Articles

Preface: language assessment literacy

Authors: Hassan Mohebbi and Christine Coombe

Language assessment literacy: what do we need to learn, unlearn, and relearn?

Recently, we have witnessed a growing interest in developing teachers’ language assessment literacy. The ever increasing demand for and use of assessment products and data by a more varied group of stakeholder...

Authors: Christine Coombe, Hossein Vafadar and Hassan Mohebbi

Impact of test format on vocabulary test performance of EFL learners: the role of gender

This study aimed to examine the effect of test format on test performance by comparing Multiple Choice (MC) and Constructed Response (CR) vocabulary tests in an EFL setting. Also, this paper investigated the f...

Authors: Ghazal Akhavan Masoumi and Karim Sadeghi

Analyzing rater severity in a freshman composition course using many facet Rasch measurement

This study examined the rater severity of instructors using a multi-trait rubric in a freshman composition course offered in a private university in Kuwait. Use of standardized multi-trait rubrics is a recent ...

Authors: Inan Deniz Erguvan and Beyza Aksu Dunya

Standardized proficiency tests in a campus-wide English curriculum: a washback study

Washback refers to the influence of tests on learning and teaching. To date, a number of studies have revealed that tests affect teaching content, course design, and classroom practices. However, in Asian high...

Authors: Shao-Ting Alan Hung and Heng-Tsung Danny Huang

Writing scale effects on raters: an exploratory study

In writing assessment, finding a valid, reliable, and efficient scale is critical. Appropriate scales, increase rater reliability, and can also save time and money. This exploratory study compared the effects ...

Authors: Heejeong Jeong

SOLO taxonomy as EFL students’ disciplinary literacy evaluation tool in technology-enhanced integrated astronomy course

Whilst the role of disciplinary literacy in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education is becoming more prominent, there appears to be little adaptation or allowance made for English as...

Authors: Nadezhda Chubko, Julia E. Morris, David H. McKinnon, Eileen V. Slater and Geoffrey W. Lummis

Assessing peer review pattern and the effect of face-to-face and mobile-mediated modes on students’ academic writing development

This study examines the distribution of peer review in face-to-face and mobile-mediated peer review groups and their effects on students’ revision skills and academic writing development. Seventy-two first-yea...

Authors: Ali Akbar Khomeijani Farahani, Majid Nemati and Mostafa Nazari Montazer

‘Remark or retake’? A study of candidate performance in IELTS and perceptions towards test failure

It is becoming increasingly important for individuals for whom English is a second language to demonstrate their linguistic credentials for academic, work and employment purposes. One option is to undertake In...

Authors: William S. Pearson

Test-takers’ perspectives on a global test of English: questions of fairness, justice and validity

Although language test-takers have been the focus of much theoretical and empirical work in recent years, this work has been mainly concerned with their attitudes to test preparation and test-taking strategies...

Authors: M. Obaidul Hamid, Ian Hardy and Vicente Reyes

An exploration of students’ voices on the English graduation benchmark policy across Northern, Central and Southern Vietnam

Despite the wide implementation of English graduation benchmark policy in Vietnam, students’ voices on this one-size-fits-all policy have still been under-researched and under-represented. The purpose of this ...

Authors: Thinh Ngoc Pham and Lien Thi Phuong Bui

Diagnosing EFL learners’ writing ability: a diagnostic classification modeling analysis

Cognitive diagnostic models (CDMs) have recently received a surge of interest in the field of second language assessment due to their promise for providing fine-grained information about strengths and weakness...

Authors: Farshad Effatpanah, Purya Baghaei and Ali Akbar Boori

Critical review of validation models and practices in language testing: their limitations and future directions for validation research

The purpose of this paper is to critically review the traditional and contemporary validation frameworks—the content, criterion, and construct validations; the evidence-gathering; the socio-cognitive model; th...

Authors: Gwan-Hyeok Im, Dongil Shin and Liying Cheng

Developing a scoring rubric for L2 summary writing: a hybrid approach combining analytic and holistic assessment

In our research project, we have developed a scoring rubric for a second language (L2) summary writing for English as a foreign language (EFL) students in Japanese universities. This study aimed to examine the...

Authors: Hiroyuki Yamanishi, Masumi Ono and Yuko Hijikata

New test-taking patterns and their effect on language test validity

Educators, especially test creators, are concerned with the construct validity of their tests. Blame has generally been attached to test-wiseness strategies as one source of error in measurement. There is litt...

Authors: Abdullah Al Fraidan

Test-taker perception of and test performance on computer-delivered speaking tests: the mediational role of test-taking motivation

Research on the test-taker perception of assessments has been conducted under the assumption that negative test-taker perception may influence test performance by decreasing test-taking motivation. This assump...

Authors: Yujia Zhou and Asako Yoshitomi

English language teaching in Bangladesh today: Issues, outcomes and implications

Given the significance of English in the global world, English language teaching in Bangladesh has become subject to a supreme concern in maintaining economic growth and developing a skilled workforce. In this...

