language testing 7

Chapter One General Idea of Language Testing: the Past, the Present, and the Future.1.1 the Four Approaches to Language Testing1. The essay-translation approach 写作-翻译法2. The structuralist-psychometric approach 结构主义/心理测量法3. The integrative approach 综合法4. The communicative approach 交际法The relationship between testing and teachingA large number of examinations in the past have encouraged a tendency to separate testing from teaching. Both testing and teaching are so closely interrelated that it is virtually impossible to work in either field without being constantly concerned with the other.Tests may be constructed primarily as devices to reinforce learning and to motivate the student or primarily as a means of assessing the student’s pe rformance in the language. In the former case, the test is geared to the teaching that has taken place, whereas in the latter case the teaching is often geared largely to the test.Standardized tests and public examinations, in fact, may exert such a considerable influence on the average teacher that they are often instrumental in determining the kind of teaching that takes place before the test.A language test which seeks to find out what candidates can do with language provides a focus for purposeful, everyday communication activities. Such a test will have a more useful effect on the learning of a particular language than a mechanical test of structure. Such a test will have a more useful effect on the learning of a particular language than a mechanical test of structure.In the past even good tests of grammar, translation or language manipulation had a negative and even harmful effect on teaching. A good communicative test of language, however, should have a much more positive effect on learning and teaching and should generally result in improved learning habits.1.2 A short history of language testingEssentially, the general picture that emerges is as follows. In China, during the Han Dynasty (201BCE to 8 CE), examinations on classical Confucian doctrine replaced the patronage, a method of selecting civil servants.To avoid corruption, all essays were marked anonymously, and the Emperor personally supervised the final paper. In Europe, examinations flourished first in the universities: from the seventeenth century the debates that had been required for degrees were first supplemented and later replaced by written examinations.In Prussia, examinations were first used for selection of civil servants in the eighteenth country. In Britain, written examinations in emulation of the major university examinations were first used in the middle of the nineteenth century as a means of selecting candidates for the upper grades in the Indian Civil Service,and later adopted for admission to the Home Civil Service and other professions. In France, Napoleon introduced oral examinations at the end of secondary school. In England, similar examinations were established some fifty years later under the control of various universities.By the end of the nineteenth century public examinations were firmly established in Western Europe as methods of controlling education and selecting civil servants. By the 1890s, the element of uncertainty and chance still involved in written examinations had been recognized, and minimalefforts were being made to overcome them.At that period of time, tests were mainly subjective and unscientific. The objective modern language test derived its appeal from the belief that the methods of mental testing could be satisfactorily applied to specific cognitive abilities as well as to general intelligence,and the associated belief that objective new-type tests were fairer than the older traditional examinations.The first new- type language tests appeared in the United States at the beginning of the 1920s, and received a strong stimulus from their utilization in a major U.S. study of language teaching at the end of the decade.During the 1930s, the growth of the psychometrics industry encouraged the use of objective testing techniques. By 1954, objective testing seemed to be successful on one side of the Atlantic at least. Then the changed goals of language teaching required the developments of techniques for testingApproaches to language testingLanguage tests can be roughly classified according to four main approaches to testing (i) the essay-translation approach; (ii) the structuralist approach; (iii) the integrative approach; and (iv) the communicative approach.Although these approaches are listed here in chronological order, they should not be regarded as being strictly confined to certain periods in the development of language testing. Nor are the four approaches always mutually exclusive.A useful test will generally incorporate features of several of these approaches. Indeed, a test may have certain inherent weaknesses simply because it is limited to one approach, however attractive that approach may appear.1 The essay –translation approachThis approach is commonly referred to as the Pre-scientific stage of language testing. No special skill or expertise in testing is required; the subjective judgment of the teacher is considered to be of paramount importance.Tests usually consist of essay writing, translation, and grammatical analysis (often in the form of comment about the language being learnt). The tests also have a heavy literary and cultural bias. Public examinations (e.g. secondary school leaving examinations)resulting from the essay-translation approach sometimes have an aural/oral component at the upper intermediate and advanced levels-though this has sometimes been regarded in the past as something additional and in no way an integral part of the syllabus or examination.Tests usually consist of essay writing, translation, and grammatical analysis (often in the form of comment about the language being learnt). The tests also have a heavy literary and cultural bias. Public examinations (e.g. secondary school leaving examinations)resulting from the essay-translation approach sometimes have an aural/oral component at the upper intermediate and advanced levels-though this has sometimes been regarded in the past as something additional and in no way an integral part of the syllabus or examination.2. The structuralist approachThis approach is characterized by the view that language learning is chiefly concerned with the systematic acquisition of a set of habits. It draws on the work of structural linguistics, in particular the importance of contrastive analysisand the need to identify and measure the learner’s m astery of the separate elements of the targetlanguage: phonology, vocabulary and grammar. Such mastery is tested using words and sentences completely divorced from any context on the test in a comparatively short time.The skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing are also separated from one another as much as possible because it is considered essential to test one thing at a timeThe skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing are also separated from one another as much as possiblebecause it is considered essential to test one thing at a timeSuch features of the structuralist approach are, of course, still valid for certain types of test and for certain purposes.For example, the desire to concentrate on the testees’ abilit y to write by attempting to separate a composition test from reading is commendable in certain respects.Indeed, there are several features of this approach which merit consideration when constructing any good test.3. The integrative approachthe y are often designed to assess the learner’s ability to use two or more skills simultaneously. Thus, integrative tests are concerned with a global view of proficiency-an underlying language competence or ‘grammar of expectancy’,which it is argued every learner possesses regardless of the purpose for which the language is being learnt. Integrative testing involves ‘functional language’ but not the use of functional language. Integrative tests are best characterized by the use of cloze testing and of dictation.Oral interviews, translation and essay writing are also included in many integrative tests- a point frequently overlooked by those who take too narrow a view of integrative testing.The principle of cloze testing is based on the Gestalt theory of ‘closure’ (closing gaps in patterns subconsciously). Thus, cloze tests measure the reader’s ability to decode ‘interrupted’ or ‘mutilated’ messages by making the most acceptable substitutions from all the contextual clues available.Every nth word is deleted in a text (usually every fifth, sixth or seventh word), and students have to complete each gap in the text, using the most appropriate word.4. The communicative approachThe communicative approach to language testing is sometimes linked to the integrative approach. However, although both approaches emphasize the importance of the meaning of utterances rather than their form and structure,there are nevertheless fundamental differences between the two approaches. Communicative tests are concerned primarily (if not totally) with how language is used in communication. Consequently, most aim to incorporate tasks, which approximate as closely as possible to those facing the students in real life.Success is judged in terms of the effectiveness of the communication, which takes place rather than formal linguistic accuracy. Language ‘use’ is often emphasized to the exclusion of language usage. ‘Use’ is concerned with how people actually use language for a multitude of different purposeswhile ‘usage’ co ncerns the formal patterns of language (described in prescriptive grammars and lexicons). In practice, however, some tests of a communicative nature include the testing of usage and also assess ability to handle the formal patterns of the target language.Indeed, few supporters of the communicative approach would argue that communicativecompetence can ever be achieved without a considerable mastery of the grammar of a language. 1.3 What are the current large-scale tests at home and abroad?PETS 1-5 (Public English Test System)CET4, CET6 (College English Tests)TEM4, TEM8 (Test for English Majors)TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language)IELTS (International English Language Testing System)References1. Bachman, L. F. & Adrian S. Palmer. Language Testing in Practice. London: Oxford University Press, 1996.2. Heaton, J. B. Writing English Language Tests. London and New York: Longman Group UK Limited, 1988.。

