Appropriateness of the TOEIC Bridge Test for Students in Three Countries of South America
- Author(s):
- Sinharay, Sandip; Powers, Donald E.; Feng, Ying; Saldivia, Luis; Giunta, Anthony; Simpson, Annabelle G.; Weng, Vincent Z.
- Publication Year:
- 2009
- Source:
- Language Testing, v26, n4, p589-619, Oct 2009
- Document Type:
- Article
- Page Count:
- 31
- Subject/Key Words:
- Test of English for International Communication (TOEIC), TOEIC Bridge Test, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Factor Analysis, Self-Assessment, Validity, Appropriateness
Abstract
In order to facilitate the interpretation of test scores from the TOEIC Bridge as a measure of English language proficiency, one form of the test was administered to more than 6000 test takers in three South American countries – Colombia, Chile and Ecuador. The appropriateness of the TOEIC Bridge test as a measure of English language skill was evaluated using several approaches, such as factor analysis and computation of correlations between the TOEIC Bridge scores and other measures like local English test scores, student self-assessment scores, and teacher ratings. The evidence collected was generally consistent with the interpretation of TOEIC Bridge scores as indicators of English language competencies of the students examined.