This book offers a succinct theoretical introduction to the basic concepts
in language testing in a way that is easy to understand. In the Japanese
context, this book is highly recommended for university faculty members
involved in obtaining assessment literacy, teachers who want to validate
their exploratory teaching and testing, or applied linguistics students new
to the language testing field.
The book is divided into four main sections. The first provides an overview
of the principles of language testing. The next contains short extracts
from the testing literature with questions which stimulate further
thinking. Section 3 is a list of references with brief annotations
and Section 4 a glossary of referenced testing terms.
The survey in Section 1 is thorough, clear, and easy to follow - though
more theoretical than practical. It focuses on language testing principles
rather than practical advice about how to design and implement good tests.
This background knowledge, nevertheless, can help teachers critically
evaluate their testing practices.
One of the most appealing aspects of Section 1 are the
effective illustrations offered by the author. Concepts in language
testing are not always easy to grasp, but by contextualising them in
vivid everyday situations they become more understandable. One
particularly effective image was the suggestions that we should try to
measure a child's growth with a ruler which only marked off every 30 cm.
This image made it easy to understand that we must have an
appropriate measure to assess language development in order to detect
student progress.
The extracts in Section 2 introduce topics such as the testing cycle and
validity: testing the test, and then have questions which encourage
readers to consider matters in more depth. This is particularly useful for
those discussing their ideas with their colleagues and / or supervisors.
One sample extract presents four clear sources of unreliability when
assessing oral performance. Teachers experiencing difficulty in assessing
student performance can deepen their understanding of why this unreliability
occurs. The follow up questions are designed to help readers consider
possible solutions. It is regrettable that this book does not include any
suggested further readings which would offer possible solutions.
The list of references in Section 3, though mentioning many key language
testing texts, is sometimes disappointingly brief. For example, there are
only two references for the problematic area of test rating. There are only
four references for the entire topic of validation, arguably the most
important aspect of the entire testing process. Most of the references
appear to be academic in nature, which is appropriate for applied
linguistics students, but practicing teachers may appreciate the inclusion
of more practical texts.
It is easy to use this book as a reference book. The nature of this survey,
with short chapters and sub-headings, makes it easy to find specific topics
readers are interested in. Generally the cross-referencing is very helpful.
Throughout the text readers are referred back and forth to places where
the material is discussed in more detail.
The glossary in Section 4 also lists page numbers where terms can be found
in the main survey, but it is disappointing that only one occurrence, and
not a list of all occurrences of the term are included. For example,
critical language testing is referenced to page 72, but the main discussion
of this movement is found on pages 76 and 77. It would therefore have been
helpful to include these pages in the glossary.
In spite of the few criticisms made here, this book remains an excellent
overview of the main principles of language testing. Although not as
thoroughly developed as possible, Sections 2 and 3 do encourage readers to
both seek further information and relate this theoretical knowledge to their
testing practice. The main purpose of this book is to enable readers to
understand testing theory more deeply and relate this knowledge to their
testing practice. In Japan this book could be a much needed catalyst for
change were it made required reading for all exam committee members.
- Reviewed by Yvonne Ishida
