The Construct of Language Proficiency: Applications of psychological models to language assessment - Hardcover

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 902722112X ISBN 13: 9789027221124

Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing Co, 1992

Synopsis

This books aims to open up new perspectives in the study of language proficiency by bringing together current research from different fields in psychology and linguistics. All contributions start out from empirical studies, which are then related to applications in language assessment. The book also serves as a survey of recent developments in psycholinguistic research in the Netherlands. The book starts out with a thorough introduction of international literature on models of language proficiency, language development and its assessment. Section 1 deals with first language proficiency and addresses such problems as grammar in early child language, grammatical proficiency and its (in)variance across a range of ages, reading abilities, and writing skills. Section 2 focuses on multilingual proficiency and deals with test bias in relation to the background of the second language learner, bilingual proficiency in ethnic minority children, the development of the second language learner lexicon, communicative competence of school-age children in the context of second language learning, the assessment of foreign language attrition and the dimensionality in oral foreign language proficiency.

About this title

Synopsis

The purpose of this book is to open up new perspectives in the study of language proficiency by bringing together current research from different fields in psychology and in linguistics. The field of language testing being at the crossroads of applied psychological measurement and applied linguistics has the potential to provide a link between psychology and linguistics. In order to arrive at a multidisciplinary reader on language proficiency, a selected group of scholars from diverse fields, but with a common interest in language related studies, was invited to contribute their recent research on the operationalization of the psychological construct of language proficiency. Integration of the studies was explicitly sought by asking all contributors to start out from empirical studies, and to relate these studies to applications in language assessment. A third common denominator lies in that all contributions are by Dutch researchers. For the international readership this book can therefore also serve as a survey of recent developments in psycholinguistic research in the Netherlands. The book starts out with a thorough discussion of the present state of the art.

In this introductory chapter the editors review the international literature on models of language proficiency, language development and its assessment. The book divides into two sections. The first section focuses on proficiency in the first language, whereas the contributions in section two concentrate on issues in multilingual proficiency. In both sections special attention is devoted to the description data-analysis techniques and the research methods used. Section 1 addresses the construct of grammar in early child language, grammatical proficiency and its (in)variance across a range for ages, the construct of reading abilities, and the construct of writing skills. Section 2 deals with test bias in relation to the background of the second language learner, the construct of bilingual proficiency in ethnic minority children, self-assessment procedures in bilingual settings, the development of second language learner lexicon, features of communicative competence of school-age children in the context of second language learning, the assessment of foreign language attrition and the dimensionality in oral foreign language proficiency.

Both from a theoretical and a practical point of view therefore this book contains many points of interests for applied linguists and psycholinguists, but can also serve to introduce these fields to a more generally oriented student of human language or psychology.

Edition details

• Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing Co
• Publication date: 1992
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 902722112X
• ISBN 13: 9789027221124
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 220
• Editor: Verhoeven Ludo, Jong John H.A.L. De