The development and validation of a Korean C-Test using Rasch Analysis

Despite the importance of having a reliable and valid measure of Second Language (L2) proficiency, L2 researchers of less commonly taught languages rarely have such a tool. Existing proficiency measures (e.g., DLPT, OPI) are often costly, labor-intensive, time-consuming, or unavailable to the public...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Language testing 2009-04, Vol.26 (2), p.245-274
Main Author: Lee-Ellis, Sunyoung
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Achievement tests
Goodness of Fit
Korean
Korean language
Language acquisition
Language Proficiency
Language Tests
Questionnaires
Researchers
Second Language Learning
Self evaluation
Standardized Tests
Statistical Analysis
Test Construction
Test Reliability
Test Validity
Test validity and reliability
Uncommonly Taught Languages
Validity
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Summary:Despite the importance of having a reliable and valid measure of Second Language (L2) proficiency, L2 researchers of less commonly taught languages rarely have such a tool. Existing proficiency measures (e.g., DLPT, OPI) are often costly, labor-intensive, time-consuming, or unavailable to the public. With the intent to provide a practical and reliable measure of Korean L2 proficiency, this study attempted to develop and validate a 30-minute C-Test (Klein-Braley, 1981). This Korean C-Test was developed with the specifics of Korean language structure in mind, and Interagency Language Roundtable (ILR) skill-level descriptions were utilized in passage selection in order to test a wide range of participant proficiency levels. The resulting test and a self-assessment questionnaire (Kondo-Brown, 2005) were administered to 37 learners of Korean. Rasch analysis (Bond & Fox, 2007) was used to examine the reliability and concurrent validity of the measure, and Rasch measurement statistics such as separation reliability, difficulty measures, and model fit statistics were used to suggest further improvement to the C-Test. The developed test demonstrated excellent reliability and validity indices, and the results reveal the potential of this C-Test as a quick proficiency indicator.
ISSN:0265-5322
1477-0946
DOI:10.1177/0265532208101007