FACE VALIDITY OF THE INSTITUTIONAL ENGLISH BASED ON THE COMMON EUROPEAN FRAME OF REFERENCE AT A PUBLIC UNIVERSITY IN VIETNAM

Abstract

In language testing and assessment, face validity of a test is used by learners and is probably considered as the most commonly discussed type of test validity because it is primarily dealt with the question of whether a test measures what it is said to measure. Therefore, this study investigates students’ and English lecturers’ perceptions toward the Institutional English Test based on the Common European Frame of Reference administered in a public university in Vietnam. A survey of 103 students and 20 English lecturers from the Institutional Program was conducted. A questionnaire with 7 main concerns – weightage, time allocation, language skills, topics, question items, instructions and mark allocations was used to collect data. All responses were analyzed through descriptive statistics. The results showed that the Institutional English Test based on the Common European Frame of Reference had satisfactory face validity from both the students’ and lecturers’ opinions; consequently, the Institutional English Test is perceived as a good test to measure students’ English abilities.