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Topic familiarity effects on performance in speaking assessment tasks

Speaking assessment is believed to be difficult in its expansion and execution. Thus, it is a challenge for teachers in preparing students for speaking tests. This study’s purpose was to identify whether topic familiarity affects speaking performance among students who were preparing to sit for the...

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Main Authors:	Ahmad Bukhar, Nurul Iman, Ismail, Lilliati, Lide Abu Kassim, Noor, Razali, Abu Bakar, Noordin, Nooreen, Firdaus Mohd Noh, Muhamad
Format:	Article
Language:	English
Published:	AWEJ Group 2023
Online Access:	http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/110402/1/110402.pdf http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/110402/ https://awej.org/topic-familiarity-effects-on-performance-in-speaking-assessment-tasks/
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id	my.upm.eprints.110402
record_format	eprints
spelling	my.upm.eprints.1104022024-10-08T03:37:26Z http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/110402/ Topic familiarity effects on performance in speaking assessment tasks Ahmad Bukhar, Nurul Iman Ismail, Lilliati Lide Abu Kassim, Noor Razali, Abu Bakar Noordin, Nooreen Firdaus Mohd Noh, Muhamad Speaking assessment is believed to be difficult in its expansion and execution. Thus, it is a challenge for teachers in preparing students for speaking tests. This study’s purpose was to identify whether topic familiarity affects speaking performance among students who were preparing to sit for the high-stakes Malaysian University English Test speaking test. The study aimed to investigate the validity and reliability of the speaking assessment measures and, subsequently, to examine the speaking tests’ item difficulty measures differences according to topic familiarity level. Data were collected from 40 non-native speakers of English among Malaysian Form Six pre-university students who were preparing for their MUET test. The researcher conducted two practice speaking tests, which used retired papers of the MUET CEFR-aligned speaking tests, to the 40 participants who were grouped into 10 speaking test groups. The practice speaking tests were video and audio-recorded. Topic familiarity was measured using self-report questionnaires. In the second phase, each of the seven appointed raters scored all 40 students’ responses in two speaking tests consisting of two speaking tasks assessed across four criteria: task fulfillment, language, communicative ability, and group discussion. Many-facet Rasch measurement results revealed significant differences translating to significant influence of topic familiarity on speaking performance. The present study’s results not only confirmed the significance of topic familiarity in the preparation for speaking assessments, but also highlighted the need for formal teaching on potential topic themes that are commonly encountered in such assessments, particularly those that are at the post-secondary level. These findings imply importance in designing speaking tests taking into account test-taker topic familiarity. AWEJ Group 2023 Article PeerReviewed text en http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/110402/1/110402.pdf Ahmad Bukhar, Nurul Iman and Ismail, Lilliati and Lide Abu Kassim, Noor and Razali, Abu Bakar and Noordin, Nooreen and Firdaus Mohd Noh, Muhamad (2023) Topic familiarity effects on performance in speaking assessment tasks. Arab World English Journal, 14 (4). pp. 213-232. ISSN 2229-9327 https://awej.org/topic-familiarity-effects-on-performance-in-speaking-assessment-tasks/ 10.24093/awej/vol14no4.13
institution	Universiti Putra Malaysia
building	UPM Library
collection	Institutional Repository
continent	Asia
country	Malaysia
content_provider	Universiti Putra Malaysia
content_source	UPM Institutional Repository
url_provider	http://psasir.upm.edu.my/
language	English
description	Speaking assessment is believed to be difficult in its expansion and execution. Thus, it is a challenge for teachers in preparing students for speaking tests. This study’s purpose was to identify whether topic familiarity affects speaking performance among students who were preparing to sit for the high-stakes Malaysian University English Test speaking test. The study aimed to investigate the validity and reliability of the speaking assessment measures and, subsequently, to examine the speaking tests’ item difficulty measures differences according to topic familiarity level. Data were collected from 40 non-native speakers of English among Malaysian Form Six pre-university students who were preparing for their MUET test. The researcher conducted two practice speaking tests, which used retired papers of the MUET CEFR-aligned speaking tests, to the 40 participants who were grouped into 10 speaking test groups. The practice speaking tests were video and audio-recorded. Topic familiarity was measured using self-report questionnaires. In the second phase, each of the seven appointed raters scored all 40 students’ responses in two speaking tests consisting of two speaking tasks assessed across four criteria: task fulfillment, language, communicative ability, and group discussion. Many-facet Rasch measurement results revealed significant differences translating to significant influence of topic familiarity on speaking performance. The present study’s results not only confirmed the significance of topic familiarity in the preparation for speaking assessments, but also highlighted the need for formal teaching on potential topic themes that are commonly encountered in such assessments, particularly those that are at the post-secondary level. These findings imply importance in designing speaking tests taking into account test-taker topic familiarity.
format	Article
author	Ahmad Bukhar, Nurul Iman Ismail, Lilliati Lide Abu Kassim, Noor Razali, Abu Bakar Noordin, Nooreen Firdaus Mohd Noh, Muhamad
spellingShingle	Ahmad Bukhar, Nurul Iman Ismail, Lilliati Lide Abu Kassim, Noor Razali, Abu Bakar Noordin, Nooreen Firdaus Mohd Noh, Muhamad Topic familiarity effects on performance in speaking assessment tasks
author_facet	Ahmad Bukhar, Nurul Iman Ismail, Lilliati Lide Abu Kassim, Noor Razali, Abu Bakar Noordin, Nooreen Firdaus Mohd Noh, Muhamad
author_sort	Ahmad Bukhar, Nurul Iman
title	Topic familiarity effects on performance in speaking assessment tasks
title_short	Topic familiarity effects on performance in speaking assessment tasks
title_full	Topic familiarity effects on performance in speaking assessment tasks
title_fullStr	Topic familiarity effects on performance in speaking assessment tasks
title_full_unstemmed	Topic familiarity effects on performance in speaking assessment tasks
title_sort	topic familiarity effects on performance in speaking assessment tasks
publisher	AWEJ Group
publishDate	2023
url	http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/110402/1/110402.pdf http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/110402/ https://awej.org/topic-familiarity-effects-on-performance-in-speaking-assessment-tasks/
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score	13.211869

Topic familiarity effects on performance in speaking assessment tasks

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