Workshop X4

Termin:               Donnerstag, 13. September 2007; 14:30-16:30 Uhr

Raum:                 403

More than any other form of online testing, language testing is confronted by two diametrically opposed demands. The requirement for validity on the one hand and the need for efficiency on the other.

Validity in online testing covers a number of different topics beginning with the content and scope of the test items, extending to repeatability and comparability of the results and finally including issues of security like preventing the use of unauthorized resources (cheating) and authentication of the test candidate; preventing impersonation. The topic of test security will be presented in depth. The objective of successful online language testing is to attain an acceptable degree of validity at the same time maintaining a level of efficiency commensurate with the expectations of online testing, taking into account the special requirements of language testing. We will concentrate on placement and placement tests. Placement tests are those taken prior to participating in a language training course to assign the new student to the appropriate group. Placement tests either test the achievements of a participant in a training program or assess the language skills of an applicant for admission to an institution, employment or transfer. Higher standards must be applied to placement tests. An important aspect of validity in the context of placement tests is that the results must be easy to interpret and comparable to assessments from other sources. In short they must be mapped onto an accepted standardized scale such as the Common European Framework for Languages.

Another variable in the validity equation is the granularity or the preciseness of the assessment scale. Although the CEF is a helpful tool for interpreting test results, in many cases it does not discriminate sufficiently well to compare test candidates.The workshop will also examine the requirements to provide special content, for instance „English for Special Purposes (ESP)“, considering to what extent the CEF with its numerous subscales can be useful here. The workshop will be a combination of presention and audience participation.

Leitung

Roger Randall, MONDIALE Testsysteme

Referentinnen/Referenten

Prof. Dr. Kurt Kohn, Universität Tübingen

Roger Randall, MONDIALE Testsysteme