Language assessment
Encyclopedia
Language assessment or language testing is a field of study under the umbrella of applied linguistics
. Its main focus is the assessment of first
, second
or other language in the school, college, or university context; assessment of language use in the workplace; and assessment of language in the immigration, citizenship, and asylum
contexts. The assessment may include listening, speaking, reading, writing or cultural understanding. Equal weightage may be placed on knowledge (understanding how the language works theoretically) and proficiency
(ability to use the language practically), or greater weightage may be given to one aspect or the other.
and David Harris. The earliest large scale assessment in the US was the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL)
that was launched in 1961 by Educational Testing Service, ETS, Princeton, New Jersey. This test was designed to assess the English language ability of students applying for admission to US and Canadian colleges and universities. This test, which is used widely around the world, is still in use although it is now only available in the internet-based format (now called the TOEFL iBT).
Many tests from other companies, universities and agencies compete for this market: the Pearson Language Test
's Pearson Test of English
(PTE), the University of Michigan
's Michigan English Language Assessment Battery (MELAB) and the University of Cambridge
, the British Council and the Australian IDP's International English Language Testing System (IELTS). In the US, non-profit and other organizations such as the Center for Applied Linguistics
, Washington, D.C. and Second Language Testing, Inc. have developed language tests that are used by many public and private agencies. Many universities too, like the University of California, Los Angeles, Teachers College, Columbia University, and the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign
, have developed English (and other) language tests to assess the abilities of their students and teaching assistants. These language assessments are generally known as proficiency or achievement assessments. Other modern English language tests developed include The General English Proficiency Test (GEPT) in Taiwan, the College English Test in China, and the STEP Eiken in Japan. New technology has also made a presence in the field: Versant's English and Dutch assessments use phone technology to record the speaking and automated scoring of their speaking tests, and the ETS is currently experimenting with automated scoring of their writing tests.
Educational Testing Service, Princeton, New Jersey, the home of the TOEFL, offers an annual outstanding Doctoral Dissertation Award in Second or Foreign Language and the University of Cambridge
, UK, also offers an annual outstanding Masters Degree Award in second language testing. In Europe, there are two organizations: the Association of Language Testers of Europe (ALTE) and the European Association for Language Testing and Assessment (EALTA). All of these associations have developed Codes of Ethics and Practice that all language assessment professionals are expected to adhere to.
/Taylor & Francis
) currently edited by Antony John Kunnan and Language Testing (published by Sage Publications
) currently edited by Glenn Fulcher and Cathie Elder that publishes major findings from researchers. Both these journals are indexed in Thompson's SSCI list. Other journals that publish articles from the field include Applied Linguistics, Language Learning, TESOL Quarterly, Assessing Writing, and System
. Some of these journals have special issue volumes on Ethics in language assessment, structural equation modeling, language assessment in Asia, Classroom assessment, etc. and commentaries, brief reports, and book and test reviews.
The field has exploded in the last twenty years in terms of textbooks and research publications. The most popular books include: Lyle Bachman's Fundamental considerations in language testing, and Statistical Analyses for Language Assessment, Lyle Bachman and Adrian Palmer's Language Testing in Practice and Language Assessment in Practice, Charles Alderson's Assessing Reading, John Read's Assessing Vocabulary, James Purpura's Assessing Grammar, Gary Buck's Assessing Listening, Sara Weigle's Assessing Writing, and edited volumes: Alister Cumming's Valdiation in Language Testing, Antony John Kunnan's Validation in Language Assessment, and Fairness in Language Assessment.
The most popular book series are Michael Milanovic, Cyril Weir, and Lynda Taylor's Studies in Language Testing series, and Lyle Bachman and Charles Alderson's Cambridge Language Assessment Series.
