新时代我国英语专业四、八级考试的挑战、对策与展望

Test for English Majors in the New Era: Challenges,Solutions and Future Endeavors

英语专业四、八级考试作为我国自主研发的标准参照检查类考试已经历了三十年的健康发展,并在社会各领域、各层面越来越受到广泛的关注和认可。文章从考试的发展和现状出发,指出其在考试构念、试题内容、施考模式、评阅方式等诸多方面所面临的挑战,并提出在新时代背景下这一考试如何以考生为本,以及结合语言测试的前沿发展所采取的一系列对策。最后,文章展望了该考试如何在新时代能够健康可持续发展。

Test for English Majors( TEM) is a criterion-referenced test battery independently developed by researchers and language assessment professionals in China. There are two bands of the test: Band 4 for English majors in their fourth semester of studies,and Band 8 for English majors before graduation. Both bands are yearly administered to English-major students in the Chinese mainland. The past thirty years witnessed its healthy development, where increasing attention and recognition of TEM are gained across different fields and at various levels of the society.This paper first reviews the TEM history over the past three decades. Since the inception in the first phase,TEM developers explored the methods of test design and analysis by referring to the established practices from the British Council and other domestic test batteries,such as College English Test and National Matriculation English Test in China. The second phase was more related to test validation. Under the guidance of the test syllabi,quite a number of studies were centered upon the test usefulness,such as validity and reliability of the test. The third phase is earmarked with the measures test developers took in finetuning the test structure in congruence with the language ability standards and teaching quality requirements stipulated at the national level.Based on the above review, this paper, with a document analysis approach, then highlights the challenges TEM faces in the new era and proposes a few solutions. First, despite the ever-increasing test population,there are changes in the demographic features of TEM test takers nationwide. In particular,the number of test takers from comprehensive universities has slightly declined as a result of the shrinking size of their enrollment;whereas that from independent colleges seem to be increasing exponentially over the last decade. In addition,the latter was found to score low as compared with the national mean score. Therefore,this particular test population is worth further investigation regarding its test taker characteristics and the corresponding contextual validity of the test. Second,in response to the nationwide debate over whether English major should be radically transformed,TEM developers adjusted the test structures to make the test more interactive and life-like. Wherever necessary,problem-solving and critical thinking are also embedded into the test items explicitly or implicitly. It is also proposed that the TEM delivery mode be changed to computerized testing. Such a change is almost due given the favorable policies at the level of national education as well as the preferences of e-reading by targeted test population. In computerized testing mode,the validity and reliability of TEM can be further improved;accordingly,its scoring consistency can also be enhanced and scoring efficiency promoted.In conclusion,TEM developers will employ a series of technology-enhanced solutions to meet the challenges in the new era. This paper looks forward into the future development of the test. First, a more systematic approach will be taken for the TEM validation. Second,an official website should be established and regularly maintained for more transparency of the test and more accountability of test developers. Third, computerized testing mode, if introduced, will give priority to test takers,where test familiarization and test accessibility will be on the top of test developers’ working agenda.