Assessing foreign language students' spoken proficiency : [electronic resource] stakeholder perspectives on assessment innovation / Martin East

Foreword; Acknowledgments; Contents; List of Figures; List of Tables; Chapter 1: Mediating Assessment Innovation: Why Stakeholder Perspectives Matter; 1.1 Introduction; 1.2 Background: The Importance of Interaction in Foreign Languages Pedagogy; 1.2.1 Communicative Language Teaching; 1.2.2 Communicative Language Testing; 1.3 Curriculum and Assessment Reforms in New Zealand; 1.3.1 Overview; 1.3.2 Implementing Assessment Reform: A Risky Business; 1.4 Assessment Validation; 1.4.1 Fundamental Considerations; 1.4.2 The Contribution of Assessment Score Evidence to a Validity Argument. 1.4.3 The Limitations of Assessment Score Evidence to a Validity Argument1.4.4 Towards a Broader Understanding of Assessment Validation; 1.4.5 A Qualitative Perspective on Assessment Validation; 1.5 The Structure of This Book; 1.6 Conclusion; References; Chapter 2: Assessing Spoken Proficiency: What Are the Issues?; 2.1 Introduction; 2.2 What Does It Mean to Communicate Proficiently?; 2.2.1 Communicative Competence as the Underlying Theoretical Framework; 2.2.2 Developing the Framework of Communicative Competence; 2.3 Static or Dynamic; 2.3.1 The Static Assessment Paradigm. 2.3.2 The Dynamic Assessment Paradigm2.3.3 Static or Dynamic -- A Complex Relationship; 2.4 Task-Based or Construct Based; 2.4.1 The Centrality of the Task; 2.4.2 The Importance of the Construct; 2.5 Single or Paired Performances; 2.5.1 Single Performance Assessments; 2.5.2 Paired/Group Performance Assessments; 2.6 Conclusion; References; Chapter 3: Introducing a New Assessment of Spoken Proficiency: Interact; 3.1 Introduction; 3.2 The New Zealand Landscape for Assessment -- A Shifting Environment; 3.2.1 The 1990s: A Mismatch Between Curricular Aims and High-Stakes Assessment. 3.2.2 The NCEA System: The Beginnings of Reform3.2.3 The Impact of Assessment Mismatch on FL Programmes; 3.2.4 The NCEA for Languages -- 2002-2010; 3.3 Towards a Learner-Centred Model for High-Stakes Assessment; 3.3.1 2007: The Advent of a New Curriculum; 3.3.2 NCEA Mark II; 3.4 Revising the Assessments for Languages; 3.4.1 2008: The First SCALEs Meeting; 3.4.2 2009: The Second SCALEs Meeting; 3.4.3 2010: A Further Opportunity to Confirm the New Assessments; 3.4.4 2011 Onwards: Support for the Implementation of Interact; 3.5 Conclusion; References. Chapter 4: Investigating Stakeholder Perspectives on Interact4.1 Introduction; 4.2 Bachman and Palmer's Test Usefulness Framework; 4.2.1 Construct Validity and Reliability; 4.2.2 Interactiveness, Impact, Practicality and Authenticity; 4.3 2011 Onwards: Interact in Practice; 4.4 The Theoretical Usefulness of Interact; 4.5 A Study into Teachers' and Students' Views; 4.6 Study Stage I; 4.6.1 Nationwide Teacher Survey; 4.6.2 Piloting the Teacher Survey; 4.6.3 Administering the Main Survey; 4.6.4 Teacher Interviews; 4.7 Stage II; 4.7.1 Teacher Interviews; 4.7.2 Student Surveys; 4.8 Conclusion.

This book presents an in-depth study of assessment innovation and its impact on teaching and learning. The context is New Zealand, and the focus is additional languages other than English and the recent introduction of a radical new assessment of students' spoken proficiency, called interact. The book crosses the traditional theoretical and methodological boundaries associated with language testing research, which focuses on assessment performance, and presents an alternative approach where stakeholders become the centre of interest. It advances our understanding of how assessment innovation impacts on two key groups - teachers and students in schools - based on data collected from a substantial two-year research project. It presents an account of these stakeholders' perceptions of the validity and usefulness of the new assessment in comparison with the more traditional test that it has replaced.