Abstract
Currently, it has become a trend for English language programs at Japanese universities to introduce Can-do statements (CDS) to their curriculum. CDS should ideally be tailor-made for the target learners who study at the specific language program. Therefore, case studies investigating efficient ways to create valid CDS for specific language programs are quite important. This research focuses on CDS for a listening course at an English language program in a Japanese university. Firstly, a panel of teachers selected 28 CDSs for three different proficiency levels of students. Then, before the listening course began, students answered the CDS as a form of questionnaire referred to as Can-do self-checklist (SCL). After students completed the listening course they answered SCL again. The results were analyzed with the item response theory (IRT) one parameter model, and students' ability levels (θ) were estimated. The average θ of the students' SCL increased toward the end of the semester, and the students in the basic level increased θ the most. The results of SCL were compared with θ of students listening tests, but the correlation coefficient among these tests were mid-range, although relationships were strong at the basic level. Finally, the difficulty levels for each SCL based on teachers' expectations, and the item difficulty parameter calculated were compared, and five SCLs showing remarkable discrepancies were analyzed. Results indicated that the wording of SCL is quite important and should be systematically well organized. Moreover, special attention is needed in a Japanese students' language learning environment. An SCL in which students have never experienced is not an accurate means of self-evaluation.
