An Empirical Study On The Washback Effect Of English Test For International Communication On College English Teaching And Learning

The research on washback effect is an important topic in the field of language testing.Washback effect of language testing refers to the impact of tests on language teaching and learning.With increasing significance of the influence of some large-scale examinations on teaching and learning,the discussion on washback effect has increased gradually.In recent decades,foreign scholars have conducted massive and intensive theoretical and empirical studies on washback effect.Comparatively,in China,researches on washback effect lag behind.So far,domestic scholars have carried out researches on washback effect mainly on some large-scale tests such as National Matriculation English Test(NMET),Test for English Majors(TEM)and College English Test Band 4&6(CET-4&6).In 2016,with the joint efforts of domestic and foreign experts,China Foreign Language Assessment Center(CLA)launched English Test for International Communication(ETIC).It has now cooperated with more than 1,000 domestic colleges and universities to cultivate and select international talents.Currently,there are some theoretical researches focusing on the washback effect of ETIC while empirical studies are comparatively lacking in that ETIC is a relatively new examination.The present study is a preliminary empirical study on the washback effect of ETIC,aiming to explore the washback effect of ETIC on college English teaching and learning.Based on the research results of washback effect by domestic and foreign scholars and current condition of college English teaching and learning,in the present study,the data has been collected from40 college English teachers and 250 college students in an application-oriented university in Xi’an.Three research instruments commonly used by foreign scholars are adopted in this study: questionnaire surveys,classroom observations and interviews.By analyzing the data collected,the washback effect of ETIC on college English teaching and learning are presented.Besides,the researcher proposes some suggestions,with a view to increase the positive washback effect and decrease its negative aspects.Results of the research show that ETIC indeed exerts washback effect on college English teaching and learning.The positive washback effect involves three points: promoting the change of teaching content and methods;strengthening students’ motivation for English learning;promoting the change of students’ English learning focus.In the meanwhile,some negative effect shouldn’t be neglected: ETIC may make students learn English with utilitarian attitude;students are prone to anxiety and tension;ETIC makes students tend to ignore basic English knowledge.Based on the above results and findings,some suggestions are provided to improve the positive washback effect of ETIC for both English teaching and English learning.Teachers should guide students to establish correct English learning view.Besides,change teaching methods and balance the focus of English teaching consciously to strengthen students’ English application ability,especially communication ability.Students should develop correct learning motivation,and strengthen autonomous learning.Furthermore,balance the focus of English learning and lay more emphasis on English communication in the workplace.Finally,this paper points out the limitations of this research and provides suggestions for further research in the future.