Authors: Mohammad Mosiur Rahman, Md Shaiful Islam, Abdul Karim, Takad Ahmed Chowdhury, Muhammad Mushfiqur Rahman, Prodhan Mahbub Ibna Seraj and Manjet Kaur Mehar Singh

Calibrated Parsing Items Evaluation: a step towards objectifying the translation assessment

The present research paper introduces a translation evaluation method called Calibrated Parsing Items Evaluation (CPIE hereafter). This evaluation method maximizes translators’ performance through identifying ...

Authors: Alireza Akbari and Mohammadtaghi Shahnazari

Assessing the effect of focused direct and focused indirect written corrective feedback on explicit and implicit knowledge of language learners

This study investigates the effect of teacher’s written corrective feedback (WCF) on acquisition of explicit and implicit knowledge of simple past tense by language learners. Eighty-seven Iranian beginner lear...

Authors: Majid Nemati, Sayyed Mohammad Alavi and Hassan Mohebbi

Test format effects: a componential approach to second language reading

This study aims to empirically answer the question of whether the role of sub-reading skills changes depending on the test format (e.g., multiple-choice vs. open-ended reading questions). The test format effec...

Authors: Hyojung Lim

Analyzing media discourse on the development of the National English Ability Test (NEAT) in South Korea

The purpose of this study is to analyze newspaper articles from three publications (Chosun Ilbo, Donga Ilbo, and JoongAng Ilbo) regarding a newly developed high-stakes English test in South Korea, the National En...

Authors: Dongil Shin

Rater attitude towards emerging varieties of English: a new rater effect?

A strong interest in researching World Englishes (WE) in relation to language assessment has become an emerging theme in language assessment studies over the past two decades. While research on WE has highligh...

Authors: Tammy Huei-Lien Hsu

EFL teacher burnout and self-assessed language proficiency: exploring possible relationships

Although teacher burnout has drawn the attention of many researchers, there is little empirical evidence for the contribution of non-native English language teachers’ language proficiency level to their experi...

Authors: Akram Nayernia and Zareh Babayan

The language assessment literacy needs of Iranian EFL teachers with a focus on reformed assessment policies

Teachers’ assessment literacy has recently captured the attention of scholars across various educational contexts. The literature has it that there is a gap between teachers’ assessment practices and national ...

Authors: Tahereh Firoozi, Kioumars Razavipour and Alireza Ahmadi

Language assessment literacy: an uncharted area for the English language teachers in Bangladesh

Language assessment literacy (LAL) is a critical field for researchers, scholars, or anyone interested in improving the language teaching environment. Understanding the basics of testing and the ability to per...

Authors: Nasreen Sultana

Editorial: Language Testing in Asia has been accepted in SCOPUS

Authors: Robert Kirkpatrick

Toward measuring language teachers’ assessment knowledge: development and validation of Language Assessment Knowledge Scale (LAKS)

This study reports on the development and validation of Language Assessment Knowledge Scale, LAKS, which aims to measure teachers’ language assessment knowledge. The initial development of the scale included a...

Authors: Elçin Ölmezer-Öztürk and Belgin Aydin

Post hoc evaluation of analytic rating scales for improved functioning in the assessment of interactive L2 speaking ability

This study was designed to determine how well existing analytic rating scales functioned in the assessment of low- to mid-proficiency Japanese university students’ interactive English speaking ability when eng...

Authors: Kurtis McDonald

Behind a spoken performance: test takers’ strategic reactions in a simulated part 3 of the IELTS speaking test

Making inferences about a test taker’s language ability has been a concern for language testers. Defining language ability in a speaking test is made difficult because the construct involves factors within and...

Authors: Christina Judy Fernandez

Correction to: Validity of the listening module of international English language testing system: multiple sources of evidence

After publication of this article (Alavi et al. 2018), it is noticed the third author’s affiliation is incorrect.

Authors: Sayyed Mohammad Alavi, Shiva Kaivanpanah and Ali Panahi Masjedlou

Evaluating CEFR rater performance through the analysis of spoken learner corpora

Although teachers of English are required to assess students’ speaking proficiency in the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR), their ability to rate is seldom evaluated. The application...

Authors: Lan-fen Huang, Simon Kubelec, Nicole Keng and Lung-hsun Hsu

Test review of the English public examination at the secondary level in Bangladesh

This paper reviews the most important public English examination (matriculation exam) that students take at the end of their secondary education in Bangladesh. The examination is known as the Secondary School ...

Authors: Nasreen Sultana

Assessing Japanese teachers’ classroom English “internationally”: implications for the development of classroom English language benchmarks in Japan

This study aims to develop a low-stakes assessment tool to establish a classroom English language benchmark that Japanese teachers of English can use for their own professional development purposes. To start w...

