Social Attribute Analysis of Foreign Language Tests

【Abstract】Social attributes of foreign language tests have attracted increasing attention from linguists. The research scope of its social attributes includes social dimension of language competence and social applications and impacts of testing. This article explores social attributes from three aspects： the sociality of language competence standards， testing， and research and development. This research will provide significant implications for language testing in our country.

【Key words】foreign language tests； social attribute； language ability standard； testing research and development

【作者簡(jiǎn)介】姚敏，內(nèi)蒙古師范大學(xué)。

More and more researchers have focus on the social attributes of language testing. This paper aims to explore the social attributes and its implications.

Ⅰ. Social Properties of Foreign Language Tests

1.1 Sociability of language proficiency standards

The sociability of language proficiency standard mainly defines in social dimension of linguistic competence. It includes the understanding of linguistic constituents and the social factors such as context and cultural factors.

According to Canale & Swain， communicative language ability refers to using language to communicate in social contexts properly. Meanwhile， they supplemented the concept of ‘social language ability and put individuals initiative， holding that ‘social language ability contains the initiative of communicating individuals in addition to appropriateness.

1.2 Sociality of test development

Social dimension of language tests mainly embodies two aspects： how to measure language use ability in different social situations and how to ensure fairness in test development.

Language proficiency measurement can be called the most complex problem in language testing. To test “l(fā)anguage in action”， social dimension of language proficiency should also be measured. Swain put forward ‘cooperative test task， holding that testing spoken language ability in interaction is closer to real-world language use. And some empirical studies have found that cooperative testing tasks can help improve candidates test performance.

How to assess social language competence and strategic competence is also a great challenge in language testing. Fairness is an important aspect of social attributes. It is reflected in the measurement of fairness， that is， the measurement is effective， the error is small， the score is comparable... （Yang Huizhong， 2014）.

1.3 Sociality of test and its impact

（1） Ethic and responsibility. Davies expounded ethic of test from the perspective of professionalism， emphasizing that ethics is the objective requirement of professionalism. Clearly， only responsibilities were made clear distinctions， can people treat their responsibilities correctly.

（2） Policy and control. Previously， researchers are mainly concerned with how to design high-quality test questions. But some social questions such as political and social impacts did not cause enough attention （Lazaraton， 2010）. And some departments regards test as a tool to strength their power. With the increasing economic globalization， social impacts of language tests become more complex. Hence， it is necessary to find proper ways to formulate and implement language tests.

（3） Backwash and impact. Backwash refers to the impact of language testing on teaching， while impact refers to the impact on macro-level like social systems （Mc Namara， 2000）. Social factors often go beyond the control of language planners， especially when exams become a tool to embody policies. In this case， a higher level decision is needed to improve post-examination.

Ⅱ. Implications of Language Test

（1） The implications of language test reflect in three aspects： For teachers and students： The aim of language testing is to evaluate students ability and reflect advantages and disadvantages in teaching. To receive desired results， teachers should help students understand the function of exams and explore effective teaching methods. Besides， students should believe that English can be learned well with hard work but not “shortcut”.

（2） For society： With the social nature of large-scale examinations， the society should treat examinations correctly. Firstly， the misuse of test results should be avoided. Besides， a relaxed academic atmosphere should be created. The so-called “poster” discussions make no sense to language testing.

（3） For language test R&D;： Test research and development should balance the relationships between “authenticity”， “interaction” and “fairness”. And ethic code and management regulation should be established to ensure the fairness of different areas.

Ⅲ. Conclusion

Language test is the product of social development. The decision-makers must take the social nature of test into account， including its risks， to protect the interests of people involved in exams.

References：

[1]楊惠中，桂詩(shī)春.語(yǔ)言測(cè)試的社會(huì)學(xué)思考[J].現(xiàn)代外語(yǔ)，2007（4）.