Process of Determining the Level of Japanese Language Courses for Learner Diversity

Abstract

We use two types of online tests to assess students’ Japanese language proficiency and to ensure that they are placed in the appropriate courses: one is a four-choice test that primarily asks about vocabulary and grammar knowledge; the other is a listening comprehension test called LEAP. We, however, found that learners are not uniform, that some of them have different learning experiences, and that in a few cases, test results are not enough to determine the appropriate courses to attend. To solve this problem, after administering the two online tests, we interviewed students whose scores were discrepancies between the two. The interview uncovers five facts not revealed by the testing: 1) problems with the vocabulary and grammar tests, 2) test malfunctions, 3) unique learning methods, 4) influence of Japanese resources and 5) inappropriate response behavior due to excessive prior preparation for LEAP test. Conducting the interviews with the two online tests allowed us to design an effective placement procedure for a diverse range of learners.