Permalink : http://hdl.handle.net/2115/84351

JaLCDOI : 10.14943/J.HighEdu.29.69

In this study, we investigated the validity of indirect assessments of English language proficiency in an English language department by considering consistency between student self-reports and IELTS scores. The former data were obtained from a survey of freshmen conducted by the Institutional Research Consortium of Japanese Universities. Regarding English language proficiency, we focused on five categories—Listening, Reading, Spoken Interaction, Spoken Production and Writing. The consistency was evaluated by the bias in student self-reports by comparison with converted values of the IELTS scores in terms of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR), as well as by correlation. As a result, all five correlations were found to be statistically significant (medium correlation for all categories except Writing). Furthermore, it was shown that receptive and productive skills had almost no bias and non-negligible bias, respectively. In conclusion, this study partially supported the validity of indirect assessment of learning-outcomes based on self-reports.