Renáta Nagy
Doctoral School of Health Sciences, Medical School, University of Pécs, Hungary
The presentation is about the online assessment of English and other languages. The focus is on online as a possible future form of language testing. The study is innovative and its main target is to uncover the intriguing question of validity of online testing.
The aim of the presentation is to enlighten the candidates and professional assessors about the advantages and disadvantages of certain types of online test tasks after a thorough experimental process currently being implemented. The test tasks include online tests written in English and Hungarian by the students at the Medical School of the University of Pécs. The same students volunteered to participate in my online survey regarding tests and other possibilities online which truly has a huge importance hence today's situation around the globe. It can unquestionably be used as a perspective in a vast array of contents.
A positive outcome of the study would indicate an optimistic and dazzling future in a number of aspects for not only language assessors but for future candidates as well. Namely, a base online setup which could be used worldwide for online tests.
Beside the principal aim of the study, other issues of online assessment will be taken into consideration to gain a complete picture of language testing. These areas include ability, context, discourse, competence, tasks, test developing and technology. In order to achieve this, the research involves not only the theoretical but also the real, first-hand empirical side of testing from the point of view of examiners and examinees as well.
Material and methods include surveys, needs analysis and trial versions of online tests. Surveys will not only question future candidates but also assessors in order to find both perspectives of needs and wants. Surveys are already being carried out focusing on the relevant questions. Candidates will include volunteering students and instructors of the Medical School of the University of Pécs in an estimated number of approximately 500 students.
The survey hypothesized that the students of the 21st century expect everything available online and not only expects but also would like to be accustomed with online contents and opportunities not only in everyday life possibilities but with studying and testing their knowledge online as well.
In this context, the presentation focuses on the possible questions, techniques and approaches of the issue of online assessment which can be used in language lessons as a type of classroom technique, too.
Im Fokus des Vortrages steht die online- Methode, die ein Bahnbrecher für die Zukunft darstellt. Die vorliegende Studie ist einerseits innovativ, andererseits vorwärts weisend. Mein Ziel ist es damit, die grenzlosen Möglichkeiten der online- Erhebung zu erforschen, in erster Linie die validitӓtsbezogenen Aspekte.
Das Ziel dieser empirischen Untersuchung ist es, die Vorteile und Nachteile des online-Testverfahrens sowohl für die Prüfer als auch für die Studierenden aufzudecken.
Die Daten basieren auf einem neulich an der Medizinischen Fakultät der Universität Pécs durchgeführten online-Fragebogen, der etwa von 500 Studierenden ausgefüllt wurde.
Die Fragen beziehen sich auf das online-Testverfahren, es wurden sowohl ungarische als auch ausländische Studierenden in die Untersuchung einbezogen.
Methodisch ist noch ein für Dozenten zusammengestellter Fragebogen vorgesehen, um den Bedarf für diese Methode aufzudecken. Nach dem theoretischen Teil folgt eine praktische -Untersuchung, zur Bestätigung der Hypothesen.
Das Ziel der Forschung ist also herauszufinden, ob es möglich ist, einen Fragebogen zusammenzustellen, der sowohl für den Prüfer als auch für den Studenten geeignet ist, bzw. kontrolliert warden kann und dabei die Validität der Prüfung auch intakt bleibt.
My name is Renáta Nagy and I am an assistant lecturer at the Department of Languages for Biomedical Purposes and Communication at the University of Pécs Medical School, Hungary. I am an English and Hungarian for Specific Purposes instructor and my primary areas regarding classroom instruction include General English, Medical English, Medical Hungarian and Terminology. Recently, I initiated my PhD at the Doctoral School of Health Sciences (University of Pécs) in which my field of research includes the question of online assessment.