*Speakers' details as at the date of the symposium held in 2014.
New Directions English: Role of English Assessment in Internationalisation
Plenary Speakers
- 29 September 2014
Professor Masashi Negishi - Tokyo University of Foreign Studies, Japan
Professor Han Baocheng - Beijing Foreign Studies University, China
Professor Barry O’Sullivan - British Council, UK
Professor Tony Green - University of Bedfordshire, CRELLA, UK
Professor Oryang Kwon - Seoul National University, Korea - 30 September 2014
Mr Kuniaki Sato - Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, Japan
Professor David Coniam - The Hong Kong Institute of Education, Hong Kong
Dr Jessica Wu - The Language Training & Testing Center (LTTC), Taiwan
Panel sessions
29 September 2014
1. “Validity and Validation: Huge scale testing”
Validity is often defined as how well an assessment can be shown to accurately reflect a candidate’s true level of ability. Validation includes the techniques and processes test creators use to gather evidence to demonstrate this. The aim of this panel discussion is to share our experiences to more fully understand and incorporate the concepts of validity and validation in large scale testing in South East Asia and beyond. Several current approaches for test quality and accuracy will be discussed in this topic.
Moderator: Mr Keita Nakamura, Eiken Foundation of Japan
Panellists:
Dr Jessica R.W. Wu, The Language Training & Testing Centre
Professor Oryang Kwon, Seoul National University
Professor Baocheng Han, Beijing Foreign Studies University
Dr Neil Drave, Hong Kong Examinations and Assessment Authority
2. “Test Quality and Quality Assurance”
While there are increasing demands to develop and deliver high quality, widely recognised large-scale tests, there is some debate about how testing organisations make plan, deliver and check that they provide excellence in all of these fields. The aim of this panel discussion is to get insight into the perspectives of key language testing organisations on some of the issues.
Moderator: Professor Toshihiko Shiotsu, Kurume University
Panellists:
Mr Spiros Papageorgiou, Educational Testing Service (ETS)
Mr Shuken Shiozaki, Eiken Foundation of Japan
Mr Gerry Delaney, Cambridge English Language Assessment
Ms Toshi Watanabe, Benesse Corporation
Mr Masanori Suzuki, Pearson Education Ltd
Mr Greg Selby, British Council
30 September 2014
3. “Assessing Four Skills”
This topic considers issues related to the routine inclusion of all four language skills in language education programmes across the region. positive and negative impact of assessment on teaching and learning and the implications of these on English language curricula and the learning process. While the discussion will consider the impact on the education system of this type of assessment, other more practical aspects will also be addressed.
Moderator: Professor Anthony Green, University of Bedfordshire
Panellists:
Dr Atsushi Mizumoto, Kansai University
Professor Emeritus Randy Thrasher, International Christian University, Tokyo
Mr Tetsuya Yasukoch, Practical English Promotion Systems
Mr Kuniaki Sato, Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, Japan
4. “Washback”
This topic considers issues related to the positive and negative impact of assessment on teaching and learning and the implications of these on English (and other) language curricula and the learning process. Other aspects to be considered include the possible impact of university entrance examination on the curriculum and how we might use assessment to help create consist transitions between secondary and higher education.
Moderator: Professor Yoshinori J. Watanabe, Sophia University
Panellists:
Professor David Coniam, The Hong Kong Institute of Education
Dr Jessica R.W. Wu, The Language Training & Testing Centre
Professor Emeritus Randy Thrasher, International Christian University, Tokyo