Speaker
KEYWORDS
Entrance Exams, NGSL, GPA, TOEIC L&R
ABSTRACT
At one Japanese university, TOEIC is used to evaluate the English-language program. Additionally, first-year students should master the New General Service List (NGSL; Brown, 2013). An NGSL levels test (Bennett & Stoeckel, 2013) places students in one of four levels. By January, approximately 20% of students remain at or below NGSL Level 3 (i.e., first 1900 NGSL words). As one step in understanding why, this presentation reports on the relationships between NGSL levels, enrollment type, GPA, and TOEIC L&R scores. Analyses revealed that students who entered by recommendation were more likely to remain at lower NGSL levels, χ2 (df = 1, N = 167) = 18.165, p < .001. A one-way ANOVA indicated significant GPA differences between NGSL groups (partial η² = .27; higher NGSL students > mid-level > lower level). Likewise, two RMANOVAs revealed significant differences for both TOEIC Listening (partial η² = .23) and Reading scores (partial η² = .16). On average, lower-level NGSL students were 10-18 months behind higher-level NGSL peers on both TOEIC Listening and Reading. Differences were most acute for TOEIC Reading. Lower-performing NGSL students might struggle with speed and comprehension on the TOEIC Reading test. Enrollment practices might also be limiting score growth.
| TITLE | Relation between entrance exams, NGSL Levels, GPA, and TOEIC L&R Scores |
|---|---|
| RELEVANT SIG | Vocabulary |
| FORMAT | In-person interactive poster session |
