Placement testing: One test, two tests, three tests? How many tests are sufficient?

Abstract

Accurate placement within levels of an ESL program is crucial for optimal teaching and learning. Commercially available tests are commonly used for placement, but their effectiveness has been found to vary. This study uses data from the Ohio Program of Intensive English (OPIE) at Ohio University to examine the value of two commercially available tests (the TOEFL ITP and the Michigan EPT) and a locally developed writing test for accurate placement decisions. Placement accuracy was measured in terms of the relationship between test scores and (1) appropriate placement levels for individual students according to their teachers, and (2) student performance in the classes. Findings support the continued use of multiple measures for more accurate placement decisions in the study context. However, the relationship between test scores and student performance, measured by students’ grades in the actual course levels and their success in advancing to a higher course level as additional indicators of the extent to which placement tests provide an accurate indication, was weak when analyzed through multiple regression and cross-tabulation, suggesting that factors other than initial proficiency are primarily determinative of student success when students have been accurately placed.

Using the English GSAT for placement into EFL classes: accuracy and validity concerns

“…One of the critical criteria for a placement test is, thus, to include test tasks which “enable valid inferences regarding mastery of knowledge, abilities or skills taught on the course” (Green & Weir, 2004 , p. 469) so as to counter the two threats to construct validity known as “construct under-representation” and “construct-irrelevant variance ” (Messick, 1996 , p. 244). In this regard, to what extent the test task characteristics, including text and task features, align with the content of instruction emerges as an important indicator of the effectiveness of placement decisions (Hille & Cho, 2020 ).…”

“…Conflicting results in previous studies have attracted increasing research attention. Hille and Cho ( 2020 ) recently examined placement accuracy by comparing ESL students’ test scores on two commercially available tests and one locally developed writing test with their actual placement levels determined by their teachers. The results revealed that each test by itself performed similarly in predicting student placement and the combined use of all three tests produced the highest accuracy, yet neither individual tests nor any combinations of these tests could significantly predict students’ course grades and advancement to the next level.…”

“…Hille and Cho’s ( 2020 ) study contributes to the understanding of the predictive value of commercial standardized tests and in-house placement tests in informing placement decisions and student subsequent performance in class. However, as most previous studies, the ESL context of their study where taking a standardized English proficiency test is usually a pre-entry requirement for matriculated international students may make it difficult to generalize the findings to the EFL context where students are generally required to take nationwide entrance exams developed based on the national curriculum standard.…”

“…Accurate placement is expected to lead to optimal teaching and learning as well as increase the likelihood of academic success, while misplacement may undermine the effectiveness of teaching and learning and put excess financial stress on educational institutions and students (Fox, 2009 ; Hille & Cho, 2020 ). Nevertheless, how to accurately place students according to their English proficiency has been a great challenge faced by educational practitioners (Su, 2010 ), for reliable and valid criteria for classification are difficult to attain (McMillan & Joyce, 2011 ), and students’ intentions of taking in-house placement tests are hard to control (Su, 2010 ).…”

“…In the context of placement decisions mainly based on test scores, the alignment between test task characteristics and the content of instruction is a determining factor in the effectiveness of placement decisions (Hille & Cho, 2020 ). A mismatch between what is assessed and what is taught may make it difficult to accurately inform placement decisions (Kokhan, 2013 ) or significantly predict student subsequent performance in the classes (Hille & Cho, 2020 ; Lee & Greene, 2007 ).…”