We investigated the effects of instruction method and cross-language similarity during second language (L2) grammar learning. English speakers learned a subset of Swedish using contrast and color highlighting (Salience Group), contrast and highlighting with grammatical explanations (Rule & Salience Group), or neither (Control Group with…

Recently there has been an increasing level of interest in subtest scores, or subscores, for their potential diagnostic value. Haberman (2008) suggested a method to determine if a subscore has added value over the total score. Researchers have often been interested in the performance of subgroups--for example, those based on gender or…

This study investigated the sub-syllabic awareness of two groups of 86 Korean kindergarteners learning English as a foreign language (EFL) or English as a second language (ESL). In addition, it explored the cross-language transfer of sub-syllabic units between Korean and English by taking into account their lexical abilities with respect to the…

The scoring of constructed responses may introduce construct-irrelevant factors to a test score and affect its validity and fairness. Fatigue is one of the factors that could negatively affect human performance in general, yet little is known about its effects on a human rater's scoring quality on constructed responses. In this study, we compared…

This study investigated whether there was a correlation between first language proficiency as measured by the Mississippi Curriculum Test (MCT II) Reading and Language Arts and foreign language proficiency as measured by the French Language Proficiency Test. Data for the independent variable, first language proficiency, was collected from the…

The influence exerted by language tests on language teaching and learning has been called washback (Pearson, 1988). Although an increasing number of empirical washback studies have appeared after the call by Alderson and Wall (1993), the perspectives of the most immediate stakeholders, the test takers, are largely under-researched. Equally…

Sequential regression was used to evaluate whether language-related working memory components uniquely predict reading and writing achievement beyond cognitive-linguistic translation for students in Grades 4 through 9 (N = 103) with specific learning disabilities (SLDs) in subword handwriting (dysgraphia, n = 25), word reading and spelling…

The present paper looks at the issue of standardization in L2 oral testing. Whereas external examiners are frequently used globally, some countries opt for test-takers' own teachers as examiners instead. In the present study, Sweden is used as a case in point, with a focus on the mandatory, high-stakes, summative, ninth-grade national test in…

The aim of the current study is to determine what language activities Norwegian preschool children took part in, and to examine whether these language activities predict children's language comprehension. We tested children (n = 134) with language measures at age 4/5 and age 5/6 and interviewed their teachers (n = 71) about the kinds of language…

This article reports a study which examined the effects of an "Awakening to Languages" (AtL) programme on preschool children's language abilities. This programme aimed at exposing children to language and cultural diversity as well as promoting positive attitudes towards different languages and cultures amongst children. However,…

We examined parents' satisfaction with multiple aspects of their children's individualized education programs (IEPs). Parents (n = 142) raising children ages 4 to 8 years old with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) reported their satisfaction with four aspects of their children's IEPs: (a) content of the IEP document, (b) services provided, (c)…

This study investigated the impact of electronic-based dynamic assessment on the listening skill of Iranian EFL learners to achieve this goal, a group of 40 female EFL upper-intermediate students (aged between 26 to 38 years old) from to language institutes were selected as the participants of the study after administering a Quick Placement Test…

The purpose of the present study is to compare the psychometric qualities of canonical single-response multiple-choice items with their double-response counterparts. Thirty, two-response fouroption grammar items for undergraduate students of English were constructed. A second version of the test was constructed by replacing one of the correct…

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of teaching some self-regulated strategies to Egyptian university students on improving their speaking proficiency and reducing their speaking anxiety. The design of the study was a one group pre-posttest quasi experimental design. Forty 3rd- year EFL university students were selected to form the…

Syntax has a high importance among linguistic parameters, and syntax-related problems are the most common in language disorders. Therefore, the present study aimed to design a Photographic Expressive Persian Grammar Test for Iranian children in the age group of 4-6 years and to determine its validity and reliability. First, the target…