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Changes to the ECCE to be Introduced on the May 2013 Exam

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Category: News

Published on Wednesday, 21 September 2011 11:40

The ECCE  Testing Program has completed its review of the listening and GVR (grammar, vocabulary, reading) sections of the Examination for the Certificate of Competency in English (ECCE). This ongoing process, undertaken to ensure excellence in the ECCE tests, involved:

• a review of the literature on the assessment of second and foreign language listening and reading;

• a re-examination of the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR) scales relevant to the construction of listening and reading tests;

• analyses of item statistics on the types of listening and reading items currently in an ECCE;

• review of candidate score performance on the listening and GVR sections in past years;

• a review of feedback from stakeholders who prepare students for and/or administer the ECCE;

• field testing of different test tasks that could be used to evaluate listening and reading ability at the high intermediate level of English (B2 level of CEFR);

• a review of feedback from examinees who have taken listening or reading tests that have included different types of tasks to assess listening and reading; and,

• analyses of examinee performance on different types of listening and reading tasks and test items.

Based upon this comprehensive review, beginning in 2013 the ECCE exams will include new tasks in both the listening and GVR sections.

It is expected that these new tasks will be well received by test takers, as well as by teachers who prepare students for the examination.

• Test takers will be able to demonstrate their listening and reading abilities on a wide variety of topics.

• Test takers will be able to demonstrate their listening and reading abilities with respect to a wide variety of spoken and written discourse types.

• Language representative of that used in public, occupational, and educational contexts is included on the exam.

• The opportunity to preview questions will facilitate focused listening to extended discourse.

• The time allowed for taking the GVR section of the test will be increased to 90 minutes.