Open AccessFACTOR STRUCTURE OF THE TOEFL INTERNET‐BASED TEST ACROSS SUBGROUPS
Author(s) -
Stricker Lawrence J.,
Rock Donald A.
Publication year - 2008
Publication title -
ets research report series
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.235
H-Index - 5
ISSN - 2330-8516
DOI - 10.1002/j.2333-8504.2008.tb02152.x
Subject(s) - test of english as a foreign language , test (biology) , the internet , factor (programming language) , language assessment , psychology , linguistics , order (exchange) , mathematics education , computer science , world wide web , programming language , paleontology , philosophy , finance , economics , biology
This study assessed the invariance in the factor structure of the Test of English as a Foreign Language™ Internet‐based test (TOEFL® iBT) across subgroups of test takers who differed in native language and exposure to the English language. The subgroups were defined by (a) Indo‐European and Non‐Indo‐European language family, (b) Kachru's classification of outer and expanding circles of countries (based on prevalence of English use in educational and business contexts), and (c) years of classroom instruction in the English language. The same factor structure (four first‐order factors corresponding to the test sections and a single higher‐order factor encompassing these factors) was identified in each subgroup. The results support the present scoring scheme for the TOEFL iBT assessment and suggest that the test functions the same way for diverse subgroups of test takers.