** WINNER OF ILTA/SAGE Best Book Award 2020 **
Assessing English for Professional Purposes provides a
state-of-the-art account of the various kinds of language assessments
used to determine people's abilities to function linguistically in the
workplace. At a time when professional expertise is increasingly mobile
and diverse, with highly trained professionals migrating across national
boundaries to apply their skills in English-speaking settings, this book
offers a renewed agenda for inquiry into language assessments for
professional purposes (LAPP). Many of these experts work in high-risk
environments where communication breakdowns can have serious
consequences. This risk has been identified by governments and
professional bodies, who implement language tests for gate-keeping
purposes. Through a sociological lens of risk and responsibility, this
book:
- provides a detailed overview of both foundational and recent
literature in the field;
- offers conceptual tools for specific purpose assessment, including a
socially oriented theory of construct;
- develops theory and practice in key areas, such as needs analysis,
test development, validation and policy;
- significantly broadens the scope of the assessment of English for
professional purposes to include a range of assessment practices for
both professionals and laypeople in professional settings.
Assessing English for Professional Purposes is key reading for
researchers, graduate students and practitioners working in the area of
English for Specific Purposes assessment.
