Suggests that performance tests as currently represented in the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL)-Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI) may not adequately address the basic concerns brought about by the perceived shortcomings of academic second language programs. Supports this argument with a critical analysis of the ACTFL…

Discusses authenticity in language testing in relation to the language proficiency movement. Looks at both sociolinguistic and psychometric principles as they are concerned with authenticity and validity as well as the inferential distance that separates face validity from techical validities. Criticizes the belief that some test type possess…

Considers whether scores on cloze items are generally sensitive to amounts of context in excess of 10 words on either side of them and, if not, when they are sensitive to long-range constraints. Concludes that some are sensitive to constraints that reach beyond 50 words on either side of a blank. (SED)

Provides information and strategies for helping language teachers know how to prepare students for the new computerized version of the Test of English as a Foreign Language. Information focuses on changes in scoring and test format. (Author/VWL)

Describes an easy-to-administer test of productive vocabulary that requires subjects to produce a set of word association responses to a small set of stimulus words. Argues that such a test might tap the extent of nonnative speakers' productive vocabulary more effectively than other tests in current use. (Author/VWL)

This analysis evaluates the receptive tests of targeted lexical knowledge in the written medium, which are typically used in empirical research into lexical acquisition from reading foreign/second language texts. Apart from the types of second language cues or prompts, and the language of the responses, the main issues revolve around: (a) the…

Some educational contexts almost mandate the application of multiple-choice (MC) testing techniques, even if they are deplored by many practitioners in the field. In such contexts especially, research into how well these types of item perform and how their performance may be characterised is both appropriate and desirable. The focus of this paper…

A recently conducted survey has disclosed that during the past few years there has been a significant increase in the development of speaking tests. Examination of 100 speaking tests revealed many varieties and many considerations in preparing and using them. Among these are the purpose for its use, the background of the examinee, the criteria…

The reliability of scores from four forms of the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) was estimated using a hybrid item response theory model. It was found that there was very little difference between overall reliability when the testlet items were assumed to be independent and when their dependence was modeled. (Author/SLD)

Reports on an international test development project in which a revision team worked with experts in applied linguistics, and their varied opinions on language theory, test design and validation, and needs analyses, to identify the appropriate construct for the English Language Testing Service (ELTS) test. (52 references) (CB)

Testing issues and concerns that should receive renewed and increased professional attention are highlighted. These include curriculum concerns, developmental matters; generalizability, content and format considerations, contextualization issues, and technology concerns. (JL)

Recent articles in this journal (Foot 1999; Saville and Hargreaves 1999) have focused on the advantages and disadvantages of the paired format of the Cambridge Speaking Tests. This article aims to contribute to the debate by considering how the pairing of candidates may impact upon the language sample produced and could affect the assessment…

The purpose of this study is to investigate the effectiveness of response modes by item and feedback type in a web-based language learning program. The subjects of this study, 122 Korean tenth graders learning English as a foreign language, were placed into groups of four and were given a web-based language learning program consisting of two…

This article examines the effects of test format and task type on candidate output in direct and semidirect versions of the oral interaction subtest of the Australian Assessment of Communicative English Skills. Results are discussed in relation to the degree of interactiveness and other factors that appear to influence lexical density and to the…

Research on two approaches to assessment of second-language performance--second-language acquisition and language testing--is examined and compared with regard to systematic effects on language tests. Findings incidental to a test development project are then presented. It is concluded that a full account of performance testing requires a paradigm…