is understood, can a justification for high predictive validity be made. In the second part, we discuss several…

In this study, we used Conceptual Metaphor Theory (henceforth CMT) for the benefit of English for Academic Purposes' teaching and learning. CMT underpins how in metaphorical expressions, one concept is understood in terms of another. We argue that CMT can help students understand and master argumentation skills and essay structure, although there…

Although most international students arrive with required language qualifications, many struggle with the linguistic demands of their programmes. This study explored whether the test-preparation industry undermines the qualifications with which students arrive. English proficiency of 153 Chinese student in the UK was tested on the Duolingo English…

This research study aims at replacing monoglossic approaches with a stego-translanguaging pedagogy (i.e., the indirect use of the mother tongue to enhance the target language perception and acquisition). To solve the problematic constant decline in the learners' reading and writing IELTS scores in Port Said Language Center and to check the…

The number of internationally mobile students pursuing higher education increases each year, with 8 million students expected to study abroad globally by 2025 (Farrugia, 2014). Many English-dominant universities require international applicants to provide standardized test scores as evidence of English proficiency. Accordingly, millions of…

This mixed-methods study investigates writers' task representation and the factors affecting it in test-like and non-test-like conditions. Five advanced-level L2 writers wrote two argumentative essays each, one in test-like conditions and the other in non-test-like conditions where the participants were allowed to use all the time and online…

Courtroom interpreting requires a high level of accuracy due to the strategic use of language in such an institutional setting. It is generally agreed among interpreting scholars that quality interpreting in court should accurately relay both propositional content and illocutionary force of the original utterances. This high standard of accuracy…

The purpose of this study was to examine if the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) and the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) are related to academic success defined by final cumulative grade point average (GPA). The data sample, from three Midwestern universities, was comprised of international graduate students who…

Adopting a decompositional approach to items in the lexicon, this article reports on an empirical study investigating Chinese speakers' second language (L2) acquisition of English "wh-on-earth" questions (i.e. questions with phrases like what on earth or "who on earth"). An acceptability judgment task, a discourse-completion…

Possessing strong communication skills is essential in contributing to effective teaching. This paper investigates graduating student teachers' English language proficiency, as measured by IELTS tests scores, of graduating EL student teachers. The paper considers what teachers need to know about the English language given that English has been the…

In line with expanded conceptualizations of validity that encompass the interpretations and uses of test scores in particular policy contexts, this report presents results of a comparative analysis of institutional understandings and uses of 3 international English proficiency tests widely used for tertiary selection--the "TOEFL iBT"®…