淺析“新托福”口試的不合理之處

摘 要：當今社會，越來越多的人選擇出國留學。于是，這也催熱了“新托福”考試。我們學習英語口語的最終目的是為了能夠在與他人交流時，更加流暢的表達自己的想法。但是，“新托福”的口試部分有沒有達到這一要求呢？筆者運用克拉申的“輸入假說”和“情感屏障假說”來對上述問題進行了一個淺析。

Key words: IBT， oral test， irrationalities

[中圖分類號]：H310.42 [文獻標識碼]：A

[文章編號]：1002-2139(2012)-14-0156-02

1、Introduction

As one of the many language testing methods， IBT， which means the new version of TOEFL， is getting popular these days. One of its biggest differences is that it has an oral test. The three standards of the evaluation are: (1) the coherence of content， the clarity of meaning， the completeness of structure. (2) relative proficiency in using words and grammar. (3) pronounce distinctly， express smoothly. Quite a of scholars sing high praise for the revision of TOFEL. As far as what the author is going to say next is concerned， this is not the case.

1、Theoretical basis

a、The Input Hypothesis

In Monitor Model， a theory of second language acquisition that proposed by Stephen Krashen， there are five hypothesis: Acquisition-learning Hypothesis， Natural Order Hypothesis， Monitor Hypothesis， Input Hypothesis and Affective Filter Hypothesis. The Input Hypothesis emphasizes the use of comprehensible input to enable second language acquirers to move from the current level i to the next level， i+1. According to this hypothesis， second language learners require comprehensible and effective input.

b、The Affective Filter Hypothesis

Krashen argues that comprehensible input is not enough to ensure language acquisition. When learners are bored， angry， frustrated， nervous， unmotivated or stressed， they may not be receptive to language input and so they “screen” the input. This screen is referred to as the affective filter.

2、Irrationalities of IBT oral test

There are six tasks in the oral test. The first two demand the examinees to tell about their personal experiences or opinions. The rest of the four tasks require the examinees to read or to listen to a paragraph first， then do a sum-up， comparison or express their own understandings.

a、Irrationality about the Independent Tasks

The first two tasks focus on the examinees’ studies and daily lives. Though the topics are familiar to the candidates， they are still challenging. The candidates only have 15 seconds to get prepared and right after that is a 45-second answering time. This process violates the Input Hypothesis. In such a short time and in such a high-pressure environment， no one can make sure the inputs are comprehended by the test takers. As a result， the outputs are not satisfying. Therefore， the outcome doesn’t reflect their true level.

b、Irrationality about the Integrated Tasks

For the rest of the tasks， they include listening， speaking， reading and note taking. It seems like an all-round testing method. However， most of the people who have taken the IBL reflect that when they were doing the oral tests， especially the Integrated Tasks， they felt so nervous and stressed because they had to do writing， reading， listening， thinking and speaking at the same time. As a consequence， they often got a blank mind when they were thinking. Since reading， listening， speaking and writing have been divided in IBT， there is no need to consolidate them again in oral test， which only brings affective filter to the candidates.

c、Irrationality about the human-machine mode

Unlike IELTS， the IBT oral tests happen between human and computers. Admittedly， the IBT way saves people a lot of time. As a whole， it is not good for the test takers to bring their talent into full play. There are two facts to support that. First， the purpose for the oral test is to check whether the examinees are able to deliver their thoughts fluently and clearly. Only in this way can they be known if they can communicate with native speakers smoothly when they go abroad. The fact is that when people are taking the test， they are not talking with human， but with a machine. The communicating， which is not real and is not like a daily environment， can affect the performance. Second， the ielts’ way for testing is more humanized. Most of the candidates must feel extremely nervous and uneasy when they are in an examination room. However， in the ielts oral test room， the examiner would introduce him/herself in the beginning to enliven the atmosphere， which in turn reduce the affective filter effect of the candidates. And during the test， a smile or a head-nodding from the examiner could also make the examinees feel less intense. While in an IBT test room， these would never happen.

3、Conclusion

Compared with the old edition， the new version of TOEFL， which is now called IBT， has improved a lot from all perspectives. And its novelty and scientificalness are the reasons that make it sought after by millions of people， even by some educational experts. Well， nothing’s perfect. There still exist some irrationalities in the oral test of IBT. To be exact， it is a long way to go before all the deficiencies are to fixed up in the testing system. In this way， further researches should be done continually in order to improve the test’s rationality and reliability.

Due to the time limits， the author didn’t design any valid experiments nor any effective questionnaires to improve the credibility of this paper. That’s one of the biggest shortcomings to be improved. In the near future， the author will first consult more books and papers for the information needed and then， design an effectual and convincing questionnaire with the help of professors to complete a better quality paper. In such case， the value of this paper can be reflected directly.

References

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[2]、http://bogglesworldesl.com/glossary/affectivefilterhypothesis.htm

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