CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

A. Background
Education is a necessity that cannot be separated from everyday life.
Each person must have tried to get a good education informal and formal
institutions. Success or failure in a school is often measured by the
results of the assessment at the end of the learning process, although it is
not sole determinant tool and education, but it is still used in the world of
education.
In education there are variety of disciplines, including lesson learned.
Lesson include four skills namely listening, speaking, writing, and reading.
All of it should also be tested to determine the ability the student.
The testing of language capabilities is a beginning step to assess the
abilities of a person. In the context of language teaching and learning,
‘assessment’ refers to the act of collecting information and making
judgments about a language learner’s knowledge of a language and
ability to use it1.
In this time, we are as the first group will discuss about misconception
about language testing and competence of language testing.
B. Problem Statement
1. What is language testing ?
2. What are some common misconceptions about language testing ?
3. What are components in language testing ?
4. Why language testing is important to be component in language
testing ?

1
Chapelle, Carol . Universities of Iowa State and Maquerie

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 CHAPTER II

DISCUSSION

A. Theoretical Framework
The activity of developing and using language tests. As a psychometric
activity ,language testing traditionally was more concerned with the
production, development and analysis of test. Recent critical and
ethical approaches to language testing have placed more emphasis on
the uses of language test.2.
A test is a method of measuring a person’s ability, knowledge, or
performance in a given domain. A test is first a method. It is an
instrument – a set of technique, procedures, or items that requires
performance on the part of the test-taker. To qualify as attest, the
method must be explicit and structured. Second, a test must measure.
Some tests measure general ability, while others focus on very specific
competencies or objectives. A multi-skill proficiency test determines a
general ability level; a quiz on recognizing correct use of definite
articles measures specific knowledge. Particularly large-scale
standardized test, provide a total numerical score, a percentile rank,
and perhaps some subscorses. If an instrument does not specify a
form of reporting measurement, a means for offering the test-taker
some kind of result, then that technique cannot appropriately be
defined as attest. A test measures an individual’ ability , knowledge, or
performance. Testers need to understand who the test-taker are. What
is their previous experience and background ? Is the test appropriately
matched to their abilities ? How should test-takers interpret their scores
? A test measures performance, but the results imply the test-taker’s

2
Davies, Alan. Universities of Edinburgh

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 ability or to use a concept common in the field of linguistic
competence. Finally, a test measure a given domain in proficiency test,
even though the actual performance on the test involves only a
sampling of skills, that domain is overall proficiency in a language
general competence in all skills of a language.
The purpose of a language test is to determine a person’s knowledge
and ability in the language and to discriminate that person’s ability.
Such ability may be of different kinds, achievement, proficiency or
aptitude. Tests, unlike scales, consist of specified tasks through which
language abilities are elicited. The term language assessment is used
in free variation with language testing although it is also used
somewhat more widely to include, for example classroom testing for
learning and institutional examinations.

B. Some Common Misconceptions about Language Testing

The main purpose of this paper is to enable the reader become
competence in language tests. The book of Lyle F. Bachman and
Adrian S. Palmer have found misconception about development and
use of language test, and unrealistic about what language test can do
and what they should be like, that have prevented people from
becoming competence in language testing. These misconceptions and
unrealistic expectations, and the mystique associated with language
testing, constitute strong affective barriers to many people who want
and need to be able to use language tests in their proffecional work.
Perhaps the best way to illustrated this is with an example from their
own experiences with language testing. They show some
misconception and resulting:

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 1. They believe that there is one best test for any given situation. it
means that test which are in a provide for the test taker.
2. Student misunderstanding about the nature of language testing and
development. It means that the test don’t meet the specific needs of
the test users.
3. Test taker having unreasonable expectation about what language
test can do and what they should be. They become frustrated when
is unable to find or develop perfect test.
4. In placing and blind faith in the technology of measurement. Being
placed in a situation of trying to defend the indefensible, since
many students have unreasonable of expectation. It also lost the
faith in one’s own capacity for developing and using test
appropriately, as well as a feeling language testing is something
that only expert can understand.

The misconception above is a problem that are illustrated by the author

example, which they have found to be very common among individuals
who want to be able to use language test but feel that they do not have
knowledge or competent to do so.

C. Why is it important to be component in language testing?

For readers it’s important to attend some of misconceptions above,
and also to develop a set of reasonable expectation for any given
language testing they may need to use. Language test can be valuable
tool for providing information about several concern in language
teaching, can provide information that is connected to making decision
about individuals example:
1. Determining what specific kinds of learning materials and
activities based on strengths and weakness the students.

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 2. Deciding whether individuals students ready or not to move on
another unit of instruction
3. Giving a grade based on the students achievement.

D. Objective Test VS Subjective test

Subjective and objective are terms used to refer to the scoring of tests.
All test items, no matter how they are devised, require candidates to exercise
a subjective judgment. In an essay test, for example , candidates must think
of what to say and then express their ideas as well as possible; in a multiple-
choice test they have to weigh up carefully all the alternatives and select the
best one.

Furthermore, all tests are constructed subjectively by the tester, who

decides which areas of language to test, how to test those particular areas
and what kind of items to use for this purpose. Since objective tests usually
have only one correct answer, they can be scored mechanically. The fact that
objective tests can be marked by computer is one important reason for their
evident popularity among examining bodies responsible for testing large
numbers of candidates.

Objective tests require far more careful preparation than subjective

tests. Examiners tend to spend a relatively short time on marking. In an
objective test, testers spend a great deal of time constructing each test item
as carefully as possible, attempting to anticipate the various reactions of the
testees at each stage. The effort is rewarded, however, in terms of the
marking.

Objective tests are frequently criticized on the grounds that they are
simpler to answer than subjective tests. Difficulty of the items in an objective
test depends on the constructors’ wishes. That the items of objective tests
look easier is not sign of their simplicity

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 Another criticism leveled at objective tests of the multiple-choice type
encourages guessing. Anyhow, the possibility of guessing can be reduced by
assigning four or five alternatives for each item. A much wider sample of
grammar, vocabulary and phonology can generally be included in an
objective test than in a subjective test. It is believed that objective tests
cannot test student’s ability to communicate and purposive use of language.
You must bear in mind that there are occasions when good objective test sof
grammar, vocabulary and phonology maybe useful; particularly in class
progress tests at certain levels.3

That the test objectivity by itself provides no guarantee that a test is

reliable and sound cannot be strongly stressed. An objective test will be a
poor test if:

 the test items are poorly written

 irrelevant areas and skills are emphasized in the test simply they are
testable; and

 it is confined to language-based usage and neglects the

communicative skills involved.

As already stated, the objective tests aren’t to test the ability to

communicate in the target language or evaluate the actual performance.
However, it is useful at this stage to consider multiple-choice items in some
detail, as they are undoubtedly one of the most widely used type of items in
objective tests.

Here are some objective items;

 true/false

 matching
3
Henning,Grant.A Guide To Language Testing: Development, Evaluation, and Research.Foreign
Language Teaching and Research Press (2001).Hal.4.

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  multiple choice

 short answer

Called "objective" because highly specific, predetermined answers.

Objective in sense that given the same key, 10 different people could mark in
exactly the same way.

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 CHAPTER III

CONCLUSION

To conclude, language testing can also be used as tool to evaluating

materials and activities the students based on the program of
instructions their following. For this reason virtually all language
teaching programs involve some testing, and hence language teachers
need to be able either to make informed judgment in selecting
appropriate language test or to plan, construct, and the develop
appropriate test of their own.

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