, English for Speakers of Other Languages, English as a second or foreign language, or educational linguistics. These programs are known as MA or PhD programs in Applied Linguistics, Educational Linguistics, TESOL
, TEFL, or TESL. The focus of most courses is on test development, psychometric qualities of tests, validity
, reliability
and fairness of tests, and classical true score measurement theory. Additional courses focus on item response theory
, factor analysis
, structural equation modeling
, G theory
, latent growth modeling
, qualitative analysis of test performance data such as conversation and discourse analysis
, and politics and language policy issues.
Universities that have regular courses and progams that focus on language assessment at the Ph.D. level include UCLA, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, University of Hawai'i, Manoa, Teachers College, Columbia University, Penn State University, Georgia State University, Northern Arizona University, McGill University, University of Toronto, University of Lancaster, University of Bristol, University of Cambridge, and University of Bedfordshire; at the MA level include California State Universities at Fullerton, Los Angeles, Long Beach, San Jose, and San Francisco.
Applied linguistics
Applied linguistics is an interdisciplinary field of study that identifies, investigates, and offers solutions to language-related real-life problems...
. Its main focus is the assessment of first
First language
A first language is the language a person has learned from birth or within the critical period, or that a person speaks the best and so is often the basis for sociolinguistic identity...
, second
Second language
A second language or L2 is any language learned after the first language or mother tongue. Some languages, often called auxiliary languages, are used primarily as second languages or lingua francas ....
or other language in the school, college, or university context; assessment of language use in the workplace; and assessment of language in the immigration, citizenship, and asylum
Right of asylum
Right of asylum is an ancient juridical notion, under which a person persecuted for political opinions or religious beliefs in his or her own country may be protected by another sovereign authority, a foreign country, or church sanctuaries...
contexts. The assessment may include listening, speaking, reading, writing or cultural understanding. Equal weightage may be placed on knowledge (understanding how the language works theoretically) and proficiency
Language proficiency
Language proficiency or linguistic proficiency is the ability of an individual to speak or perform in an acquired language. As theories vary among pedagogues as to what constitutes proficiency, there is little consistency as to how different organizations classify it...
(ability to use the language practically), or greater weightage may be given to one aspect or the other.
History
The earliest works in language assessment in the US date back to the 1950s to the pioneering studies and test created by Robert LadoRobert Lado
Dr. Robert Lado was an American expert on modern linguistics. His parents were Spanish immigrants who relocated to Spain before he had a chance to learn English. He returned to the United States at the age of 21, and began to learn English as an adult...
and David Harris. The earliest large scale assessment in the US was the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL)
TOEFL
The Test of English as a Foreign Language, or TOEFL , evaluates the ability of an individual to use and understand English in an academic setting....
that was launched in 1961 by Educational Testing Service, ETS, Princeton, New Jersey. This test was designed to assess the English language ability of students applying for admission to US and Canadian colleges and universities. This test, which is used widely around the world, is still in use although it is now only available in the internet-based format (now called the TOEFL iBT).
Many tests from other companies, universities and agencies compete for this market: the Pearson Language Test
Pearson Language Tests
Pearson Language Tests is a unit of the Pearson PLC group, dedicated to assessing and validating the English language usage of non-native English speakers...
's Pearson Test of English
Pearson Test of English Academic
The Pearson Test of English Academic is an English language test designed to assess the readiness of non-native English speakers to participate in a university-level English language instruction program...
(PTE), the University of Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
's Michigan English Language Assessment Battery (MELAB) and the University of Cambridge
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
, the British Council and the Australian IDP's International English Language Testing System (IELTS). In the US, non-profit and other organizations such as the Center for Applied Linguistics
Center for Applied Linguistics
The Center for Applied Linguistics is a private, nonprofit organization that describes its mission as “working to improve communication through better understanding of language and culture”...
, Washington, D.C. and Second Language Testing, Inc. have developed language tests that are used by many public and private agencies. Many universities too, like the University of California, Los Angeles, Teachers College, Columbia University, and the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
The University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign is a large public research-intensive university in the state of Illinois, United States. It is the flagship campus of the University of Illinois system...
