01/05/2019
Hello everyone!
In this post we will present different articles, monographs and online sources for the topic in our #mindmap. You can find the complete #mindmap in this post.
If you remember well the topic of our #mindmap was Official English exams so, the articles and bibliography we are going to have a look at today will be related with official exams in English as a Second Language (ESL).
The first article compares Cambridge IELTS and First and Advanced scores. It compares the performance in every exam and compares the scores candidates get. Finally, we get to know how was the Cambridge English Scale produced. It is a very interesting article in terms of evaluation and its information about the background of these exams and institutions is, in my opinion, fundamental for teachers, as we might get to teach in a specific course to prepare official exams.
The second article is the Manual for language Test Development and Examining (by ALTE). This institution is crucial when talkig about language examining. It is based on the MCER (2001) and develops a long list of specific terms that teachers should be aware of and familiar with, regarding language evaluation. In my opinion, we all should have a look at it because it is useful for official examining but, as well for teachers who need to do any kind of testing in their classes.
https://rm.coe.int/manual-for-language-test-development-and-examining-for-use-with-the-ce/1680667a2b
The monograph we are going to have a look at are about communication proficiency and its relation with langague testing research. The first monograph it is titled: Communicative proficiency and linguistic development: intersections between SLA and language testing research.
And, the second monograph is published by English Language Assessment and Cambridge University Press (CUP) and it focuses on the reader's perspective of the Studies in Language Testing series (SiLT). It joins offical exams documentation, washback and impact in different parts of the exams, among others.
https://www.cambridgeenglish.org/Images/201933-studies-in-language-testing-essay-by-xiangdong-gu.pdf
About the online sources we have found graphics information about a CEFR diagram that relates the scores in different official English exams: IELTS, Cambridge English Scale, Business exams, School, High School, etc.
The second online source is a webpage in which indicates some differences between IELTS and CAE exams. It also contains multimedia content, for example a video.
The third online source is a video about TOEFL characteristics. In the video an ESL teacher answers some questions that different people have asked. In my opinion, the idea of answering questions via video is excellent because a lot of people may have similar questions and answering them one by one and in written emails or comments might be a hard job. However, having a video filmed and accessible for everyone online makes this task far more simplier for both parts.
https://youtu.be/BhrmGH-Zsjw
I hope you enjoyed it!
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