Panahi and Mohebbi review James Dean Brown's 50-years of research in language testing, curriculum development and research statistics with reference to an impressionistic framework for analysis containing two components with their subcomponents: Annotations (i.e., briefing and implications) and main concepts and themes (i.e., testing and teaching…

In this report I share the results of a document-based, comparative case study aimed at increasing our understanding about the potential utility of state kindergarten entry assessments (KEAs) to provide evidence of English learner (EL) kindergartners' knowledge and skills and, in turn, inform kindergarten teachers' instruction. Using a sample of 9…

Reviews research that sheds light on the comparability of Oral Proficiency Interview and the Simulated Oral Proficiency Interview. Suggestions are provided for further research. (16 references) (VWL)

Explains why it is so difficult to define communicative testing, discusses problems related to communicative testing, and concludes with suggestions for further research. (15 references) (CFM)

Describes the development of the Educational Testing Service's (ETS) tests of composition for native speakers of English and of the Test of English as a Foreign Language's (TOEFL) Test of Written English (TWE). Recommendations are provided for carefully scrutinizing new developments in ETS testing as they affect students. (39 references) (GLR)

The issues of language assessment and placement raise several important questions: (1) What are the basic premises upon which current language assessment instruments have been developed? (2) What is the state of the art in language proficiency assessment? (3) What implications do current research findings have for language proficiency assessment?…

Reviews recent theoretical, methodological, and analytical developments in language testing, focusing on more refined models of language ability, reliability and validity, performance testing, innovative test formats, new applications of Item Response Theory and Generalizability Theory to test performance. An annotated bibliography discusses seven…

Considers the question of how best to elicit samples of writing for assessment in an English-for-academic-purposes proficiency test and assure that every test taker has something to write about. Three types of writing tasks are defined and analyzed, and examples are given. (25 references) (GLR)

Discusses problems with the current trend in using behavior trait-based criteria to assess English-as-a-Second-Language productivity skills, and describes alternatives to such testing that involve the matching of linguistic tasks against nonlinguistic criteria. (Author/CB)

Reviews the status of and beliefs underlying the process of foreign language oral proficiency testing in the United States, including consideration of academic and nonacademic approaches to testing; the status of foreign language study; the need for foreign language speakers; and the reliability and validity of several tests used to assess foreign…

The IDEA Oral Language Proficiency Test (IPT II), an individually-administered measure of speaking and listening proficiency in English as a Second Language designed for secondary school students, is described and discussed. The test consists of 91 items and requires 5-25 minutes to administer. Raw scores are converted to one of seven proficiency…

Communicative competence is often characterized as an integrated control of language reflected in the speaker's ability to understand and use language appropriately for communication in various situations. The theoretical basis for the communicative competence construct is the anthropological, sociolinguistc, and pragmatic view of language.…

The content of the 1986 Immigration Reform and Control Act is described, its current interpretations are examined, and the implications for developing a responsible language and citizenship curriculum to conform to the legislation are discussed. Specific attention is focused on the law's requirement that illegal aliens applying for amnesty and…

A discussion of teaching and testing oral skills in a second language looks at issues in the testing of speaking ability in general, the effect that testing can have on teaching, and the kinds of communicative activities that can be built into a foreign language program with oral proficiency as a goal. The issues addressed include the differential…

This review of research on second-language oral testing outlines the nature of early research in interview-format proficiency testing, then reports on new directions in investigation of construct validity of interview-format and other oral skills tests through examination of examinee, interviewer, and rater performance. Research on empirically…