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Language assessment or language testing is a field of study under the umbrella of applied linguistics. Its main focus is the assessment of first, second or other language in the school, college, or university context; assessment of language use in the workplace; and assessment of language in the immigration, citizenship, and asylum contexts. The assessment may include listening, speaking, reading, writing, an integration of two or more of these skills, or other constructs of language ability. Equal weight may be placed on knowledge (understanding how the language works theoretically) and proficiency (ability to use the language practically), or greater weight may be given to one aspect or the other.〔http://hrd.apec.org/index.php/Language_Assessment APEC Human Resources Development Working Group〕 == History == The earliest works in language assessment in the US date back to the 1950s to the pioneering studies and test created by Robert Lado and David Harris. The earliest large scale assessments in the US included was were referred to as the Michigan Tests, developed by the English Language Institute at the University of Michigan, now known as CaMLA, and the ''Test of English as a Foreign Language'' (TOEFL) developed by Educational Testing Service (ETS), Princeton, New Jersey. The English Language Institute at the University of Michigan (CaMLA) was established in 1941 and was the first of its kind in the United States. Charles Fries, Director of ELI, and Robert Lado, Director of Testing at ELI, were determined to put foreign language teaching and testing on a "scientific" footing. The first test launched in 1946 was the ''Lado Test of Aural Comprehension''. Approximately 10 years later, a full suite of tests had been assembled: "an English language test battery", which was administered to incoming foreign students at Michigan and other universities. Today this is known at the Michigan English Language Assessment Battery (MELAB). In 1953, the ELI also developed the ECPE (Examination for the Certificate of Proficiency in English) exam, under contract to the United States Information Agency, for use abroad.〔Swales, J. 2013, Other Floors, Other Voices: A Textography of A Small University Building, https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=xsz5AQAAQBAJ&pg=PT68&lpg=PT68&dq=1953+ECPE+melab+1985&source=bl&ots=BiM65G_a-8&sig=xoxFrmJibs4ScLuNpc8Z3ftocX4&hl=en&sa=X&ei=lbKBVaGQK6iR7Aa2r4PoCA&ved=0CCEQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=1953%20ECPE%20melab%201985&f=false〕 TOEFL was launched in 1961 and was designed to assess the English language ability of students applying for admission to US and Canadian colleges and universities. This test, which is used widely around the world, is still in use although it is now only available in the internet-based format (now called the TOEFL iBT〔About the TOEFL iBT Test http://www.ets.org/toefl/ibt/about/ Retrieved 23 November 2010〕). Many tests from other companies, universities and agencies compete for this market: iTEP (International Test of English Proficiency), the Canadian English Language Proficiency Index Program (CELPIP) Test, the Pearson Language Test's ''Pearson Test of English'' (PTE), CaMLA assessments including the ''Michigan English Language Assessment Battery'' (MELAB) and Cambridge English Language Assessment, the British Council and the Australian IDP's ''International English Language Testing System'' (IELTS). In the US, non-profit and other organizations such as the Center for Applied Linguistics, Washington, D.C. and Language Testing International, White Plains, NY have developed language tests that are used by many public and private agencies. Many universities too, like the University of California, Los Angeles, Teachers College, Columbia University, and the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, have developed English (and other) language tests to assess the abilities of their students and teaching assistants. These language assessments are generally known as proficiency or achievement assessments. Other modern English language tests developed include ''The General English Proficiency Test (GEPT)'' in Taiwan, the ''College English Test'' in China, and the ''STEP Eiken'' in Japan. New technology has also made a presence in the field: Versant's English and Dutch assessments use phone technology to record the speaking and automated scoring of their speaking tests, and the ETS is currently experimenting with automated scoring of their writing tests. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Language assessment」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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