The Washback of the General English Proficiency Test on University Policies: A Taiwan Case Study  

Oleh:

Shih, Chih-Min

Jenis: Article from Journal - e-Journal
Dalam koleksi: Language Assessment Quarterly vol. 7 no. 3 (2010), page 234-254.
Fulltext: Language Assessment Quarterly, 7,234–254,.pdf (320.02KB)

Isi artikel

Within the context of Taiwan, where growing numbers of universities seek teaching excellence and better English learning outcomes, passing a designated English test has been imposed on thousands of university students as one of their degree requirements. This educational policy has become feasible only after the debut of the indigenous General English Proficiency Test (GEPT). Very few studies, however, have examined the impact of the GEPT on universities’ policies. This research elicited empirical data from two applied foreign language departments of technological universities. One department did not lay down any English test as a degree requirement, whereas the other required its daytime students to pass the listening and reading tests of the GEPT’s intermediate level. In each department, the department chair and two or three teachers were interviewed; in addition, departmental documents and records were reviewed. Results showed that teachers had to consider social and educational factors, school factors, and parental and student factors before they decided if they would implement their English requirement. Finally, a model is provided to portray the complexity of the GEPT’s washback on departmental and school policies.

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