A Study On Test Anxiety Of Chinese College English Learners In Computer-based Spoken English Test

While the role of computers in language learning and teaching has been widely discussed in professional literature, much less has been studied about the application of computers in language testing. After a survey of the researches of computers in language testing, this paper focused on the analysis of test anxiety perceived by Chinese non-English majors in Computer-based Spoken English test (CBSET), on effective strategies to alleviate the anxieties and on test takers'attitude toward CBSET.Through questionnaires, CBSET, Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI), and interviews of college students, the research found that in the CBSET the major anxiety was caused by spoken English test rather than roused by the adoption of computers. Female students perceived a little more test anxiety than male students, though the anxiety difference was not significant. Besides, the perceived anxiety degree was negatively correlated with the language proficiency levels of the examinees. In terms of strategy, the results indicated that the reported strategies could effectively reduce test anxiety in CBSET. In particular, the most common learning strategy was that of memory and compensation, and the most frequently employed in CBSET was communication strategy. The findings also suggested that CBSET could effectively test and evaluate students'oral English abilities. In addition, the questionnaires and interviews told that students all preferred CBSET to OPI.The findings of the paper could provide constructive implication for both CBSET research and language pedagogy.