FOR American students, tests like the SAT (Scholastic Assessment Tests), ACT (American College Tests) and GRE (Graduate Record Examinations) mark the path to college and graduate school. But for hundreds of thousands of international students hoping to study in the United States, a major concern is proving their language skills in the TOEFL (the Test of English as a Foreign Language).
Now that test has undergone a major makeover, aimed at better evaluating how well applicants can communicate in English. As the new test is introduced in the US, some students — particularly Asians — are worried they'll be at a disadvantage because of how they were taught English in school.
Last year, 750,000 students took the old, mostly multiple-choice TOEFL. But in recent years, many of the 5,200 English-speaking colleges and universities that use the exam have become concerned the test fails to identify students who master only "textbook" English.
After a decade's research, ETS (the Educational Testing Service) started the new TOEFL "iBT" (Internet-based test) in US test centres. The exam will become worldwide over the next year.
Perhaps the biggest change is a new speaking component; previously, ETS offered a separate speaking test, but few students took it. The focus has shifted to how well students can combine their skills in reading, writing and speaking. Students are asked to listen to a recording and read a passage, then to speak about them both. Their responses are digitally recorded, then downloaded by experts to grade.
"When you read in school, you take notes. When you're in a classroom, you're also speaking and writing", said ETS senior vice president Mari Pearlman.
"Most Asians, especially from Japan and Korea love reading, structure and grammar", said Yoshihiko Iwasaki, a Japanese student hoping to attend business school, while on break from a Kaplan TOEFL test-prep class in Boston. "Our speaking is weak, because sometimes, it's impolite to speak out or to describe an opinion. When we take a class, we just sit and take notes and memorize."
Pearlman, however, said pre-testing does not mean students from particular countries will suffer. She acknowledged Asian students may have disadvantages, but said they will make up for them because "they are ferociously capable and determined."
