Chapter 2 Principles of Language Testing

Question 1

Authenticity

Answer 1

degree of correspondence of the characteristics of a given language test task to the features of a target language task. as natural as possible, meaningful topics, real-world tasks

Question 2

Washback Effect

Answer 2

Effect of testing on teaching and learning. includes the effects of an assessment on teaching and learning prior to the assessment itself

Question 3

Practicality

Answer 3

whether a test should be implemented in a specific context in consideration of time, cost, and available resources

Question 4

Reliability

Answer 4

stability and dependability of a test. the arguments on whether a test is able to measure individual competence in a consistent and dependable manner

Question 5

Classical Test Theorem (Reliability)

Answer 5

X (observed score) = T (true score) + E (error)

Question 6

Student-Related Reliability

Answer 6

The most common learner-related issue in reliability is cause by temporary illness, fatigue, a bad day, anxiety, and other physical factors, which may make an observed score deviate from one’s true score

Question 7

Test Administration Reliability

Answer 7

Unreliability may also result from the conditions in which the test is administered (room lighting, classroom conditions)

Question 8

Rater Reliability

Answer 8

Human error, subjectivity, and bias may enter into the scoring process

Question 9

Inter-rater reliability

Answer 9

occurs when two or more scorers yield inconsistent scores of the same test, possibly for lack of attention to scoring criteria, inattention or even preconceived biases

Question 10

Intra-rater reliability

Answer 10

common occurrence for classroom teachers because of unclear scoring criteria, fatigue, bias toward particular good and bad students, or simple carelessness

Question 11

Test-Retest reliability

Answer 11

A reliability estimate that is based on testing the same examinees twice with the same test and then correlating the results

Question 12

Validity

Answer 12

extent to which inferences made from assessment results are appropriate, meaningful, and useful in terms of the purpose of the assessment

Question 13

Face validity

Answer 13

to the degree to which a test looks right, and appears to measure the knowledge or abilities it claims to measure, based on the subjective judgment of the examinees who take it

Question 14

Content Validity

Answer 14

A conceptual or non-statistical validity based on a systematic analysis of the test content to determine whether it includes an adequate sample of the target domain to be measured

Question 15

Criterion-related validity

Answer 15

refers to the extent to which the “criterion” of the test has actually been reached

Question 16

Concurrent validity

Answer 16

A type of validity which is concerned with the relationship b/n what is measured by a test (usually a newly developed test) and another existing criterion measure, which may be a well-established standardized test, a set of judgments or some other quantifiable variable

Question 17

Predictive validity

Answer 17

measures how well a test predicts performance on an external criterion. The main purpose of a test is to provide information about likely behavior in the real world, prediction of criterion performance is basic to test validation (e.g placement tests, language aptitude tests)

Question 18

Consequential Validity

Answer 18

It encompasses all the consequences of a test, including such considerations as its accuracy in measuring intended criteria, its impact on the preparation of test-takers, its effect on the learner, and the (intended and unintended) social consequences of a test’s interpretation and use. similar to washback effect

Question 19

Construct Validity

Answer 19

whether constructs (theories, hypothesis, models that attempt to explain observed phenomena) are measured in the exams