Another Look at the C-Test: A Validation Study with Iranian EFL Learners
Title
Another Look at the C-Test: A Validation Study with Iranian EFL Learners
Another Look at the C-Test: A Validation Study with Iranian EFL Learners
Keywords: language proficiency, reliability, discriminatory / discrimination power, construct validity, criterion-related validity, content validity, cloze test, C-Test
Authors
Mahmood Rouhani
Mashad, Iran
Mahmood Rouhani
Mashad, Iran
Bio Data
Mahmood Rouhani holds a masters degree in ELT from the University of Isfahan, Iran. He has been teaching for seven years in high schools and private English schools in Iran. He currently teaches English in high schools in Mashad, Iran
Abstract
This study probes into the validity and discrimination power of the C-Test for the assessment of overall language proficiency. A total of 144 university students participated in this study. A Michigan Test of English Language Proficiency (MTELP) and a C-Test developed by the researcher were administered. The results indicated that the C-Test enjoyed high reliability and acceptable content relevance. Also the C-Test proved to have fairly high criterion-related validity. The extracts used in the C-Test turned out to measure, to a large extent, the same underlying trait as the MTELP significant evidence of construct validity for the C-Test. However, the C-Test texts did not prove to behave consistently with examinees of different proficiency levels. Also it came out that the C-Test could not consistently classify the subjects in their appropriate proficiency levels. This finding was further affirmed by an ANOVA whose results demonstrated that the C-Test had difficulty discriminating between participants of lower and upper intermediate levels.
This study probes into the validity and discrimination power of the C-Test for the assessment of overall language proficiency. A total of 144 university students participated in this study. A Michigan Test of English Language Proficiency (MTELP) and a C-Test developed by the researcher were administered. The results indicated that the C-Test enjoyed high reliability and acceptable content relevance. Also the C-Test proved to have fairly high criterion-related validity. The extracts used in the C-Test turned out to measure, to a large extent, the same underlying trait as the MTELP significant evidence of construct validity for the C-Test. However, the C-Test texts did not prove to behave consistently with examinees of different proficiency levels. Also it came out that the C-Test could not consistently classify the subjects in their appropriate proficiency levels. This finding was further affirmed by an ANOVA whose results demonstrated that the C-Test had difficulty discriminating between participants of lower and upper intermediate levels.
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See page 154-180
[/private]Category: Main Editions, Volume 10 Issue 1
