Preliminary Study on Using ILR Can-Do Statements for Placement in SOFTS Virtual Training Courses.

摘要

This presentation was delivered to the Interagency Language Roundtable (ILR) Testing Committee on 20 MAR 2013. SWA Consulting Inc. investigated the effectiveness of the ILR Can Do Statements as a Special Operations Forces Tele-training System (SOFTS) course placement tool. Researchers asked the following questions: (1) Are the Can Do Statements measuring perceived language speaking proficiency consistently and accurately for all students; and (2) Are the Can Do Statements related to similar constructs such as students confidence in their ability to perform language tasks. The Can Do Statements measure perceived speaking proficiency (i.e., an individual's perception of his or her language ability). The sample consisted of 1,710 student responses to the Can Do Statements. Course feedback open ended comments were also analyzed. Although this study provides some support for the use of the ILR Can Do Statements as a placement tool for SOFTS courses, some limitations may restrict the usefulness of the findings. Most notably, this was an archival study. A follow-up study could involve measuring actual proficiency with an Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI) at the beginning of language training. This would allow for comparison between students OPI ratings and their responses to the Can Do Statements.