| College English testing is indispensable with College English teaching and learning. They are so closely interrelated that one cannot do without the other. College English testing plays a very important role in the process of College English teaching and learning in China, and it is used as an effective assessment instrument for measuring and evaluating College English teaching and learning. However, in China, because too much attention has been paid to tests, many teachers and students ' teach for tests' and ' learn for tests '. Testing is not the ultimate aim of teaching and learning, but serves teaching and learning, however, testing can have direct influence on students' learning motivation and attitude as well as the way and content of teaching. If a test is a good one, it can be positively beneficial. Otherwise, a test with bad qualities can be harmful and might become an impediment to language teaching and learning. Therefore, doing research on College English testing in China is to develop tests with good qualities in order to achieve beneficial backwash to facilitate College English teaching and learning.College English Term Test ( CETT) is a very important component of College English testing. Unfortunately, in recent years in China, great importance has been attached to the study of the nationwide CET-4, whereas not enough attention has been given to CETT, which, instead of facilitating College English teaching and learning, has misled students to learn for tests, and produced more and more obvious bad results. This paper mainly attempts to make a qualitative research on the improvement of the validity of the current CETT so as to bring positive backwash and encourage students to further improve their overall language abilities and communicative abilities, especially speaking and listening abilities. The author starts with investigation and research on the current CETT via questionnaire, interviews as well as consultation of available literature concerned, and tries to find out the factors that influence its effectiveness. Based on careful investigation and research, the author finds that CETT has become ' drill ground ' for nationwide CET-4, namely,simulated CET-4, because of the great influence of CET-4. In order to improve CET-4 achievement, most colleges and universities in China, especially those ordinary and small-sized colleges, have devoted too much attention to the results of CET-4, and made a regulation that undergraduate students even cannot get a bachelor's degree without CET-4 certification. It is well-known that CET-4 is a proficiency test, whose content is not closely related to that of the College English courses. Obviously, if CETT follows the format of CET-4, it is problematic, for CETT should be theoretically classified as an achievement test. In the paper, the author believes that only after we clarify the nature of CETT, can we find solutions to the current problems it faces and try to find ways out. The author holds that CETT should be an integrative test, i.e. the combination of an achievement test, proficiency and diagnostic test, because CETT actually has the three functions in the process of College English teaching and learning, for example, to identify what students know or do not know; to discover how far away students have achieved the objectives of College English courses of study based on the College English Teaching Syllabus; to measure and evaluate students' general language proficiency.In view of the nature of CETT, the author analyses the drawbacks of the current CETT and proves the necessity of its reform. It is found that the drawbacks of the current CETT include: first, it is lack of validity; second, a proficiency test is emphasized, while an achievement test is not given enough attention; third, testing system is problematic, because of lacking items or subtests for spoken English; fourth, it has produced a harmful backwash effect on College English teaching and learning. Then, the author puts forward her hypothesis for the improvement of CETT, a... |
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