Language Testing Innovation: Key To Better TBLT Practice In China

A paradigm shift has been going on in the field of foreign/second language teaching and testing.Both the traditional form-focused, teacher-centered teaching practice and its opposite, meaning-focused belief (equally single-minded, according to Long) have been criticized vehemently for incomplete consideration for the 'how' and 'what' in learners' language and their whole-person development. Nunan (1989) and Long (1991) thus advocate new practice devices utilizing and meanwhile facilitating classroom interaction, namely 'tasks.' Based on their notion of tasks, researchers such as Long and Crookes (1992) propose task-based language teaching (TBLT), which cares about meaning as well as form.The adoption of TBLT into English Language Teaching (ELT) in China, in line with the F/SLT trend in the world, has been attracting more and more eyeballs in the last years. However, in China, English teaching ideals and testing practice are wearing two pairs of shoes. Under the present testing system, all language teaching reform suggestions remain simply sweet dreams. Therefore, to improve the efficiency of English language teaching, it is urgent to innovate current English testing mechanism and replace it with a comprehensive assessment system.This thesis, based on the platform of ELT, attempts to examine the effectiveness of TBLT in China from the perspective of assessment and thereupon constructive suggestions are put forward.