, have developed English (and other) language tests to assess the abilities of their students and teaching assistants. These language assessments are generally known as proficiency or achievement assessments. Other modern English language tests developed include The General English Proficiency Test (GEPT) in Taiwan, the College English Test in China, and the STEP Eiken in Japan. New technology has also made a presence in the field: Versant's English and Dutch assessments use phone technology to record the speaking and automated scoring of their speaking tests, and the ETS is currently experimenting with automated scoring of their writing tests.
Organizations
The International Language Testing Association (ILTA) is one of the many organizations that organizes conferences, workshops, and a public forum for the discussion of important matters. ILTA's major annual conference is the Language Testing Research Colloquium. In 2008, the conference will be in Hangzhou, China, and in 2009 in Denver, Colorado. ILTA's Lifetime Achievement Award winners include: Alan Davies (UK), Lyle Bachman (USA), Bernard Spolsky (Israel), John Clark (USA), Charles Alderson (UK) and Elana Shohamy (Israel). Other well-known scholars who have not yet won the award include Kenji Ohtomo (Japan), Gui Sihuan (China), Merrill Swain (Canada), Carol Chapelle (USA), Tim McNamara (Australia), Dan Douglas (USA), Liz Hamp-Lyons (UK), and John Oller (USA).Educational Testing Service, Princeton, New Jersey, the home of the TOEFL, offers an annual outstanding Doctoral Dissertation Award in Second or Foreign Language and the University of Cambridge
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
, UK, also offers an annual outstanding Masters Degree Award in second language testing. In Europe, there are two organizations: the Association of Language Testers of Europe (ALTE) and the European Association for Language Testing and Assessment (EALTA). All of these associations have developed Codes of Ethics and Practice that all language assessment professionals are expected to adhere to.
Annual conferences
There are many annual conferences on general or specific topics. Among the most important conferences is ILTA's official conference: the Language Testing Research Colloquium (LTRC), which has been held every year since 1978. In the last few years, it has been held in different parts of the world: Temecula, California, USA (2004); Ottawa, Canada (2005); Melbourne, Australia (2006); Barcelona, Spain (2007); Hangzhou, China (2008), and Denver, Colorado (2009), Cambridge (2010) and Ann Arbor, Michigan (2011). ALTE's official conferences too are held in different cities in Europe: Barcelona, Spain (2002); Berlin, Germany (2005); Cambridge, UK (2008) with regional conferences in Perugia, Prague, Budapest, Sofia, and Lisbon. Similarly, there are regional meetings in China, Japan, Korea, and Taiwan.Publications
There are two premier journals in the field: Language Assessment Quarterly (published by RoutledgeRoutledge
Routledge is a British publishing house which has operated under a succession of company names and latterly as an academic imprint. Its origins may be traced back to the 19th-century London bookseller George Routledge...
/Taylor & Francis
Taylor & Francis
Taylor & Francis Group is an international company originating in the United Kingdom which publishes books and academic journals. It is a division of Informa plc, a United Kingdom-based publisher and conference company.- Overview :...
) currently edited by Antony John Kunnan and Language Testing (published by Sage Publications
SAGE Publications
SAGE is an independent academic publisher of books, journals, and electronic products in the humanities and social sciences and the scientific, technical, and medical fields. SAGE was founded in 1965 by George McCune and Sara Miller McCune. The company is headquartered in Thousand Oaks, California,...
) currently edited by Glenn Fulcher and Cathie Elder that publishes major findings from researchers. Both these journals are indexed in Thompson's SSCI list. Other journals that publish articles from the field include Applied Linguistics, Language Learning, TESOL Quarterly, Assessing Writing, and System
System (journal)
System is a peer-reviewed academic journal covering the applications of educational technology and applied linguistics to problems of foreign language teaching and learning. It was established in 1973 and is published quarterly by Elsevier....
