This edited book is a collection of papers, written by language assessment professionals to reflect the guidance of Professor Lyle F. Bachman, one of the leading second language assessment experts in the field for decades. It has three sub-themes: assessment of evolving language ability constructs, validity and validation of language assessments, and understanding internal structures of language assessments. It provides theoretical guidelines for practical language assessment challenges. Chapters are written by language assessment researchers who graduated from the University of California, Los Angeles, where Professor Bachman trained them including the book editors.

The book brings together two related fields — language testing and language programme evaluation — in a way that no single introductory text has done, and seeks to encourage closer relations between the two in both academic curricula and professional practice. It introduces readers not just to basic concepts, but to some of the major social, educational and research concerns and activities that characterise language testing and evaluation.The book can serve either as a basic text for a taught course, or as independent reading in self-study mode. All chapters include suggestions for further reading, and discussions frequently point towards possible explorations in classroom research and practice. A glossary of key concepts and a select annotated bibliography are provided.

The United States is formally represented around the world by approximately 14,000 Foreign Service officers and other personnel in the U.S. Department of State. Roughly one-third of them are required to be proficient in the local languages of the countries to which they are posted. To achieve this language proficiency for its staff, the State Department's Foreign Service Institute (FSI) provides intensive language instruction and assesses the proficiency of personnel before they are posted to a foreign country. The requirement for language proficiency is established in law and is incorporated in personnel decisions related to job placement, promotion, retention, and pay. A Principled Approach to Language Assessment: Considerations for the U.S. Foreign Service Institute evaluates the different approaches that exist to assess foreign language proficiency that FSI could potentially use. This report considers the key assessment approaches in the research literature that are appropriate for language testing, including, but not limited to, assessments that use task-based or performance-based approaches, adaptive online test administration, and portfolios.

"Fundamental Considerations in Technology Mediated Language Assessment aims to address issues such as how the forced integration of technology into second language assessment has shaped our understanding of key traditional concepts like validity, reliability, washback, authenticity, ethics, fairness, test security, and more. Although computer assisted language testing has been around for more than two decades in the context of high-stakes proficiency testing, much of language testing worldwide has shifted to 'at home' mode, and relies heavily on the mediation of digital technology, making its widespread application in classroom settings in response to the COVID-19 outbreak as unprecedented. Integration of technology into language assessment has brought with it countless affordances and at the same time challenges, both theoretically and practically. One major theoretical consideration requiring attention is the way technology has contributed to a re-conceptualisation of major assessment concepts/constructs. There is very limited literature available on theoretical underpinnings of technology mediated language assessment. This book aims to fill this gap. This book will appeal to academic specialists, practitioners or professionals in the field of language assessment, advanced and/or graduate students, and a range of scholars or professionals in disciplines like educational technology, applied linguistics and TESOL"--

Offers a discussion of the basic concerns which underlie the development and use of language tests. Presenting a synthesis of research on testing, this book is useful for students on teacher education courses. It is also helpful for those professionally involved in designing and administering tests, acting as a complement to 'how to' books.

As one of the most recognized names in the fields of language assessment and applied linguistics, Lyle F. Bachman has produced a high volume of scholarly articles and books in the field of language assessment. These writings have strongly influenced the discipline and over the last three decades have played an uncontested role in shaping the field as we know it today. Until now, Bachman’s work has been spread across various mediums and not existed in one place. The Writings of Lyle F. Bachman is the first book to assemble Bachman’s work into a single, comprehensive volume. The collection is composed of seven major sections, each beginning with an introduction by the editors to provide context for the papers. The sections cover some of the most complex topics in the field, including validity and validation, the effects of test task characteristics, interfaces between language testing and second language acquisition, and epistemological issues in applied linguistics. The collection concludes with a state-of-the art paper and insightful reflections about the field of language assessment. The collection traces how Bachman’s ideas and research insights have evolved throughout the years. Given Bachman’s strong impact on the field of language assessment, this volume presents not only a collection of the writings, but also gives an overview of the ongoing issues and debates in the field. This book will be useful to both researchers and graduate students in the areas of language assessment and applied linguistics.

Winner of the SAGE/ILTA Award for Best Book on Language Testing 2009 This volume focuses on the social aspects of language testing, including assessment of socially situated language use and societal consequences of language tests. The authors argue that traditional approaches to ensuring social fairness in tests go some way to addressing social concerns, but a broader perspective is necessary to examine the functions of tests on a societal scale. Considers these issues in relation to language assessment in oral proficiency interviews, and to the assessment of second language pragmatics. Argues that traditional approaches to ensuring social fairness in tests go some way to addressing social concerns, but a broader perspective is necessary if we are to fully understand the social dimension of language assessment.