An Empirical Study On The Washback Effect Of The New HSK On Chinese Learning Of Thai Students

Washback effect is a hot topic in the field of second language research in recent years,and it is also an important research topic in the field of language testing.The washback effect includes the micro level impact on Teachers’ teaching and students’ learning,and the macro level impact on the education system and even the society.Hanban/Confucius institute Headquarters launched the new Chinese Proficiency Test(new HSK)in 2019.The new HSK follows the principle of “combining testing and teaching”,aiming at “promoting teaching by test” and “promoting learning by test”,attracting more students to take the test.As one of the most popular Chinese proficiency tests in Thailand,The total number of the new HSK tackers at the Confucius Institute in Phuket has reached 12327.This paper mainly focuses on the washback effect of HSK on Thai students’ Chinese learning.The research objects are mainly Thai Chinese learners.The research questions are as follows: 1.Does new HSK have washback effect on Thai students’ Chinese learning? 2.What are the reasons for the washback effect? 3.What inspirations and suggestions can be provided for Thai students to learn Chinese? Around the above problems,this paper uses questionnaire survey and interviews,qualitative and quantitative way to carry out the analysis and research,and draws the conclusion.The results show that new HSK does have washback effect on Thai students,and the positive washback effect should be greater than the negative washback effect.However,there are differences in washback effect among individuals.The main reason for the difference is that students have different understanding of the examination.The factors that affect learners’ understanding mainly include students’ individual factors,examination factors and contextual factors.