The purpose of the Test for English Majors (TEM) is to measure the English proficiency of Chinese university undergraduates majoring in English Language and Literature and to examine whether these students meet the required levels of English language abilities as specified in the National College English Teaching Syllabus for English Majors…

Providers of tests of languages for academic purposes generally claim to provide evidence on the extent to which students are likely to be able to cope with the future demands of reading in specified real-life contexts. Such claims need to be supported by evidence that the texts employed in the test reflect salient features of the texts the test…

Describes a first-year German course at Portland State University whose dominant feature is regular, frequent individual oral testing using the Interagency Language Roundtable model of the oral interview. Each student was individually tested every two weeks. Describes the testing procedure, giving sample test scripts and the transcript of an…

Though speaking ability receives priority in FL teaching, grades are given with little attention to it. Tests in current use are examined; a new one is proposed. The individual test is preferred to group tests. Various aspects of the individual oral test are discussed. (Text is in German.) (IFS/WGA)

Describes a pilot project whereby oral proficiency interviews were administered to students studying fourth- and fifth-year year German at Amherst Regional High School in Massachusetts. The interviews were based on techniques taught at the American Council on the teaching of Foreign Languages/Educational Testing Service Oral Proficiency Summer…

Concludes that the Spanish Oral Reading Test can be a useful tool for teachers who need to estimate the reading levels of immigrant children. (FL)

The effects of examiner unfamiliarity on the test performance of language handicapped and nonhandicapped preschoolers and school-age children are explored. Results indicate that examiner unfamiliarity selectively depresses handicapped children's test performance, constituting a systemic source of error and threatening the validity of handicapped…

Practical considerations associated with local norms development are discussed. A local norming project administering the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test-Revised to 398 elementary Mexican--American children is presented in detail. The utility of local norms and their interpretation is discussed in the context of this local project. (Author/BW)

Two tests of oral English ability are described and presented: (1) the Oral Placement Test, and (2) the Oral Production Test, which contains three forms for three levels. The tests may be used for placement or diagnosis. Each student is tested individually; the placement test takes five minutes, and each achievement test takes less than ten…

The Oral Language Proficiency Scale is used to determine initial placement of Spanish-speaking students in English as a second language (ESOL) programs, at one of five ESOL proficiency levels. Proficiency is assessed in four areas: oral comprehension, grammar, pronunciation, and vocabulary. The scale is based on student responses to a 20-question…

This paper deals with measurement of language dominance at the early-childhood level using a rating scale to help bilingual programs with student classification and placement. Some of the assumptions unique in the measurement of language dominance are discussed and applied to the validation procedure on a Spanish/English language dominance scale…

THE INCREASED EMPHASIS ON THE AUDIOLINGUAL SKILLS REQUIRES NEW APPROACHES IN TESTING. THESE SKILLS CAN BE SEPARATED INTO SEVERAL AREAS FOR WHICH GROUP AND INDIVIDUAL OBJECTIVE TESTS CAN BE CONSTRUCTED. EXAMPLES OF GROUP TESTS ARE AURAL WORD-RECOGNITION TESTS AND TESTS OF LISTENING COMPREHENSION. TESTS WHICH MUST BE ADMINISTERED INDIVIDUALLY ARE…

This study endeavored to determine (1) the reliability with which selected individual tests of language, visual and auditory perception, and auditory-visual perceptual integration can be administered through group testing; (2) the decrease in administration and scoring time by using these instruments in a group manner, and (3) the relationships…

Describes a study whose aim was to improve the quality of the structured oral interviews used in Denmark to test the English proficiency of high school students after five years of instruction. The study focused on construct validity and interscorer reliability. (SED)