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The Impact of English Language on Taiwanese SchoolsA Closer look at the cause and effect of the General English Proficiency TestBy Michael Chang1In response to the demands of English language by the International Communities, General English Proficiency Test has being developed and promoted as a scheme to raise awareness of English Proficiency and an assessment to measure ones ability in English.Acknowledging English as the International LanguageThe Good vs The OopsiesGoodThe promotion of GEPT successfully raised some awareness of English proficiency of the Taiwanese people.

OopsiesGEPT is a Indirect Test, as pose to Direct test.Raise the awareness of English, but did not raise the Taiwanese English proficiencies.

GEPT has been XXXX as the requirements of graduation assessments in high-schools and Junior colleges, and prerequisite of University entrances.

The over promotion of GEPT causing schools to reconstruct their curriculums .

3GEPT is a Indirect test, which only measures the ability or knowledge that underlies the skills we are trying to sample, there is no indication of the candidates oral proficiency, accuracy, or appropriateness of pronunciation. Or simply, knows how to communicate using English even.

After schools start to implement GEPT to the exams, Student had shift their focus on the scores of the test, promoting the Washback Effect of testing. May the schools only taken the first part of the GEPT tests as requirements, students may only be focusing on Reading and Listening part of English, thus narrowing the learners goals. Why the Oopsies?The rapid implementation of GEPT had cause schools to reconstruct the curriculum to based around GEPT in order to prepare students. Course materials of English subject had been replaced by GEPT materials only. Teachers are focusing on teaching the students to be able to pass GEPT as the main goal in English language and the orientation of Teaching method has been shift from performance of English, to GEPT.

In other words:

WASHBACK EFFECT LIVES OMG!! More Oopsies!?Provide more authentic English materials, even materials subjected to interests of the students such as video games, TV shows, fashionetc. (unorthodox method in Taiwan).

What should we do?Implementing Direct-Tests and Performance-based Tests.

Urge schools to focus on English Language Competence, and not GEPT alone.

Promoting student exchange programs such as JET.

What needs to be done so we could fix this problem?

The scale of this issue is large. It will take more than just English teachers and scholars to change this long-lasting trend. In reality, there are other considerations such as resources, financial capability and even the political aspects regarding the change of Taiwanese education system.

So what we can do as English teachers right now, is to take the responsibility upon our hands, to provide our students as much help as possible towards English acquisition.What CAN we do?

ReferenceArndt, V., Harvey, P., Nuttall, J. (2000). Alive to language: Perspectives on language awareness for English language teachers. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press

Liao, P., & Chiang, M. (2004). How College Students Beliefs about English Learning Relate to Their Strategy Use. Journal of National Hsin Chu Teachers College 19,137-154.(THCI)

The Language Training & Testing Center. (2010), . Retrieved from https://www.gept.org.tw/Exam_Intro/t01_introduction.asp

Shawcross, P. What do we mean by the washback effect of testing?. Aviation English Services. Retrieved from http://www.icao.int/icao/en/anb/meetings/ials2/docs/15.shawcross.pdfNunan, D. (2003). The Impact of English as a Global Language on Educational Policies and Practices in the Asia-Pacific Region*. TESOL QUARTERLY, 37(4). Retrieved from http://nzdl.sadl.uleth.ca/gsdl/collect/literatu/index/assoc/HASH01fc.dir/doc.pdf

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