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AN OVERVIEW OF LANGUAGE TESTING

Article  in  European Journal of Language and Literature · December 2020

DOI: 10.46827/ejlll.v4i3.230

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 European Journal of Literature, Language and Linguistics Studies
ISSN: 2559 - 7914
ISSN-L: 2559 - 7914
Available on-line at: www.oapub.org/lit

DOI: 10.46827/ejlll.v4i3.230 Volume 4 │ Issue 3 │ 2020

AN OVERVIEW OF LANGUAGE TESTING

Prashneel Ravisan Goundari

Department of Language & Literature,
Fiji National University,
Lautoka, Fiji

Abstract:
Scholars have stated that it is “challenging to describe proficiency” (Goundar, 2020). One of the
issues that teachers, researchers, students and language testers encounter is defining “what it
actually means to be proficient in an L2”. Language proficiency “is the extent to which an individual
possesses the linguistic cognition necessary to function in a given communicative situation, in a given
modality such as listening, speaking, reading or writing”. It can be implied that proficiency is often
discussed in the context of L2 acquisition, usually measured with test-scores. We conduct
language tests in order gauge a learn proficiency. Therefore, it is crucial to first get an overview
of the field of language testing. The aim of this paper is to briefly outline what has transpired in
the field of language testing over the years.

Keywords: language testing, examination, CPE, TOEFL, IELTS

1. Introduction

The field of “language testing can be traced as back as 1,500 years” (Goundar, 2020). During the “Sui
Dynasty (581-618) in China, formal testing began in order to identify individuals who were most suitable
within the empire for crucial positions in the administration, without any bias of their social class”
(O’Sullivan, 2012, p.9). However, “modern English language testing only appeared on the scene from
the 20th century” (Goundar, 2020).
In order “to test the language performance of persons from the British colonies who wished to
pursue education in the UK, the Cambridge Proficiency Examination (CPE) was introduced in 1913”
(O’Sullivan, 2012). The examination was designed “on a coherent philosophy of language learning
developed by Henry Sweet” (1899) and for this reason “Sweet is attributed as the founder of Applied
Linguistics” (Coombe, Davidson, & O'Sullivan, 2012, p.11).
The developers of CPE prepared the first examination in 1913 using Sweet’s method as is
depicted in Figure 2 on the guideline of the content of a test.

i Correspondence: email prgoundar@gmail.com, prashneel.goundar@fnu.ac.fj

Copyright © The Author(s). All Rights Reserved 161

 Prashneel Ravisan Goundar
AN OVERVIEW OF LANGUAGE TESTING

Part 1: Phonetics (teaching of & practical application) ‘start with the spoken language’

Part 2: Grammar; Vocabulary; Study of Texts; Translation; Conversation

Part 3: Essays on language & languages

Figure 2: Henry Sweet’s Rationally Progressive Method
(O'Sullivan, 2012, p.11; Goundar, 2020)

The first ‘CPE in 1913 measured the candidate’s language performance that set a
precedent for the approach to assessment, which is still dominant in Britain and much of Europe’
(Goundar, 2020). Figure 3 reveals the content of the first Cambridge Proficiency Examination
where similarities can be observed between it and Sweet’s (1899) method such as “phonetics,
translations, and grammar as well as conversation”.

Writing:
• Translation (English to French or German): 2 hours
• Translation (from French or German to English) + English grammar: 2 ½ hours
• Essay: 2 hours
• English Literature: 3 hours
• English Phonetics: 1 ½ hours

Oral:
• Dictation: 1 ½ hours
• Reading & conversation: 1 ½ hours
Figure 3: Contents of the 1913 Cambridge Proficiency Examination
(O'Sullivan, 2012, p.11; Goundar, 2020)

