期刊名称：Electronic Journal of Foreign Language Teaching (e-FLT)
电子版ISSN：0219-9874
出版年度：2011
卷号：8
期号：2
出版社：National University of Singapore
摘要：The use of standardised English proficiency tests like IELTS and TOEFL for admission and placement purposes is widely practised in academic institutions throughout the world. Similarly in Malaysia, many tertiary institutions utilise the results of a localised version of such tests called the Malaysian University English Test (MUET) as a measure of students’ proficiency level, prerequisite for admission, as well as placement in various academic programmes. This paper reports on the predictive validity of MUET as a measure of undergraduates’ English language proficiency and the appropriacy of the MUET cut-off bands for placement pur-poses. The MUET bands of 2884 undergraduates from various faculties and the grade they obtained in an English language enhancement course were analysed to answer the research questions. The findings indicate a significant positive relationship between the undergraduates’ MUET bands and their grades in the English language course. Chi square results also indicate that the difference between MUET band 3 undergraduates’ ability to obtain good grades is significantly different compared to undergraduates with MUET bands 1 and 2. Besides providing evidence for MUET’s validity as a measure of students’ English language ability, the findings also recommend a need to review the cut-off MUET band for placement purposes.
