Reconsidering text-driven assessment of foreign language reading proficiency: Evaluation of a functional model of text difficulty

Many attempts to define a developmental progression of text difficulty for foreign language readers using text features have not met with sufficient success to advocate their use in test design. Some reading researchers have discounted text-based assessment systems categorically, but this stance is based on extremely limited data. This study investigated the validity of the pragmatic-oriented approach to describing text difficulty for foreign language readers which was put forward by James Child in 1987--without the baggage of the ILR/ACTFL proficiency guidelines with which it was first associated. This research was guided by the following questions: does the discourse type hierarchy accurately predict text difficulty for foreign language readers, thus making it a useful tool for assessing reading proficiency? If so, does the model identify some of the pragmatic correlates of linguistic difficulty--i.e., are texts characterized by certain functions also characterized by particular features, as Child has suggested?;It was hypothesized that the Child discourse type hierarchy would accurately predict the difficulty of nonfiction texts for adult foreign language readers as reflected in their performance on reading tests. Test data was collected from government employees (N = 62) with a wide range of French language proficiency, using a combination of reading test methods on nine authentic French texts which were chosen according to the functional model. Test scores were compared with the predictions of the model using an analysis of variance (ANOVA). In addition, the texts themselves were subjected to both quantitative and qualitative analyses in a preliminary exploration of the form-function relationships that are assumed to underlie the model.;The ANOVA results indicate that Child's model makes good general predictions about relative text difficulty for adult learners. The text analyses also uncovered evidence hinting at some form-function relationships. The results of this study suggest that the functional model may be a valid and useful teacher/tester training and reference tool which may also provide a window onto the link between the pragmatic and the linguistic in written texts.