Research on the Content Validity of the English Reading Test in Harbin Senior High School Entrance Examination : -- A Case Study of 2019-2023

Yuwei Niu; Xin Dong

doi:10.54097/tbcdpr03

Authors

Yuwei Niu
Xin Dong

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.54097/tbcdpr03

Keywords:

Harbin High School Entrance Examination, Reading Test, Content Validity

Abstract

The Academic Test for the Junior High School Students, as a kind of academic level examination, plays a crucial role in the selection and streaming of talents at the secondary school level in China. Reading is an essential skill that language learners need to master, and it has a large proportion in the English test of the High School Entrance Examination (HSEE). Therefore, studying the validity of English Reading Test in the HSEE can not only provide the examiner of the HSEE with data references for judging the validity of the reading test, but also provide references for English teachers to innovate teaching methods, as well as cultivating the students' English reading strategies and achieving the overall improvement of the reading ability. Focusing on English Reading Test in Harbin HSEE (2019-2023), this research selects the framework of test characteristics proposed by Bachman and Palmer and analyzes discourse input and expected response to explore the content validity by using textual, quantitative and comparative analyses. The results show that English Reading Test in Harbin HSEE (2019-2023) has a certain degree of content validity and basically meet the requirements of the exam syllabus, but problems still exist. The presentation form of the test text is monotonous, the difficulty gradient is unreasonable and the assessment of reading skills is insufficient.

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