On the other hand, “the United States were interested in standardizing students written
performance” (Goundar, 2020). Thorndike (1911, 1912) “developed the first standardized examination
in 1908 whereby he collected a large sample of students’ handwritten essays and asked 200 teachers to
organize the scripts in order of legibility”. He then created “a scale upon which he placed a set of
exemplar scripts after which he asked the teachers to compare the samples with the ones on the scale and
the closest match would indicate the level” (Goundar, 2020). Further, “using the same methodology
Hillegas in 1912 designed the first standardized scale for written composition and in 1914 Courtis
compiled the first standardized examination of English language” (Goundar, 2020). Courtis (1914,
p.391) explained that “on the basis of these tests and the requirements of the school it is possible to
conclude that an eighth-grade child of standard ability should be able to write an original story at the rate
of 18 words per minute and that legibility of the writing should be 60 on the Ayres scale (this measured
the relative accuracy of judgments of handwriting), and there should not be more than five mistakes in
punctuation per hundred words, two spelling, and two in syntax”. In addition, “in careful reading the
rate should be 230 words per minute, and that in the reproduction of the material, 12 of the original words
should be used per minute and that these words should constitute 50 percent of the words used in the
reproduction” (Goundar, 2020).

European Journal of Literature, Language and Linguistics Studies - Volume 4 │ Issue 3 │ 2020 162
 Prashneel Ravisan Goundar
AN OVERVIEW OF LANGUAGE TESTING

2. After the 1960s

In the early 1960s, “another milestone was reached in this field of English language testing, when in the
United States the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) was implemented” (Goundar, 2020).
After the “introduction of TOEFL, the development of general proficiency examinations continued for
another three decades” (O'Sullivan, 2012, p.14). 1979 saw “the introduction of the Test of English for
International Communication (TOEIC) in response to a request from the Japanese Ministry of Trade and
Industry for the purpose of testing of language for business contexts” (Goundar, 2020). The validity of
TOEIC test can be argued upon as the test focuses on general English and result reporting using
a norm-referenced reporting system. According to O'Sullivan (2012, p.14), “a norm-referenced
reporting system reports the performance of each individual in terms of the rest of the candidature”.

3. In the 1980s

In the UK, ‘by the early 1980s, the formation of the English Language Testing Service (ELTS)
addressed the issue of testing language for specific purposes. Soon, ELTS became the
International English Language Testing System (IELTS) which is still prevalent in many
countries and used extensively for migration and immigration purposes’ (Fulcher, 2004, p.262;
O'Sullivan, 2012, p.14). “IELTS is considered more of a holistic approach to testing language proficiency
which is one of the major reasons why it has become more marketable” (Goundar, 2020), similar to the
TOEIC.

4. Conclusion

Finally, “by the 1990s the use of IELTS grew from a few thousand candidates per year to over a million”
(Goundar, 2020). Due to this growth “there was a decline of other tests such as the Cambridge ESOL
Main Suite in the early years of the 21 st century” (Goundar, 2020), which implied a shift in emphasis
from general to specific purposes testing. As a final point on the overview of language testing,
recent years has witnessed the emergence of TOEFL iBT (Internet-based TOEFL) that can be
classified as “more acceptable for performance and criterion-referenced test analysis” than the
“traditional classical test statistics” (O'Sullivan, 2012, p.15).

About the Author

Prashneel Ravisan Goundar is a Lecturer in Language at Fiji National University, Lautoka, Fiji.
His books include ‘Pursuing Divinity in Paradise’ (2020), ‘In Simple Words’ (2017) and ‘Writing and
Publishing in Fiji; Narratives from Fijian Writers’ (2018) an edited volume. He is currently working
on his Doctor of Philosophy (Linguistics) and has an MA in Teaching English as a Second Language.
Goundar has also published research papers in ranked journals, book chapters, newspaper
articles, and book reviews. He serves on the Editorial Board of Language Teaching Research,
English Language Teaching, and the Journal of Applied Research in Higher Education. To connect,
email him on prgoundar@gmail.com or follow on Instagram & Twitter: @prgoundar.

European Journal of Literature, Language and Linguistics Studies - Volume 4 │ Issue 3 │ 2020 163
 Prashneel Ravisan Goundar
AN OVERVIEW OF LANGUAGE TESTING

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 Prashneel Ravisan Goundar
AN OVERVIEW OF LANGUAGE TESTING

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