Authors: Yoshiyuki Nakata, Osamu Ikeno, Yuzo Kimura, Naoyuki Naganuma and Stephen Andrews

Postgraduate students’ conception of language assessment

Assessment is an essential part of any learning process; however, it is often disliked by most students. A wealth of research is available on issues on assessment, such as washback effect and test anxiety, and...

Authors: Vahid Nimehchisalem and Nur Izyan Syamimi Mat Hussin

How does anxiety influence language performance? From the perspectives of foreign language classroom anxiety and cognitive test anxiety

This study examined the relationships between students’ foreign language classroom anxiety and cognitive test anxiety and their College English Test Band 4 (CET-4) performance. A questionnaire was distributed ...

Authors: Ying Zheng and Liying Cheng

Investigating the psychometric properties of the Qiyas for L1 Arabic language test using a Rasch measurement framework

This study investigated the psychometric properties of the recently developed Qiyas for L1 Arabic language test using a Rasch measurement framework.

Authors: Amjed A. Al-Owidha

How to evaluate the TEFL students’ translations: through analytic, holistic or combined method?

Translation quality assessment (TQA) suffers from subjectivity in both neighboring disciplines: ‘TEFL’ and ‘Translation Studies, and more empirical studies are required to get closer to objectivity in this dom...

Authors: Mojtaba Amini

Validity of the listening module of international English language testing system: multiple sources of evidence

A critical issue in International English Language Testing System (IELTS) lies in the significance of the validity of IELTS listening comprehension test (hereafter IELTS LCM). However IELTS listening validity ...

Authors: Sayyed Mohammad Alavi, Shiva Kaivanpanah and Ali Panahi Masjedlou

A quantitative analysis of TOEFL iBT using an interpretive model of test validity

Validity is a notable concept in language testing which has concerned many researchers and scholars in the field of language testing due to its importance in decision making process. Tests’ results always intr...

Authors: Mohammad Reza Esfandiari, Mohammad Javad Riasati, Helia Vaezian and Forough Rahimi

Language assessment in the new English curriculum in Iran: managerial, institutional, and professional barriers

Assessment policies and practices are key to the success of curriculum innovations. Therefore, large-scale ELT innovations always include changes in assessment too. Thinking that Iranian students were not enab...

Authors: Kioumars Razavipour and Karim Rezagah

Designing and validating a potential formative evaluation inventory for teacher competences

Inadequacy of authority-based defensive teaching and summative and product-based evaluation such as certification and observation measures in providing information about the actual teaching teachers do was an ...

Authors: Zohre Mohamadi and Negin Malekshahi

IELTS economic washback: a case study on English major students at King Faisal University in Al-Hasa, Saudi Arabia

The International English Language Testing System (IELTS) is a standardized high-stakes test, which is used for the purpose of measuring the language proficiency of candidates who wish to study or work in an e...

Authors: Ahmad Alsagoafi

The examination system in Bangladesh and its impact: on curriculum, students, teachers and society

Examinations are designed to test knowledge and skills, but in some cases they acquire a power of their own that influences curriculum and attitudes to learning and teaching and that stabilised by widely held ...

Authors: Md Al Amin and Janinka Greenwood

Reviewing the IELTS speaking test in East Asia: theoretical and practice-based insights

This paper reviews the International English Language Testing System’s speaking sub-test in the East Asia region with reference to theoretical and practice-based perspectives and identifies future research opp...

Authors: Ethan Douglas Quaid

Developing a test of L2 Chinese pragmatic comprehension ability

This study aims to develop a test for assessing pragmatic comprehension ability in Chinese as a second language (L2). Following the framework of an argument-based approach to test validation, this study attemp...

Authors: Shuai Li

Application of diffusion of innovation theory to educational accountability: the case of EFL education in Japan

This study investigates how the criterion-referenced (CR) approach has impacted relationships between goals, classroom practices, and student achievement in English education in Japan from 1994 to the present,...

Authors: Miyuki Sasaki

Teachers’ writing proficiency and assessment ability: the missing link in teachers’ written corrective feedback practice in an Iranian EFL context

Teachers’ writing proficiency and writing assessment ability and their role in improving writing instruction in second language learning classrooms are issues that have not been investigated empirically and ri...

Authors: Majid Nemati, Sayyed Mohammad Alavi, Hassan Mohebbi and Ali Panahi Masjedlou

ESL students’ oral performance in English language school-based assessment: results of an empirical study

The English language school-based assessment (SBA) component of the Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education (HKDSE) Examination is innovative in that the assessment tasks involve assessing English oral langua...

Authors: Zhengdong Gan, Emily Pey Tee Oon and Chris Davison

Foreword to the Special Issue “The Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) for English Language Assessment in China” of Language Testing in Asia

Authors: J. Charles Alderson

Exploring the adaptability of the CEFR in the construction of a writing ability scale for test for English majors

The CEFR, ever since its inception, has had profound impact on language teaching, learning, and assessment not only in Europe but also in other parts of the world. This study focuses on the adaptability of CEF...

Authors: Shen Zou and Wenxing Zhang