apec-內頁

As reflected in the descriptions of the proficiency tests above, though unique in their own ways, many of the tests described above emphasize language ability as the ability to communicate in different domains, including daily life, education, and work. This aspect of these proficiency tests is similar to the proficiency guidelines for English, that is, being able to make use of the target language in a variety of settings for various purposes is a main indicator of language ability.

The Test of Proficiency—Hanyu, the Chinese Proficiency Test, and the Japanese Language Proficiency Test are different, because their proficiency tests also implied a view of language ability as that can be gauged from the hours of study and size of vocabulary. Perhaps it is because in these two cultures, the learning of foreign languages have traditionally been approached from a “study” perspective more than a “language-in-use” perspective.

It is also interesting that, of the six languages discussed above, the French DELF and DALF and German TestDaF have been aligned with the levels specified in the CEFR, pointing to not only how CEFR is becoming an important reference document for language testing in Europe, but also that CEFR’s implied notions of language proficiency and language standards are increasingly acknowledged by test developers.

In the Asian-Pacific economies, the notion of having a common framework for languages other than English has received increasing attention and recognition, although tests have not been developed based on any standards or frameworks, nor have they been aligned to the readily available CEFR in the way that the French DELF and DALF and German TestDaF have. However, as Asian-Pacific economies have agreed on the benefits of pursuing common frameworks of standards for this region, the CEFR might be a place to start because as a functional scale, CEFR is intended to apply to any language. In particular, one place to start might be to expand the lower ranges of the CEFR, considering the role of English in many APEC economies as second or foreign languages. It would be practical to pick a simple starting point, such as the threshold levels, and taking into account of the Asian-Pacific varieties of Englishes (Jenkins, 2006; Lin & Martin, 2005). During this effort, it is also crucial to keep in mind that the work does not end at creating standards or frameworks; but ultimately, to provide the scaffolding that assists in the attainment of these standards.