This study examines the English section of the university entrance examination in Myanmar in terms of validity, reliability, practicality, and washback. The study highlights the significance of the matriculation examination, evaluates individual test items, and presents the opinions of teachers and students about the test. The results reveal that…

Developing and writing assessment items that measure teachers' knowledge is an intricate and complex undertaking. In this paper, we begin with an overview of what is known about measuring teacher knowledge. We then highlight the challenges inherent in creating assessment items that focus specifically on measuring teachers' specialised knowledge…

This study investigates the current situation of English textbooks used in Chinese senior high schools to explore whether the English textbook series provide nonnative accents of English for students, and if they do, to what extent and in what kinds of situations. In addition, this study also looks into the English tests in the National College…

Taking commercial English language tests is becoming common practice among young English learners in Japan. With a specific focus on the "Jido Eiken" test, this study examines English language test-taking activity by analyzing textual data retrieved from three data sources. "Jido Eiken" is found to represent a complex…

This study investigated the challenges Form III English language teachers face when implementing the revised integrated English language curriculum. A mixed-method descriptive design was used in Eldoret East SubCounty in Kenya. Data was collected through questionnaires, interviews and reflective conversations. Cluster, purposive and random…

Recently, there has been a change from traditional language testing approaches, with a focus on psychometric properties towards critical language testing (CLT) with its social practice nature. CLT assumes tests not as neutral devices but as instruments of power and control which are related to authorities' policy agendas to shape individuals' and…

This author explains why he believes that teacher education is under attack. The same forces that are seeking to dismantle teachers' unions and de-professionalize teaching have their sights set on university-based teacher education programs. After all, logic decrees that if teachers are to blame for educational inequality--as corporate education…

Academic misconduct by students in higher education is a fact and is a challenge to the integrity of higher education and its reputation. Furthermore such misconduct is counterproductive to the ethics component of higher education. The purpose of this research is to explore, investigate and compile the anecdotal accounts of academic misconduct…

Those who work in second- and foreign-language testing often find Koretz's concern for validity inferences under high-stakes (VIHS) conditions both welcome and familiar. While the focus of the article is more narrowly on the potential for two instructional responses to test-based accountability, "reallocation" and "coaching,"…

In July 2010, the Massachusetts Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE) voted to adopt Common Core's standards in English language arts (ELA) and mathematics in place of the state's own standards in these two subjects. The vote was based largely on recommendations by Commissioner of Education Mitchell Chester and then Secretary of…

We investigate the extent to which language versions (English, French and Arabic) of the same science test are comparable in terms of item difficulty and demands. We argue that language is an inextricable part of the scientific literacy construct, be it intended or not by the examiner. This argument has considerable implications on methodologies…

Objects that sit between intersecting social worlds, such as Language for Specific Purposes (LSP) tests, are "boundary objects"--dynamic, historically derived mechanisms which maintain coherence between worlds (Star & Griesemer, 1989). They emerge initially from sociopolitical mandates, such as the need to ensure a safe and efficient…

This article reviews recent studies on English language teaching (ELT) in South Korea, where a great deal of research has been produced in recent years in local journals. In this article we review 95 studies from a pool of some 1,200 published between 2009 and 2014 on English language teaching and learning, focusing on research within the public…

This study clarifies achievement trends that occurred under NCLB and explains why NCLB reporting practices made those trends so hard to see. It concludes by describing important contributions that new PARCC exams can make and warns of new reporting problems that threaten to squander those contributions before they see the light of day.

The tests we use to evaluate student achievement may well be sound measures of what students know, but they are faulty indicators at best of how well they have been taught. A remedy to this this situation of judging teachers by the performance of their students on high-stakes tests may be in hand already. We should look to the methods successfully…