The current study explored the assessment of English Language Learners' argumentative speaking ability. Specifically, the study involved the development and administration of a scenario-based test that aimed to measure learners' ability to display competency in L2 argumentative speaking ability by building an argument from factual evidence and…

The development of automated systems for evaluating spontaneous speech is desirable for L2 learning, as it can be used as a facilitating tool for self-regulated learning, language proficiency assessment, and teacher training programs. However, languages with fewer learners face challenges due to the scarcity of training data. Recent advancements…

Purpose: Phonological processing skills, or using phoneme knowledge to process language, in preschool- and kindergarten-age children are an important indicator of children's future reading abilities. However, assessing phonological processing skills can be difficult in children with speech sound disorders because scoring often requires that…

Most second language assessment researchers agree that interactional competence (IC) is an important part of the construct of oral communication. However, measurement of IC has proven challenging because at least one interlocutor is considered necessary to create an appropriate social context for test takers to demonstrate their IC. Including…

Purpose: This study sought to determine the minimally detectable change (MDC) of sentence intelligibility for speakers with multiple sclerosis (MS) and Parkinson's disease (PD). Method: Speakers included 78 participants consisting of 32 neurologically healthy control speakers, 30 speakers with MS, and 16 speakers with PD. All speakers were…

To be able to assess interactional competence (IC), which believed to be shared knowledge rather than an individual skill, talk in paired speaking tests can be analyzed. Accordingly, this study investigates how L2 speakers of English collaboratively construct turns in paired speaking tests mainly through embodied word search sequences and their…

Purpose: Despite extensive research into communication-related parameters in dysarthria, such as intelligibility, naturalness, and perceived listener effort, the existing evidence has not been translated into a clinically applicable, comprehensive, and valid diagnostic tool so far. This study addresses Communication-Related Parameters in Speech…

Background: The status of the velopharyngeal mechanism can be inferred from perceptual ratings of specified speech parameters. Several studies have proposed the measure of an overall velopharyngeal composite score based on these perceptual ratings and have reported good validity. The Cleft Audit Protocol for Speech--Augmented (CAPS-A) is a…

The influence of visual impairment (i.e., blindness or low vision) on the development of children's speech sound production has undergone some speculation for over half a century. Children learn to produce speech sounds by utilizing and integrating several cognitive-linguistic and sensory-perceptual processes, which may include processing visual…

The reciprocal nature of spoken interaction means that participants constantly alternate between speaker and listener roles. However, listener or recipient actions--also known as interactive listening (IL)--are somewhat underrepresented in language tests. In conventional listening tests, they are not directly assessed. In speaking tests, they have…

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate the association between perceived single-word speech severity and intelligibility in children with childhood apraxia of speech (CAS), with and without comorbid language impairment (LI), and to investigate the contribution of different CAS signs to perceived single-word speech severity and…

Clinical Question: When assessing children's speech using a standardised speech assessment, is face-to-face better than telepractice to determine the presence and the nature of speech sound disorder? Method: Systematic Review. Study Sources: PsycInfo®, CINAHL, Scopus, PubMed, ERIC. Search Terms: telehealth OR telepractice OR telemedicine AND child…

The extrapolation of test scores to a target domain - that is, association between test performances and relevant real-world outcomes - is critical to valid score interpretation and use. This study examined the relationship between Duolingo English Test (DET) speaking scores and university stakeholders' evaluation of DET speaking performances. A…

As our understanding of the construct of oral communication (OC) has evolved, so have the possibilities of computer technology undertaking the delivery of tests that measure this ability. It is paramount to understand to what extent such developments lead to accurate, comprehensive, and useful assessment of OC. In this paper, we discuss five…

English proficiency assessments have become a necessary metric for filtering and selecting prospective candidates for both academia and industry. With the rise in demand for such assessments, it has become increasingly necessary to have the automated human-interpretable results to prevent inconsistencies and ensure meaningful feedback to the…