Linking assessments to international frameworks of language proficiency
Description:
The Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR) is having a special impact on assessment, as test users increasingly insist on evidence of alignment to it. But what kind of evidence is needed? Interpreting test performance (against the CEFR in this case) is at the heart of test validity. Thus if CEFR alignment is important for an exam, it should impact every relevant stage of design and administration. It cannot be a one-off exercise. Cambridge ESOL’s approach will be presented as an illustration of this. We will also present the SurveyLang project coordinated by Cambridge ESOL, due to deliver the European Survey on Language Competences in 2011, using the CEFR to benchmark the language competences of secondary-school pupils across Europe.
