This study examines whether English questions on Japanese university entrance
examinations are reliable and valid measures of examinees' language proficiency.
The following tests were administered to 100 college freshmen: a narrationbased,
700-word level, 70-item, open-ended Cloze Test; a test from the National
Center for University Entrance Examination (NCUEE-Test) with the additional
paper-pencil Pronunciation Tests; three grammar tests (At Bt C); TOEFL Listening
Comprehension Test. Results indicate the NCUEE-Test is a fairly reliable and
somewhat valid testing device to measure students' English proficiency. The
grammar tests had a tendency not to be reliable and valid measures of students'
proficiency, though the Grammar Test C showed moderate reliability and
correlation with the Cloze Test. The Pronunciation Test in the NCUEE-Test is not
a reliable measure of the students' listening ability. The need to develop a
reliable external criterion listening test and to replicate the same kind of research
llsing a larger sample of participants is also discussed.
Date:
December 1996
Page No.:
183
Writer(s):
Akihiro Ito, Hiroshima University
PDF:
