Includes bibliographical references and index.

"This collection of 35 original articles provides language teachers with a theoretical background of key issues associated with language testing as well as practical advice on how to improve the effectiveness of the tests they develop and implement. Written by internationally prominent researchers and educators, the chapters are organized into five sections including:
Key issues in the field
Assessment purposes and approaches
Assessment of second language skills
Technology in assessment
Administrative issues

Chapters assume no particular background knowledge and are written in an accessible style." (Book Cover)

Preface /
Arthur Hughes

A. Key Issues
1. A brief history of language testing / Barry O'Sullivan
2. Foreign/second language assessment literacy / Christine Coombe, Salah Troudi and Mashael Al-Hamly
3. Principles of language assessment / Hossein Farhady
4. The assessment development process / Barry O'Sullivan
5. Test Specifications / Fred Davidson and Glenn Fulcher
6. Linking assessment with instructional aims and learning / Anne Katz
7. An overview of language standards for language learners / Margo Gottlieb
8. The common European framework of reference / Elif Kantarcioglu and Spiros Papageorgiou
9. Test impact and washback /
Liying Cheng and Andy Curtis
10. Test-taking strategies / Andrew D. Cohen
11. What teachers need to know about test analysis / James Dean Brown
12. Ethics in language testing and assessment / Annie Brown
13. Professional development in language assessment / Stephen Stoynoff and Christine Coombe

B. Assessment Purposes and Approaches
14. Choosing the right type of assessment / James Dean Brown
15. Communicative language testing / Keith Morrow
16. Alternative assessment in language education / Christine Coombe and Kerry Purmensky
17. Task-based language assessment / Ali Shehadeh 18. Authentic assessment / Peter Davidson
19. Placement testing / Tony Green
20. Assessing young learners / Angela Hasselgreen
21. ESL assessment in the workplace / Ingrid Greenberg
22. Student involvement in assessment through self and peer assessment / Neil J. Anderson
23. Assessment of second language pragmatics / Zohreh R. Eslami and Azizullah Mirzaei

C. Assessing Second Language Skills
24. Assessing reading / Nancy Hubley
25. Assessing writing Sara / Cushing Weigle
26. Assessing listening / John Flowerdew and Lindsay Miller
27. Assessing speaking / Barry O'Sullivan
28. Assessing grammar / Wayne Jones

D. Technology in Assessment
30. Computerized language assessment / Peter Davidson and Christine Coombe
31. Web-based language assessment / Sunyoung Shin
32. Software to facilitate language assessment / Young-Ju Lee;

E. Administrative Issues
33. Managing assessment in large EFL classes / Brock Brady
34. Marking assessments (rubrics, rating scales) / Tony Green and Roger Hawkey
35. Accommodation in language testing / Lynda Taylor

Author/subject index

"This collection of original articles provides language teachers with a theoretical background of key issues associated with language testing as well as practical advice on how to improve the effectiveness of the tests they develop and implement. Written by internationally prominent researchers and educators, the chapters are organized into five sections: key issues in the field, assessment purposes and approaches, assessment of second language skills, technology in assessment, and administrative issues. Chapters assume no particular background knowledge and are written in an accessible style"-- Provided by publisher.