Aligning Reading Of National Matriculation English Test (NMET) With The China’s English Standards (CSE)of Ability

The newly published China’s Standards of English Language Ability(CSE)has drawn much attention from home and abroad.To promote the application of CSE,related linking research on CSE has been in full swing.The prevous research focuses on the alignment of international English language tests with CSE,but research on national examination is still lacking.The primary aim of this study is to explore the linking relation between reading of National Matriculation English Test(NMET)and CSE levels and establish empirical evidence to support the linking.This linking study provides both experts’ judgement and external validation to address the linking,which consists of four stages.Stage one focuses on the familiarization with CSE scales and descriptors,which is necessary for the linking.In stage two,the panel judges made the first aligning attempt based on the construct evaluation results.Stage three includes two standard-setting activities,which are the Basket method(as a preliminary activity)and the Modified Angoff method.Stage four is an external validation from teachers’ and students’ assessment and test scores.This preliminary linking study selected 2019 NMET test paper National Version Ⅰ as an example.The study invited seven panel judges to do the alignment and it showed that based on the experts’ judgement,the reading of NMET could be aligned with CSE 4 and 5.One hundred and one students and three teachers participated in the external stage and showed that the NMET could related to CSE 4 in general but with a small variation below or above.