A Student in a Strange Land
LanguageCert, 13 March 2025
Access, opportunities, and experiences
It is often said that “qualifications open doors” because they can provide access to life-changing opportunities such as university admission, work, or migration. In the same way that a door provides access to a new room or space, a qualification can provide access to higher education, career opportunities, new experiences and communities. Doors open to opportunities but also to uncertainties. In fiction, from fairy tales to the present day, doors open to different worlds and alternative realities. Rather than opening the door, it is stepping through the door where the story really starts and the hero's journey begins.
Forward-looking test design
I have worked in language assessment for over 20 years and I appreciate more and more the value of taking an expansive and forward-looking approach to test design: identifying and defining the real-world knowledge, skills and abilities to assess. If a test is the key to opening a door, then the emphasis can sometimes be on creating a more intricate key at the expense of neglecting what happens to a test taker once the door is open. A student can pass a test and unlock the door only to find themselves a stranger in a strange land.
When my colleagues and I started to develop the LANGUAGECERT Academic test, we focused on providing students with an opportunity to develop the English language skills and linguistic repertoire they will need to survive, thrive and flourish in the new world before them.
Academic English and more
Everyone familiar with English language high-stakes tests for admission to colleges and universities is more than familiar with the terms academic English, English for academic purposes, English in an academic context, and so on. What is missing from the discourse around such high-stakes tests is the discussion of English for students' everyday life, English for practical purposes at university, or English in a campus context. Just as there is more to college life and the university experience than studying, there should be more to high-stakes admissions tests than academic English for study.
Everyday life on campus
We have all experienced the looking-glass world of bureaucracy, its arcane internal logic and opaque language. As test developers, we must understand and take into consideration the experiences of international students. Encountering for the first time, thousands of miles away from home, the peculiarities of getting things done to put the basics of everyday life in place. Navigating, in English, the bureaucracies for accommodation, healthcare, internet access and other necessities.
A high-stakes test for admission to HEI does students a disservice if it does not address the challenges of their everyday lives once they are on campus. If a test ignores these challenges, it can't claim to focus on students' needs.
Addressing students' needs
LANGUAGECERT Academic's test design and content explicitly address these communicative needs. In the speaking test, we include tasks and role plays covering diverse topics such as the benefits of campus accommodation for first-year students, part-time work, the availability of suitable food in the college canteen and joining a campus sports club. Alongside discussions with tutors, lecturers and academic staff.
Students need to employ a range of interactional competencies for everyday life on campus, seminars and socialising. They must be able to code-switch between contexts to communicate appropriately according to the formality, complexity and purpose of specific interactions. In contrast to the seminar room, conversations at the accommodation office will be shorter, simpler, less formal and more transactional. Students must be clear and concise to achieve the desired outcome and resolution.
The value of role-playing
As part of their learning, role-playing real-life scenarios enables students to develop strategies and experiment with problem-solving approaches for handling future conversations. Practising in a controlled setting helps build confidence, as students can rehearse and refine their language skills without the pressure of real-world consequences. Instead of passively receiving information, role-playing actively engages participants, making the learning experience more memorable and impactful. By imagining themselves in a busy and noisy accommodation office, students can appreciate the importance of being clear and concise.
A student's journey
If a test is the key that opens the door to opportunity, the design and content of LANGUAGECERT Academic help students to see the world beyond and the everyday demands of college life. Throughout a student’s journey in their new world, there will be constant challenges and new demands. They will need a range of language abilities, as well as determination and resilience, to meet them. A student's journey may not be the stuff of legend, but it is their own epic story.
Watch a webinar by Cathy about the specific communicative English skills international students need to survive, thrive, and flourish at college or university.