영어 말하기 능력 절대 등급 설정에 관한 연구

A study on English proficiency level distinctions

Teaching English speaking skills has recently gained considerable momentum in Korea because of greater demands for personnel who have a good command of spoken English. Yet it is deplorable that enough attention has not been paid to a reliable and valid measurement of English speaking skills inside and outside the classroom. This is believed to be attributable to the fact that no clear set of absolute English oral proficiency level distinctions has been in existence for classroom use. Thus, this study provides a brief survey of the literature on English proficiency level distinctions, urging researchers and practitioners to establish an ecologically valid set of English oral proficiency level distinctions suitable for the Korean context. The concept of absolute proficiency levels is defined, two different ways to establish level distinctions are discussed, and problems of existing level distinctions are delineated. It is hoped that the discussions about the problems of existing proficiency level distinctions will shed some light on a clear way forward to the establishment of a suitable set of English oral proficiency level distinctions in the Korean context.