资料范本本资料为word版本，可以直接编辑和打印，感谢您的下载语言测试的发展史地点：__________________时间：__________________说明：本资料适用于约定双方经过谈判，协商而共同承认，共同遵守的责任与义务，仅供参考，文档可直接下载或修改，不需要的部分可直接删除，使用时请详细阅读内容语言测试的发展史第一代体系:科学前语言测试（pre-scientific testing）--20世纪40年代以前的测试第二代体系：心理测量学—结构主义语言学测试（psychometric-structuralist testing) ---20世纪40—60年代第三代体系：交际语言测试（communicative language testing),又称心理语言学—社会语言学测试（psycholinguistic-sociolinguistic testing) --20世纪90年代1、科学前语言测试---第一代测试体系语言测试是随着语言教学的发展而出现的。

有了语言教学，也便有了语言测试。

人们把20世纪40年代以前的测试统称为科学前语言测试。

把语言当作知识来教授，当作知识来测试。

这门知识主要包括语法知识、词汇知识和语音知识。

语言测试，也是测试这三方面的知识。

为了把语言知识的三大方面具体化，教师上课就是从课文里找出这些语言点，并把这些语言点教给学生。

到考试时，就考平时教的这些语言点。

科学前语言测试---第一代测试体系这个时期的语言教学和测试，完全以教师或命题人员的经验和主观判断来确定，没有什么科学的依据。

2、第二代：心理计量—结构主义语言测试时间：20世纪40年代理论基础：结构主义语言学、行为主义心理学代表人物：美国Bloomfiel，Fires，Lado等为代表的结构主义语言学家这个体系的语言观的内涵是：语言是一套形式系统。

所学的和所考的就是操作这套形式的技能（skills).第一次对语言的形式系统作了客观的、科学的分析。

语言测试的发展历程语言测试与外语教学密切相关。

探讨语言测试的发展过程，了解各个阶段的测试特点，对于我们把握好测试的内容和手段，促进教学质量的提高，具有重大的指导意义。

以下就是语言测试发展的四个阶段：一、前科学阶段前科学语言测试或传统语言测试阶段目前把20世纪40年代以前的语言测试统称为前科学语言测试。

在这个时期，语言教师对于什么是语言这个最基本的问题还没有科学的认识，只是把语言作为一门包括语法知识、词汇知识、语音知识的符号体系去教。

把语言看作一门知识，是这个时期外语教学和测试体系的语言观的内涵。

测试中对技巧、技能的考查没有量度依据，测试结果主要依据教师的主观判断。

这个阶段的英语测试方法十分重视语法规则、词形变化和词语的用法，重视书面用语，一般只有笔试，没有口试，没有听力题。

命题人不大注意测试的可信性、客观性、科学性之类的问题，不懂得用统计学的方法来收集、处理数据。

二、心理测量与结构主义相结合的阶段20世纪40年以后，以Skinner为首的美国行为主义心理学家认为：语言行为是一连串的刺激反应过程。

于是，产生了结构主义教学法，如听说法。

在语言测试方法上，汲取了心理语言学领域的心理测量学的方法，形成了心理测量——结构主义语言测试（the psychometric—structuralist language testing modern LT phase）。