. Some of these journals have special issue volumes on Ethics in language assessment, structural equation modeling, language assessment in Asia, Classroom assessment, etc. and commentaries, brief reports, and book and test reviews.
The field has exploded in the last twenty years in terms of textbooks and research publications. The most popular books include: Lyle Bachman's Fundamental considerations in language testing, and Statistical Analyses for Language Assessment, Lyle Bachman and Adrian Palmer's Language Testing in Practice and Language Assessment in Practice, Charles Alderson's Assessing Reading, John Read's Assessing Vocabulary, James Purpura's Assessing Grammar, Gary Buck's Assessing Listening, Sara Weigle's Assessing Writing, and edited volumes: Alister Cumming's Valdiation in Language Testing, Antony John Kunnan's Validation in Language Assessment, and Fairness in Language Assessment.
The most popular book series are Michael Milanovic, Cyril Weir, and Lynda Taylor's Studies in Language Testing series, and Lyle Bachman and Charles Alderson's Cambridge Language Assessment Series.
Courses
Language assessment or language testing courses are taught as required or elective courses in many graduate and doctoral programs, particularly in the subjects of applied linguisticsApplied linguistics
Applied linguistics is an interdisciplinary field of study that identifies, investigates, and offers solutions to language-related real-life problems...
, English for Speakers of Other Languages, English as a second or foreign language, or educational linguistics. These programs are known as MA or PhD programs in Applied Linguistics, Educational Linguistics, TESOL
TESOL
TESOL may refer to:* The acronym "Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages", used in English as a Foreign or Second Language * TESOL Inc., a professional organization based in the United States for people working in this field...
, TEFL, or TESL. The focus of most courses is on test development, psychometric qualities of tests, validity
Validity
In logic, argument is valid if and only if its conclusion is entailed by its premises, a formula is valid if and only if it is true under every interpretation, and an argument form is valid if and only if every argument of that logical form is valid....
, reliability
Reliability
In general, reliability is the ability of a person or system to perform and maintain its functions in routine circumstances, as well as hostile or unexpected circumstances.Reliability may refer to:...
and fairness of tests, and classical true score measurement theory. Additional courses focus on item response theory
Item response theory
In psychometrics, item response theory also known as latent trait theory, strong true score theory, or modern mental test theory, is a paradigm for the design, analysis, and scoring of tests, questionnaires, and similar instruments measuring abilities, attitudes, or other variables. It is based...
, factor analysis
Factor analysis
Factor analysis is a statistical method used to describe variability among observed, correlated variables in terms of a potentially lower number of unobserved, uncorrelated variables called factors. In other words, it is possible, for example, that variations in three or four observed variables...
, structural equation modeling
Structural equation modeling
Structural equation modeling is a statistical technique for testing and estimating causal relations using a combination of statistical data and qualitative causal assumptions...
, G theory
G theory
G theory may refer to:* g factor in psychology* Generalizability theory in the measurement theory...
, latent growth modeling
Latent growth modeling
Latent growth modeling is a statistical technique used in the structural equation modeling framework to estimate growth trajectory. It is a longitudinal analysis technique to estimate growth over a period of time. It is widely used in the field of behavioral science, education and social science. ...
, qualitative analysis of test performance data such as conversation and discourse analysis
Discourse analysis
Discourse analysis , or discourse studies, is a general term for a number of approaches to analyzing written, spoken, signed language use or any significant semiotic event....
, and politics and language policy issues.
Universities that have regular courses and progams that focus on language assessment at the Ph.D. level include UCLA, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, University of Hawai'i, Manoa, Teachers College, Columbia University, Penn State University, Georgia State University, Northern Arizona University, McGill University, University of Toronto, University of Lancaster, University of Bristol, University of Cambridge, and University of Bedfordshire; at the MA level include California State Universities at Fullerton, Los Angeles, Long Beach, San Jose, and San Francisco.