English Language Proficiency and Academic Performance

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English Language Proficiency and Academic Performance

Copyright © 2012 by Educational Testing Service. ETS, the ETS logo, TOEFL and TOEFL Journey are registered trademarks of Educational Testing Service (ETS) in the U.S. and other countries. TOEFL Junior is a registered trademark of ETS.

What did the 2013 Symposium 5 Years On – English Language Competence of International Students tell us that is useful for ACPET members?

What are we learning from current ETS TOEFL research on English language channels and student performance in VET and Higher Education?

Copyright © 2012 by Educational Testing Service. ETS, the ETS logo and TOEFL are registered trademarks of Educational Testing Service (ETS) in the U.S. and other countries. TOEFL Junior is a registered trademark of ETS.

Five years on – English language competence

of international students


English Language Symposium 2013Symposium sought to critically examine the efficacy

of Australian policy and practice in English language issues for VET and higher education and suggest improvement in the light of emerging requirements and recent research

Engaged many stakeholders – students, institutions, employers, professional bodies, pathway providers, English test companies, English language experts

Event funded by AEI and sponsors (4 English language test companies, ACPET, English Australia, Navitas), conducted by IEAA


Employers and language

proficiency


Transition to employment

Employer expectations- communication skills and English proficiency in “employability skills” - social, cultural, professional, discipline specific, colloquial language

Visa requirements - minimum standards as cut- off scores for various visa classes sometimes drive professional and employer requirements

Drivers for students - Post study work experience, internships, work integrated learning, full time graduate employment

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Some potential solutions

Help employers articulate requirements for their workplaces/professional including work-specific communication skills

Build expectations of English language proficiency into assessment criteria with progressive standards across the life of a qualification

Assess graduating language skills within the discipline perhaps as part of a capstone unit to provide evidence of technical disciplinary skills and more general employability skills

Measure proficiency through an exit test and/or a combination of other approaches


Language development

during programs


Student Progress Rates: Time Series

80%

81%

82%

83%

84%

85%

86%

87%

88%

89%

90%

2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 ,2012

DomesticInternationalAggregate


Progress rates – all universities

65%

70%

75%

80%

85%

90%

95%

100%

65% 70% 75% 80% 85% 90% 95% 100%

Inte

rnat

iona

l Stu

dent

Pro

gres

s Ra

tes

Domestic Student Progress Rates


Some myths about language improvement

International students will improve their measured English proficiency by osmosis during their course

Improving language is a marginal teaching and

learning issue within a discipline/technical area – best left to a “support” or “study skills” staff


Some possible solutions Assess all students soon after arrival to identify needs Provide discipline based staff with evidence that

embedding language development in content improving learning outcomes. Improve PD in teaching the communication skills for that career/discipline

Offer online resources and peer to peer programs to support discipline based language development

Encourage proactive response in students to take responsibility for working on their language development both inside and outside the classroom

Provide opportunities for students practice their language skills – especially productive skills of speaking and writing in context


English requirements at

admission


Improving Preparation and Selection of students There is a lack of understanding of the variety and

complexity of channels for demonstrating English language competence

Many students enter without undertaking a standardised English proficiency test

Standarised English proficiency tests measure readiness to engage in study but do not guarantee study outcomes. Also there are many factors that affect student performance

Research on equivalences between standardised tests is challenging

Receiving institutions frequently use pathway programs and other channels to suit a variety of institutional needs but may not study outcomes of this practice

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DIAC English requirements for student visas

TestIELTS 5.0 5.5 6.0 6.5 7.0 7.5

TOEFL iBT 35 46 60 79 94 102

PTE Academic

36 42 50 58 65 73

CAE Cambridge

41 47 52 58 67 74

OET Pass Pass Pass Pass Pass Pass


Some possible solutions

Accept only official test scores from standardised tests and ensure they are validated by the test company ( Validation is compulsory for SVP institutions) Use individual skills scores as well as total scores depending on the kinds and levels of proficiency required in different subjects and levels of study

Where possible, use more than one piece of evidence of a student’s English proficiency

If using pathway scores, scrutinize the outcomes to ensure they meet your requirements

Evaluate the validity of your admissions criteria by performing regular reviews and adjusting requirements

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Current ETS TOEFL research project:

Alan Olsen


English Language ChannelsResearch questionHow do students perform academically compared with how they met the institutions’ English language entry requirements?Research data (to date) 6761 commencing 2012 international students

from VET and higher education sector How did students perform during 2012? Students passed 86% of units that they attempted.

3171 females passed 89.9% and 3590 males

passed 82.6%18


Performance by discipline

4905 degree students passed 86.8% and 1856 diploma students passed 83.9%Education: 146 passed 96.8%Health: 336 passed 93.2%Business: 3465 passed 86.5%Engineering: 786 passed 81.5%IT: 570 passed 80.7%So commencing international students in Education and Health perform most successfully than students in Engineering and IT.

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Country of origin

Students from the top five countries made up 53% of the research population; 2,044 from China passed 85.1% 461 from Vietnam passed 82.2% 423 from South Korea passed 90.3% 392 from India passed 81.1% 287 from Malaysia passed 87.7%

73 students from The Philippines passed 95.6%


English language channel

6570 Students passed 86% attempted 1880 (29%) standardised tests IELTS or TOEFL –

87.9% 1780 Australian pathways program - 84.2% 1380 English as first language or language of

instruction – 86% 730 Institution’s EAP with direct entry 85.3% 380 studied in English in home education system –

89.8% 153 High School English – 71.3%


For further Information or to participate in the English channel research

Helen CookAssociate Director Client Relations

ETS [email protected]

mailto:[email protected]

English Language Proficiency and Academic Performance

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