Using post-test think aloud interviews to investigate student reading skills and reading test validity [Oral Presentation]

Abstract

This presentation will report on a classroom-based research project carried out in a tertiary institution in the UK with international students on a pre- sessional EAP course. Using a think aloud protocol, students described (retrospectively) how they did tasks in a reading test. Interviews yielded information about students' reading skills and strategies and the cognitive validity of test items, which enabled informed improvements to teaching and test design. The presentation will give brief background information and outline the research methodology. We will then detail interesting findings from the interviews, including information about how students approached texts and tasks, the skills and strategies they used (or did not use), and information about the validity of test questions. We will discuss how this process informed teaching and syllabus changes, ensured better teaching/test alignment, and helped improve test design