Score reliability and placement testing

Westrick, P. (2005). Score reliability and placement testing. JALT Journal, 27(1), 71-94.

Westrick (2005) discussed three reasons for the implementation of Quick Placement Test-Pen and Paper Test (QPT-PPT) within a curriculum and reported the results of a placement test administered to 161 Japanese university students. The first reason was the status. The QPT-PPT was developed by a prestigious institution, and some believed that implementing it could somehow improve the image of the curriculum. The second reason was that it was extremely difficult to develop their in-house placement tests. The third reason was paucity of time. Usually, placement tests are administered during a busy period of the academic year, and it is difficult to find time to administer tests during an orientation period. In addition, administrators have to declare the results in a short period of time in order to announce the classes in which students were placed. Thus, the tests have to be brief and easy. As for the results, the K-R 20 internal consistency reliability coefficient was .66 with the item number of 120 when 161 students took the cloze and multiple-choice test that tested reading, grammar, and vocabulary skills. Westrick concluded that the QPT-PPT might be effective with other groups but not for his participants and urged on the development of in-house placement tests that were connected to curricular goals and objectives.