The present investigation explores Cognitive Test Anxiety (CTA) in a high-stake oral examination, taking into consideration how face-to-face and computer-based examination formats affect test-takers' anxiety and consequently language performance. Two speaking tests -- face-to-face and computer-based -- were developed for a Spanish university's…

Research on task repetition in second language (L2) learning has shown the benefits of this practice for subsequent L2 learning. However, as with much L2 research, most studies on task repetition have focused on adults and there is a dearth of research in this area involving young children. This study examines the effect of task repetition on two…

Language assessment literacy has been discussed by language assessment specialists since Davies' seminal 2008 article. Much of this discussion has focused on experts' opinions of what teachers know, do not know, and should know about assessment. This paper reports on a project which aimed to put teachers at the centre of the debate by exploring…

This paper takes a multimodal conversation analytic approach to explore knowledge-in-interaction in a technology-mediated online environment (Skype videoconference) during a meeting between eight university students studying to become language teachers. The analysis considers the ways in which the student-teachers demonstrate their knowledge or…

To investigate whether the type of keyboard used in exams introduces any construct-irrelevant variance to the TOEFL iBT Writing scores, we surveyed 17,040 TOEFL iBT examinees from 24 countries on their keyboard-related perceptions and preferences and analyzed the survey responses together with their test scores. Results suggest that controlling…

The work at hand is part of a wider study the aim of which was to determine what kind of factors influence failures in pragmatic items of an online adaptive placement test taken by a group of 34 Spanish students in their first year at university. A preceding analysis (Carrió & Martín, 2016) showed the type of personal factors, such as lack of…

Spain has followed the lead of other Western countries by establishing new citizenship requirements for immigrants. In 2015, the "Real Decreto" 1004/2015 was passed, making both knowledge of culture and history of Spain and knowledge of Spanish language a requisite for immigrants wishing to become citizens. In order to fulfill this legal…

This research explores the types of questions teachers ask their students in CLIL classrooms and how they can optimize their use of these questions. It came about as a result of a slowdown detected in the learning capacity of students after the first two years of CLIL programmes in the region of Murcia, Spain. The first data collected demonstrated…

This paper discusses the results of a study conducted with 218 students in the final year of high school to determine their opinions about the feasibility of using a tablet PC for delivery of a standardized English language test. One such test could be the English paper of the exam given to students upon completion of the Baccalaureate program in…

The requirement of holding a diploma which certifies proficiency level in a foreign language is constantly increasing in academic and working environments. Computer-based testing has become a prevailing tendency for these and other educational purposes. Each year large numbers of students take online language tests everywhere in the world. In…

Living in a global world involves not only mastering languages, but also dealing with different habits and values. It becomes critical with students trained to deal with a multicultural public, such as the group of learners from tourism covered by our research. Our proposal aims to analyze whether the virtual world of Second Life (SL) facilitates…

This study examines test-takers' views on a computer-delivered speaking test in order to investigate the aspects they consider most relevant in technology-based oral assessment, and to explore the main advantages and disadvantages computer-based tests may offer as compared to face-to-face speaking tests. A small-scale open questionnaire was…

Testing is an issue of increasing importance. While for many teachers language learning should be communicative; in fact, they expect their students to provide evidence of their knowledge. Thus, there is a clear mismatch on the approach to language teaching and language testing. As a consequence, there is an evident need change the testing…

Ubiquitous language learning and testing has become a new challenging trend. Budget constraints in Europe and the rest of the world have made this way of delivery very attractive for materials designers as well as language testing organizations. Ubiquitous testing has a very especial interest in low and medium stakes language testing in which…

The debate over the Foreign Language Test (English) in the University Entrance Examination (PAU) has become a critical issue in the Spanish Educational system. Despite the Ministry of Education's interest in changing a test that has its strong emphasis on reading, writing and grammar but a general negligence towards listening and speaking, limited…