结构主义语言学家认为语言是由语音、词汇、语法构成的一个系统，这一系统是可以分解的。

语言中的语音、词汇、语法是一个有限的集合，而这些有限集合的成分却可以构成无限集合的句子。

所谓掌握一门语言就是掌握语言中的这些元素并用来生成和理解无限数量的句子的能力。

19世纪60年代，Lado在《Language Testing》中就把语言能力分为语音、句法、词汇和文化，认为语言考试可通过说听读写四种方式测试语音、句法、词汇和文化。

由于语言是可以分解成元素的，因此可以通过分离式测试来逐项测验学生是否掌握了这些元素。

Quiz for chapter21.What are the 4 approaches in language testing?2.What is the key idea of psychometric-structuralist approach?3.What levels and modes does this approach analyze language proficiency into？4.Translate: item difficulty, discrimination, criterion proficiency, subtest, sampling, construction,stem/lead, options, distracters, forced-choice items, constructed-response items, discrete-point items, method effect5. Although sampling is an indispensable step in test development, there will be no a sampling error. F6.Test construction is the process of converting the test problems chosen to test items or tasks T7. The most frequently and extensively used test item in a psychometric-structuralist test are multiple-choice items. T8. Directions should be brief，simple and unambiguous. T9. Multiple -choice format remains the most valid measures of language proficiency. F10. This approach is out of date today. F11. This psychometric-structuralist tests are direct tests. F12. The results of the scores are hard to interpret. TQuiz for chapter31．The integrative approach proposed to use holistic procedures to test language proficiency. T2．John W Oller was the leading figure in the campaignagainst psychometric –stucturalist approach. T3．The main ideas of Oller are that language proficiency was indivisible and this indivisibility could be measured directly by pragmatic tests. T4．All test items in a psychometric test is context free. F 5．According to Oller, the first feature of psychometric approach is the involvement of context. F 6．Pragmatic expectance grammar is ability responsible for context dependent language processing. T7．All dictation tests are pragmatic tests. F8．The integrative tests are direct tests and their scores have clear meanings. F9．Cloze tests are designed based on Gestalt Psychology. T 10．The linguistic basis for cloze tests is language redundancy.T11．For standard cloze, there are two ways to delete words from a text：error-counting and right asnwer-counting. F 12．The test taker’s performance on cloze is scored either by exact word method or contextually acceptable method. T 13．Short memory is the container of wording while the long memory is the container of meaning. T14．For dictation tests, the pauses should be in natural breakpoints. T15．Partial dictation is different from standard dictation in that part of it is presented in a printed form. T16．The 1980s witnessed the end of the UCH. T 17．Dictation tests are in lack of domain analysis and sampling, which reduces their validity. TQuiz for chapter 41.In early 20th century, there emerged communicative tests. F2.Both psychometric and integrative tests are ability tests. T3.Needs analysis was first put forward by Brendan Carroll. F4.The characteristics of communicative performance testing aremore readily seen in tests of writing and speaking. T5.According to Carroll, test takers’performance can be scoredwith a 9-band scale. This indicates communicative performance tests are norm-referenced tests. F6.Timothy McNamara is the major developer of OET., aperformance-based test of English as a second language for health professionals. T7.Performance tests are often used for screening and selection.Tmunicative performance tests enable test users to makeconnection between test performance and future language behavior. Tmunicative performance test are low in validity becausethey are scored subjectively. F10.M ultiple scoring and Rash measurement technique are oftenintroduced to increase the reliability of communicative performance tests. T11. According to Carroll, listening, speaking, reading, andwriting are not equal to language skills; instead, they are language performance. T12. In Carroll’s model, listening, speaking and reading, writingare presented in isolation, but in real communication they occur in various combinations. TQuiz for chapter 5municative language ability was proposed by Bachmanand is a new development of communicative competence. T municative competence was first proposed by Hymes inthe 1960s and 1970s, including knowledge that and knowledge how. F3.Canale and Swain’s model divides knowledge in to fourcomponents: grammatical, sociolinguistic, discourse and strategic competence. T4.Bachman’s communicative language ability involveslanguage competence, strategic competence and psychophysical mechanisms, which are subdivided into different components. T(psychophysiological)5.Bachman’s test methods are not specific techniques but aframework of five facets which can be used for different purposes. T6.The relationship between input and response in language testscan be either of the two: reciprocal and nonreciprocal F7.Reciprocal tests must be adaptive tests. T8.Reciprocal language use is characterized by interaction andfeedback. T。