I. Literature review
1. Definition of Testing
Throughout history, testing, assessment and evaluation play a vital role in the process of language teaching and learning. Testing is one of the fundamental tools to measure students English language acquisition. McNamara (2003) has given a detailed definition of a language test, which is “a procedure for gathering evidence of general or specific language abilities from performance on tasks designed to provide a basis for predictions about an individual’s use of those abilities in real world contexts.” (p. 11).
Testing in general is crucial in social life. It can be considered a new turning point for education, in employment, migration (McNamara, 2003). Long time ago, people used tests to justify …show more content…
4). Without a common yardstic, which tests can provide, it would be challenging for language institutions to accept overseas students, or companies and organisations to select compatible candidates. Tests can serve pedagogical purposes, to be sure. Most researchers agree that language tests play many important roles in life. Firstly the moment one does a test can be considered an important transitional moment in his life, for example, a pupil wishing to enter a university has to pass the entrance tests, or a job seeker has to do a certain test so that the employer will know whether he is competent, or if somebody needs to drive a motor or a car, he or she has to pass a driving test, ect. Secondly, language tests are also important to many occupations. We teachers rarely teach without testing our students’ performance in the subjects. Tests will help us to put them in right places; therefore, language tests, if used properly, can be considered a valuable teaching device for any teacher, and they will contribute positively to the development of both teachers and learners. Last but not least, any researcher who needs measurement of the language proficiency of the subjects cannot do it without using an already existing test or designing his or her own test. There are several kinds of tests that are listed by Hughes …show more content…
As EFL teachers, we all understand that the fundamental goal of testing reading is to assess students’ reading comprehension. Basically, we test the students’ ability to understand the meaning of the texts they read. That being said, it is not easy to assess students’ reading comprehension since reading is a receptive skill and process in which students receive input and decode its meaning to get the message (Rhodes, 2012). This process is taken inside students’ mind, which means it cannot be observed or measured by testers. However, reading skill can still be evaluated through different types of test items that are designed basing on the given
1. Definition of Testing
Throughout history, testing, assessment and evaluation play a vital role in the process of language teaching and learning. Testing is one of the fundamental tools to measure students English language acquisition. McNamara (2003) has given a detailed definition of a language test, which is “a procedure for gathering evidence of general or specific language abilities from performance on tasks designed to provide a basis for predictions about an individual’s use of those abilities in real world contexts.” (p. 11).
Testing in general is crucial in social life. It can be considered a new turning point for education, in employment, migration (McNamara, 2003). Long time ago, people used tests to justify …show more content…
4). Without a common yardstic, which tests can provide, it would be challenging for language institutions to accept overseas students, or companies and organisations to select compatible candidates. Tests can serve pedagogical purposes, to be sure. Most researchers agree that language tests play many important roles in life. Firstly the moment one does a test can be considered an important transitional moment in his life, for example, a pupil wishing to enter a university has to pass the entrance tests, or a job seeker has to do a certain test so that the employer will know whether he is competent, or if somebody needs to drive a motor or a car, he or she has to pass a driving test, ect. Secondly, language tests are also important to many occupations. We teachers rarely teach without testing our students’ performance in the subjects. Tests will help us to put them in right places; therefore, language tests, if used properly, can be considered a valuable teaching device for any teacher, and they will contribute positively to the development of both teachers and learners. Last but not least, any researcher who needs measurement of the language proficiency of the subjects cannot do it without using an already existing test or designing his or her own test. There are several kinds of tests that are listed by Hughes …show more content…
As EFL teachers, we all understand that the fundamental goal of testing reading is to assess students’ reading comprehension. Basically, we test the students’ ability to understand the meaning of the texts they read. That being said, it is not easy to assess students’ reading comprehension since reading is a receptive skill and process in which students receive input and decode its meaning to get the message (Rhodes, 2012). This process is taken inside students’ mind, which means it cannot be observed or measured by testers. However, reading skill can still be evaluated through different types of test items that are designed basing on the given