This document discusses different approaches and techniques for language testing. It describes four main approaches: the essay translation approach, structuralist approach, integrative approach, and communicative approach. Each approach is defined and its strengths and weaknesses are outlined. The document also covers various testing techniques such as direct vs indirect testing, discrete point vs integrative testing, norm-referenced vs criterion-referenced testing, and objective vs subjective testing.

1. Language Testing:
Approaches and Techniques
Prepared by:
Balasa, Gretchen May V
Prudente, Joy A.
Penoy, Herlanie N

2. Approaches to language testing
– Approximately, language tests can be
categorized according to four main approaches
of testing.
 Essay translation approach
Structuralist approach
Integrative approach
Communicative approach

3. Essay Translation Approach
a. Characteristics and types of tests in Essay
Translation Approach
1. Is commonly referred to as the pre-scientific
stage of language testing
2. No special skill or expertise in testing is
required
3. Tests usually consists of essay writing,
translation and grammatical analysis
4. Test have a heavy literary and cultural bias

4. b. Strengths of Essay Translation Approach
1. This approach is easy to follow because
teachers will simply imply their subjective
judgment
2. May be used for testing any level of examinees
3. The model of tester can easily be modified
based on the essentials of the tests
c. Weaknesses of Essay Translation Approach
1. Subjective judgment of teachers tend to be
biased
2. As mentioned, the tests have a heavy literary
and cultural bias

5. Structuralist Approach
a. Characteristics and types of structuralist
approach
1. Views that language learning is chiefly concerned
with a systematic acquisition of a set of habits.
2. Involves structural linguistics.
3. Testing the skills of listening, speaking, reading
and writing is separate from another as much as
possible.
4. The psychometric approach to measure with its
emphasis on reliability and objectivity forms an
integral part of structuralist testing

6. b. Strengths of Structuralist Approach
1. In testing students capability, this approach
may objectively and surely be used by testers.
2.Many forms of tests can be covered in the test in
a short time.
3. Using this approach in testing will help
students to find their strengths and weaknesses in
every skill they study.
c. Weaknesses of Structuralist Approach
1. It tends to be a complicated job for teachers to
prepare questioners using this approach.
2. This approach considers measuring non-
integrated skills more than integrated skills.

7. Integrative Approach
a. Characteristics and types of Integrative Approach
1. This approach involves the testing of language in
context and is thus concerned primarily with meaning
and the total communicative effect of discourse.
2. Integrative approach is concerned with the global
view of proficiency.
3. Integrative testing involves functional language .
4. The use of clone test, dictation, oral interview,
translation and essay writing are included in many
integrative tests.

8. b. Strengths of Integrative Approach
1. The approach to meaning and the total
communicative effect of discourse will be very
useful for students in testing
2. This approach can view student’s proficiency
with a global view.
3. A model cloze test used in this approach
measures the readers ability to decode interrupted
or mutilated messages by making the most
acceptable substitutions from all the contextual
clues available.
4. Dictation, another type using this approach, was
regarded solely as means of measuring students
skills of listening comprehension.

9. c. Weaknesses of Integrative Approach
Even if many think that measuring integrated
skills is better, sometimes there is a need to
consider the importance of measuring skills
based on students need such as writing only,
speaking only, etc.

10. Communicative Approach
a. Characteristics and types of tests of
Communicative Approach
1. Concerned primarily on how language is
used in communication.
2. Language used is often emphasized to the
exclusion of language usage.
3. Communicative testing introduces the
concept of qualitative modes of assessment in
preference to quantitative modes of
assessment.

11. b. Strengths of Communicative Approach
1. Communicative tests are able to able to
measure all integrated skills of students.
2. The tests using this approach face students
in real life so it will be very useful for them.
3. Detailed statement of each performance
level serve to increase the reliability of the
scoring by enabling the examiner to make
decisions according to carefully drawn –up
and well-establish criteria.

12. c. Weaknesses of Communicative Approach
1. Unlike the Structuralist Approach, this
approach does not emphasize learning
structural grammar, yet it may be difficult to
achieve communicative competence without a
considerable mastery of the grammar of a
language.
2. It is possible for cultural bias to affect the
reliability of the test being administered.

13. Test Techniques

14. Direct versus Indirect Testing
Direct testing- is easier to carry out when it is
intended to measure the productive skills of
speaking and writing. The acts of speaking and
writing provide information about the students
ability. With listening and reading , however, it
is necessary to get students not only to listen
or read but also to demonstrate that they have
done this successfully.

15. Indirect Testing- attempts to measure the
abilities that underlie the skills in which the
test is interested. It contains underlined items
which the student needs to identify as
erroneous or inappropriate in formal standard
English.

16. Discrete Point versus Integrative
Teaching
Discrete point testing refers to the testing of one
element at a time, item by item. This might, for
example take the form of a series of items, each
testing a particular grammatical structure.
Integrative testing by contrast requires the
candidate to combine many language elements in
the completion of a task. This might involve :
writing a composition, making notes while
listening to a lecture, taking a dictation or
completing a cloze passage.

17. Norm-referenced versus Criterion-
referenced testing
These two types of language test are used
for different purposes. In Norm-referenced
test students scores are interpreted relative to
each other in a normal distribution scheme.
The idea is to spread the students out on a
continuum of knowledge/ability in order to
facilitate proficiency and placement decisions.

18. Criterion-referenced exams on the other
hand, measures students ability against a
predetermined standard, e.g., the learning
objectives of a specific course or unit of a
course. The interpretations of scores is,
therefore, absolute and may be
representational of the amount of course
material that the student has learned.

19. Objective versus Subjective test
The distinction here is between methods of
scoring. If, no judgment is required on the part
of the scorer, then the scoring is objective. The
impressionistic scoring of a composition may
be considered more subjective than the scoring
of short answers in response to questions on a
reading passage.

20. Thank you!!!
.