This article focuses on rater severity and consistency and their relation to major changes in the rating system in a high-stakes testing context. The study is based on longitudinal data collected from 2009 to 2019 from the second language (L2) Finnish speaking subtest in the National Certificates of Language Proficiency in Finland. We investigated…

Many educational institutions transitioned to digital distance-based learning and assessment formats in 2020 due to the severe acute respiratory syndrome--coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic. This shift has often been associated with concerns about increased student cheating and heightened stress. In this study, we compared the major course…

Taking into consideration the unique relational position of convenors (Chairs) in PhD oral examinations, this qualitative study explores insights from 55 convenors at a research-intensive university in New Zealand into the ways academic staff developers can better prepare doctoral supervisors and examiners for oral examinations. One striking…

Language as a cultural element influences Aboriginal pupils' mathematic performance. This study examines the utility of oral test in native language for computation and word problem mathematics items using score comparability. The sample includes 230 Grade 5 Orang Asli pupils from eight Malaysian primary schools in two states. By employing…

The significance of assessment in driving learning is undeniable, particularly in oral assessments like viva voce where students express themselves verbally. However, traditional viva voce examinations' challenges include reliability, objectivity, content validity, time constraints, varying question difficulty levels, inconsistency in questioning…

Modest correlations between teacher-assigned grades and external assessments of academic achievement (r = 0.40-0.60) have led many educational stakeholders to deem grades subjective and unreliable. However, theoretical and methodological challenges, such as construct misalignment, data unavailability and sample unrepresentativeness, limit the…

Purpose: Comprehensive spoken language assessment should include the evaluation of language use in naturalistic contexts. Discourse elicitation and analysis provides the opportunity for such an evaluation to occur. In this article, our overall aim was to describe adolescents' language performance on four elicitation tasks and determine if there…

Purpose: The language load within mathematics test items can lead to inaccuracy in assessing "Orang Asli" pupils' mathematical ability due to their struggle in comprehending the academic language. This study aims to determine the validity of using test accommodations in the form of oral academic language and oral native language when…

Assessment is a central feature of teaching and learning. It is both complex and challenging in ordinary times, and these aspects are magnified in an online learning environment. Given its central role, it is crucial that its design and purpose is rigorous and robust. This paper presents justification for using interactive oral assessment as an…