On Hierarchies of Reading Skills and Text Types

Lee, James F.; Musumeci, Diane

doi:10.1111/j.1540-4781.1988.tb04179.x

Cited by 56 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 8 publications

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“…These three groups were deemed to represent a range of levels of ESL proficiency, all of whom would nevertheless require an ability to use English for academic purposes, and were assumed to share the three characteristics described by Lee and Musumeci (1988) referred to above.…”

Section: The Subjectsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The notion of subskills in reading comprehension tests: an EAP example

Lumley

1993

Language Testing

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It has been suggested that reading ability can be divided into various subskills, and this notion is common in ESL teaching and testing. It has, however, also been argued (Alderson and Lukmani, 1989) that teachers are unable to reach agreement about the reading subskills which may be tested by particular reading test items. This study begins by examining the place of subskills in ESL syllabus and test design, with particular attention to the enduring influence of the work of Munby (1978). The issue of teachers' perceptions of subskills and their difficulty, as represented in reading comprehension tests, is discussed. A framework is put forward for negotiating agreement between teachers about subskills tested by reading comprehension test items. Using this framework, very substantial agreement between a group of five experienced teachers of EAP is shown to be achieved in matching subskills to individual test items in the reading section of a test of EAP, as well as in judging the difficulty of these subskills. After brief discussion of the use of Rasch IRT in analysis of reading comprehension test items, the teachers' consensus regarding subskill difficulty level is compared to the Rasch analysis of item difficulty, and the significant correlation found gives some empirical validation to the teachers' perceptions. Implications of the findings for analysis of test content, and for teaching, are considered.

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Section: The Subjectsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The notion of subskills in reading comprehension tests: an EAP example

Lumley

1993

Language Testing

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“…This discussion does not treat the FSI/ACTFL/ILR language scales. Those scales have been discussed in depth elsewhere (ACTFL, 1989;Bachman, 1988;FSI, n.d.;Lantolf & Frawley, 1985;Lee & Musumeci, 1988;Park, 1999). Additionally, although these scales have been claimed to be criterion-referenced, they are more properly seen as proficiency-referenced scales with the task criteria selected to reflect proficiency levels in a norm-referenced manner.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Trends in Assessment Scales and Criterion-Referenced Language Assessment

Hudson¹

2005

Ann Rev Appl Linguist

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Two current developments reflecting a common concern in second/foreign language assessment are the development of: (1) scales for describing language proficiency/ability/performance; and (2) criterion-referenced performance assessments. Both developments are motivated by a perceived need to achieve communicatively transparent test results anchored in observable behaviors. Each of these developments in one way or another is an attempt to recognize the complexity of language in use, the complexity of assessing language ability, and the difficulty in interpreting potential interactions of scale task, trait, text, and ability. They reflect a current appetite for language assessment anchored in the world of functions and events, but also must address how the worlds of functions and events contain non skill-specific and discretely hierarchical variability. As examples of current tests that attempt to use performance criteria, the chapter reviews the Canadian Language Benchmark, the Common European Framework, and the Assessment of Language Performance projects.Two complementary developments in second and foreign language testing relate to issues surrounding characteristics of proficiency or ability scales and how these scales are conceptualized in criterion-referenced performance assessment. These developments have been motivated by a perceived need to produce test results that are more transparent than has traditionally been the case. They are alternative views to those reflected by traditional testing enterprises that provide a single numerical score with an associated indication of the percentile position of the examinee's standing relative to other examinees who took the test. In many ways, each of these developments attempts to address the complexity of language in the assessment of language use. They reflect a current appetite for language assessment anchored in the world of functions and events. These developments interact to promote language assessment that recognizes the need to expand beyond a tradition that has focused on language primarily as a decontextualized cognitive skill or ability. Language takes place in a social context as a social act, and this frequently needs to be recognized in language assessment. This chapter examines three

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“…In a similar vein, it has been argued that the standards described in some general language proficiency rating scales lack an empirical foundation since they are derived from experience and intuition rather than research (Brindley, 1991;Fulcher, 1996). The results of some research studies which have set out to investigate the relationship between level descriptors and actual language use in fact suggest that the constructs described are at odds with data derived from actual learner performance (Lee and Musumeci, 1988;Fulcher, 1987;Lantolf and Frawley, 1988).…”

Section: Geoff Brindley 63mentioning

confidence: 93%

Outcomes-based assessment and reporting in language learning programmes: a review of the issues

Brindley

1998

Language Testing

102

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In recent years educational authorities in many countries have introduced outcomes-based assessment and reporting systems in the form of national standards, frameworks and benchmarks of various kinds which are used both for purposes of system accountability and for assessing individual progress and achievement in language learning. However, in some cases the introduction of these systems has proved problematic, owing to a number of political, technical and practical factors. These include the difficulty of combining formative assessment with summative reporting, the differing information requirements of different audiences, concerns about the validity and reliability of outcome statements and the lack of appropriate resources to support implementation. Such problems may be able to be alleviated by closer consultation between policy-makers, administrators and practitioners, by undertaking further research into the validity and consistency of outcome statements and by strengthening the links between assessment and reporting. A major investment in teacher professional development is necessary if teachers are to be responsible for carrying out their own assessments. Ongoing research needs to be conducted into the effects of outcomes-based assessment and reporting on student learning.

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On Hierarchies of Reading Skills and Text Types

Cited by 56 publications

References 8 publications

The notion of subskills in reading comprehension tests: an EAP example

The notion of subskills in reading comprehension tests: an EAP example

Trends in Assessment Scales and Criterion-Referenced Language Assessment

Outcomes-based assessment and reporting in language learning programmes: a review of the issues

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