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ERIC Number: EJ1096206
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2016
Pages: 16
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0159-6306
EISSN: N/A
Policies of Global English Tests: Test-Takers' Perspectives on the IELTS Retake Policy
Hamid, M. Obaidul
Discourse: Studies in the Cultural Politics of Education, v37 n3 p472-487 2016
Globalized English proficiency tests such as the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) are increasingly playing the role of gatekeepers in a globalizing world. Although the use of the IELTS as a "policy tool" for making decisions in the areas of study, work and migration impacts on test-takers' lives and life chances, not much is known about its own policy and policy logic. With the growing call for listening to test-takers' voices, specific policy aspects of the test have recently been scrutinized. This article seeks to contribute to this area by drawing on test-takers' perspectives on the IELTS retake policy and developing an understanding of how policies of global English tests are perceived, interpreted and given new meanings by its key stakeholders. Although the truth-value of the "emic" views of test-takers may be debated, their experiences and perceptions problematize the reliability claims of the testing agency by locating commercial motives at the center of their policy and thereby raising theoretical, professional and ethical questions.
Routledge. Available from: Taylor & Francis, Ltd. 325 Chestnut Street Suite 800, Philadelphia, PA 19106. Tel: 800-354-1420; Fax: 215-625-2940; Web site: http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Evaluative
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Australia
Identifiers - Assessments and Surveys: International English Language Testing System
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A