Dear Peter and All,
This monolithic standardised test is implicated in many problems in
countries where English is a non-lingua franca, but a politicised
commodity. I would love one day to understand the object of ets in
manufacturing and marketing on an international scale this quantitative
test of people's (non-English L1 users') abilities to "use" English on
a computer to simulate academic settings. One can work out the basic
corporate motives, I assume. I just get hot under the collar when
people talk about these tests in the same breath as talking about
educational programs, especially educational outcomes. And that happens
way too often in my back yard.
Phil
On 11/08/2005, at 10:35 PM, Peter Smagorinsky wrote:
>> From: Educational Testing Service <outreach@ets.org>
>>
>> Students can join the TOEFL® PRACTICE ONLINE community free
>> at
>> www.ets.org/toeflpractice43.html
>> and take advantage of official TOEFL practice materials that can help
>> them improve their English communication skills and prepare for the
>> new TOEFL® Internet-based test (iBT).*
>>
>> FREE TOEFL® iBT PRACTICE TEST – features the Listening, Reading, and
>> Writing sections and offers immediate feedback, plus sample Speaking
>> questions and responses.
>>
>> TOEFL iBT SPEAKING PRACTICE – consists of six tasks designed to
>> measure students’ ability to speak English effectively in educational
>> environments. Students’ scores and performance feedback will be
>> posted online within five business days.
>>
>> TOEFL® SKILL BUILDERS – includes new Reading and Listening question
>> sets taken from actual computer-based TOEFL tests. Additional TOEFL
>> SKILL BUILDERS will be released in September 2005.
>>
>> TOEFL® access – coming in October 2005! TOEFL Practice Online members
>> will be invited to join a new online community designed for students
>> planning to study in English-speaking countries. It will feature
>> information on academics, culture, careers, scholarships, testing and
>> more.
>>
>> * For the latest information about TOEFL iBT availability in your
>> country, go to www.ets.org/toefl/nextgen/timeline.html.
>>
>> PASS IT ON! Forward this e-mail to your colleagues so they too can
>> help their students practice their English language skills.
>> Membership in the TOEFL PRACTICE ONLINE community is free at
>> www.ets.org/toeflpractice43.html.
>>
>> ETS English Language Learning
>> Team_______________________________________________
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