Language Testing (P00371)

? Credit Points : 20 ? SCQF Level : 11 ? Acronym : EDU-P-LTLING

The course covers these topics:

1. Basic Concepts. How fair can a test be?

2. Reliability. How reliable are you as a marker?

3. Validity and ethics. Which is more important: reliability or validity?

4. Criterion-referenced and domain-referenced testing. Creating and using domain specifications.

5. The Structure of Language Proficiency. Construct validity

6. Testing techniques and procedures. Evaluating grammar and vocabulary test items

7. Testing speaking. Evaluating speaking test items

8. Testing writing. Evaluating writing test items

9. Testing listening. Evaluating listening test items

10. Testing reading. Evaluating reading test items

Entry Requirements

none

Subject Areas

Home subject area

Education, (The Moray House School of Education, Schedule C)

Delivery Information

? Normal year taken : Postgraduate

? Delivery Period : Semester 2 (Blocks 3-4)

? Contact Teaching Time : 3 hour(s) per week for 10 weeks

? Other Required Attendance : 20 minutes per week for 11 weeks

All of the following classes

Type	Day	Start	End	Area
Lecture	Tuesday	14:00	15:50	Central
Lecture	Friday	15:00	15:50	Central

Summary of Intended Learning Outcomes

After successful completion, participants should:
- Be familiar with a wide range of current ideas and methods in language testing.
- Be able to relate them to theories and assumptions about language, and learning, and human abilities.
- Have basic competence in writing classroom tests and evaluating published tests.
- Be able to use tests as research tools, e.g. in formative curriculum evaluation.
- Be familiar, at a basic level, with the concerns of professional test writers.

Assessment Information

One project of 5000-6000 words. There will be a choice of projects involving the evaluation and/or design and/or trying out of tests or parts of tests.