What makes a good language test in EFL?

Abstract

Language testing is a fundamental part of learning and teaching in school today, and has been throughout history even though views on language testing have changed. This paper reports on what r e s e a r ch says regarding the various components that are needed when constructing and using a language test. The findings points towards the importance of validity, reliability, and washback and the fact that these issues should be addressed with high consideration in order for a test to have a positive effect. We can see that evidence points to the fact that when tests are used, they have to measure what they are supposed to measure and that the evidence in validity is crucial. Furthermore, the terms test-retest and parallel tests were emphasized when discussing the reliability concept even though those methods have problems. Moreover, when the concept of washback was examined, it was clear that it is a powerful tool for both language learners and teachers. The literature suggested that the focus should be on impact and not processes. Finally, the presented criticism towards certain language tests showed that the tests were not used to assess language proficiency, and had both reliability and validity issues. As it seems, most classroom tests are neither very reliable nor possibly valid because teachers are not able to construct proper tests with all these features. The results of this review seem to indicate that there is a lack of research regarding on how this gap could be closed and therefore deserves more attention.