The Implementation Of School Tests In Evaluating Middle-school Students' English Language Competence

Education reform has long been a hot topic all around the world since we never stop exploring a better way to educate the next generation.In the case of China,a new concept for the purpose of education,key competencies,was proposed by the Ministry of Education in 2014.The higher standard teaching objectives call for more effective English assessments to evaluate competence-oriented teaching results.Some changes have happened on the college entrance examination lately,however,the college entrance examination is only the tip of the iceberg of the whole education assessment system.School tests which hold great significance in monitoring students'on-developing language competence and providing in-time feedback to teachers deserve equal attention.In this respect,it is necessary to pay attention to school tests.The purpose of this research is to study the implementation of school tests in evaluating middle-school students' English language competence.The study is guided by four research questions:a.What types of tests are given to the students in China middle school?b.What aspects of language competence are stressed in middle school English tests?c.What factors are affecting the design of middle-school English tests?d.What improvements can be made on middle-school English tests to assess students' language competence more effectively?The research is carried out at a public middle school in Wuhan where the author has had an internship experience for two months.Twelve in-service English teachers and eight pre-service English teachers participate in the research.Both quantitative method and qualitative method are applied.Questionnaire is designed into five dimensions,which are the five aspects of language competence proposed by Professor Cheng in 2016.Follow-up one-to-one interviews are conducted as complements to the questionnaire research.Test papers are collected to provide solid proof of the finding results.The research finds that two of the five aspects of language competence are more stressed in school tests.They are mastering English language knowledge and understanding both oral and written English passages.Five factors to the design of middle-school English tests are found to have contributed,including the high school entrance examination,the currently-used textbooks,the assessment methods,the cooperation between teachers and parents and professional training programs on assessment.Five possible ways to make improvements arise.The research is of great significances since it will enlighten both in-service and pre-service middle school English teachers to provide more effective middle school English tests for students.