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EFFECTS OF TEST DISCLOSURE ON PERFORMANCE ON THE TEST OF ENGLISH AS A FOREIGN LANGUAGE
Author(s) -
Hale Gordon A.,
Angelis Paul J.,
Thibodeau Lawrence A.
Publication year - 1983
Publication title -
language learning
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.882
H-Index - 103
eISSN - 1467-9922
pISSN - 0023-8333
DOI - 10.1111/j.1467-1770.1983.tb00944.x
Subject(s) - test of english as a foreign language , test (biology) , psychology , class (philosophy) , mathematics education , linguistics , english language , computer science , paleontology , philosophy , artificial intelligence , biology
Specially constructed “disclosed TOEFL forms” were made available to students in intensive English language programs. Later the students were administered a special TOEFL consisting of items from those disclosed forms as well as a TOEFL consisting of items to which they had not been exposed. Scores on the former test were found to be greater than those on the latter, indicating a “disclosure effect”—i.e., showing that the students studied and recalled specific items from the disclosed forms. Some items in the disclosed forms were to be discussed in class by the students' language instructors before the special TOEFL, and a relatively large disclosure effect was observed for these items. Nevertheless, a significant disclosure effect was also observed for items not discussed in class, indicating that the students studied the disclosed forms on their own initiative. While some students were given 6 disclosed forms to study, others were given 12 forms, and the disclosure effect was found to be more pronounced for the former group than the latter. Apparently, if students must cover a relatively large number of forms in order to be exposed to all items that will appear on a later test, they will be less likely to benefit from disclosure than if they need cover a smaller number of forms.