Implementing Innovation: A Graded Approach to English Language Testing in Hong Kong

Smart, Cameron; Drave, Neil; Shiu, Jennifer

doi:10.1007/978-981-287-071-1_16

Cited by 1 publication

(3 citation statements)

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“…The fact that HKEAA has kept all technical details in-house, including the theoretical and empirical basis of the pedagogical model upon which the test is based (i.e., the senior-secondary curriculum), the validity and reliability of the test design, and the exact procedure for item selection and development in Part A, Part B1, and Part B2, means that there is no official information in the public domain regarding the graded approach except its general scoring mechanism and objectives. According to Smart et al (2014) from HKEAA, the graded approach adopts a nonequivalent groups with anchor test (NEAT) design, where Part B1 is linked to Part A (anchor) using data from candidates taking Part A and Part B1, and then Part A is linked to Part B2 using data from candidates taking Part A and Part B2. Thus, by means of equipercentile equating, during the scoring procedure scores on Part B1 are converted to the scale used for Part B2 using the scores on the compulsory Part A as a mediator.…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…With this graded approach, HKEAA aims to “give candidates a choice of which optional part of the paper best matches their ability” and thus “efficiently test candidates with different abilities” (HKEAA, 2013a, p. 1). As Smart et al (2014) noted, the intended washback is the “promotion of classroom activities and assessments which are less focused on replicating the public examination” (p. 269). It is common for local schools to prescribe senior-secondary classes either a Part-B1- or Part-B2-focused curriculum based on school banding or students’ performance on the school-based secondary three (grade nine) school examination, or both.…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The study aims to uncover (1) the washback effects learners identify following the introduction of this graded approach, (2) the network of underlying personal, familial, institutional, systemic, and societal mediating factors shaping such effects, and (3) the categories of mediating factors that predict each identified type of washback effect. Washback research is sorely needed in the context of the HKDSE testing system, which selects candidates for tertiary education, owing to its gatekeeping function in shaping test-takers' educational futures and life trajectory (Smart et al, 2014), and in distributing power and establishing social order. We investigated the different actors and forces at play through the lens of the test-taker, probing their perceptions of the introduction of the graded approach in HKDSE-English.…”

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confidence: 99%

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Hong Kong secondary students’ perspectives on selecting test difficulty level and learner washback: Effects of a graded approach to assessment

Tsang

Isaacs

2021

Language Testing

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This sequential mixed-methods study investigates washback on learning in a high-stakes school exit examination by examining learner perceptions and reported behaviours in relation to learners’ beliefs and language learning experience, the role of other stakeholders in the washback mechanism, and socio-educational forces. The focus is the graded approach of the Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education English Language Examination (HKDSE-English), incorporated in 2012, that allows test-takers to choose between easier and more difficult sections for reading and listening-integrated skills papers. Inductive coding of focus groups involving 12 secondary students fed into the development of the Washback on Students’ Learning questionnaire, which was administered to another 150 learners. Exploratory factor analyses of identified washback effects revealed four major types straddling different settings (classrooms, tutorial schools, learners’ personal environment), and seven categories of mediating variables pertaining to learners themselves, other stakeholders, and societal influences. Simultaneous multiple regressions identified influential clusters of mediating variables and showed the strongest predictors for each macro-level washback type varied. At least one intrinsic and one extrinsic factor category significantly contributed to all types, reaffirming learner washback as a socially situated, negotiated construct. Implications related to the consequences, use, and fairness of the graded approach are discussed.

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Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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