A computerized task-based test of second language Dutch for vocational training purposes

This article describes the development of a task-based test, Taaltoets Instroom Beroepsopleiding (TIBO), designed to measure whether nonnative adult speakers of Dutch possess the level of Dutch language proficiency that is minimally required to enter vocational training in the industrial sector. The test aims to measure functional language proficiency in a direct way, i.e., by presenting examinees with language tasks that they are likely to encounter in vocational training or on the shop floor. The tasks are presented to examinees via a computer program in which sounds, pictures and images are integrated. The article focuses on the three tensions that had to be taken into account throughout the process of test development: • the tension between the need for a task-based test and the need to efficiently administer the test via a computerized platform; • the tension between an examinee population that has little training and the potential bias in testing complex abilities via computer; • the tension between various intended uses for test outcomes and the types of interpretations that may best be informed by the test.