This study employed a multi-methods design to investigate the impact of preparation on Chinese test-takers' perceptions of the integrated TOEFL iBT speaking and writing design. Combining results from over 1700 surveys and 10 interviews, it was found that these Chinese test-takers, who are the most vulnerable group in the multimillion testing…

The study explores the unaddressed washback on the English-speaking test of the Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education Examination (HKDSE-English Language Paper 4). The HKDSE is a university entrance exam in Hong Kong which includes a group discussion speaking test known as English Language Paper 4. To identify ongoing washback effects,…

The current study explores the impact of varying multiple-choice question preview and presentation formats in a test of second language listening proficiency targeting different levels of text comprehension. In a between-participant design, participants completed a 30-item test of listening comprehension featuring implicit and explicit information…

The awarding organizations that create and administer high-stakes assessments for beginner-to-low-intermediate 16-year-old learners of French, German, and Spanish in England provide optional topic-driven word lists as guides for teachers and textbook writers. Given that these lists are developed by the awarding organizations, they exert a powerful…

Benefits for L2 reading through offering learners extensive reading with listening have been found in empirical studies, but those findings may be under-utilized in academic English preparation settings, due to prioritized test practice in response to high-stakes testing for university matriculation. Self-paced extensive reading with listening…

The case study of the article is translanguaging as an educational strategy in preparation for the graduation exam in Romanian language and literature in a Hungarian school in Miercurea Ciuc/Csíkszereda, Romania. Romanian language competence scores are at the bottom of national rankings in this Hungarian-majority town in Szeklerland. Students who…

Literature has long been used as a tool for language teaching and learning. In the New Academic Structure in Hong Kong, it has become an important element in the senior secondary English language curriculum to promote communicative language teaching (CLT) with a process-oriented approach. However, as in many other English as a second or foreign…

This article reports on a study that was carried out to explore the factors that contribute to a negative washback effect on English language teaching (ELT) in secondary schools in Bangladesh. Twelve secondary school teachers were interviewed to understand their perspectives on which factors influenced their pedagogical choices. The interview data…

The differential impacts of high stakes testing (HST) on curriculum, pedagogy, students learning, teacher professional development, and equity have been known in the literature, but its cancellation impact is not yet known. Situated in the post cancellation policy in Indonesian education system, this study seeks to explore the impacts of such…

This study critically examines the discursive reconstruction of ethnic hierarchies in English language textbooks used in public schools in post-conflict Sri Lanka. Set against a social and political backdrop of larger nation state-building and national reconciliation taking place in Sri Lanka after it ended a three-decade ethnic conflict, this…

The current study aimed to identify the effectiveness of a training program in the development of study skills and improvement of English language achievement among the 10th grade students. To achieve the study objectives, a training program was designed and applied to (35) first-grade high school students. The respondents were pre- and…

The study aims to explore the washback of incorporating English listening test in the senior high entrance exam (Comprehensive Assessment Program: CAP) on EFL instruction in junior high schools in Taiwan. The participants were thirty English teachers and 298 students from three junior high schools in Taiwan. The instruments consisted of…

In Mongolia, teachers' attitudes towards large-scale assessments have been a largely uncovered area. Therefore, this paper focuses on examining the general overview of English language teachers' belief about state-level assessments, and their reflection on teaching practices. Participants of this study were 307 teachers of primary and secondary…

Considerable evidence indicates that self-efficacy, task value, anxiety, and the use of language learning strategies are related. However, there is currently an insufficient understanding about their relations in high-stakes testing contexts. The author aimed to investigate how well social factors, test value, anxiety, test performance, and…

What approaches are used in the multi-level language class and what influences a teacher's choice of approach? Multi-level language classes, the combining of two or more senior year levels into a single class, is a relatively recent phenomenon and one that is becoming increasingly common in New Zealand secondary schools as a consequence of a…