Abstract
This paper focuses on the validity of paper-and-pencil tests for pronunciation and accent. Due to the inclusion of the tests in the National Center Test, the validity of these subtests, in regard to whether scores obtained by the tests can be representatives of the actual oral performance of pronunciation and accent, has been debated for over two decades. However, comprehensive research such as on the investigation of the test makers' intention and students' perspective towards the tests, has not been done yet. Therefore, this paper investigated the relationship between written pronunciation and accent tests and the actual oral performances at word, sentence, and discourse levels. In addition, a questionnaire was delivered to the students to examine their learning experiences regarding pronunciation and accent, and their perspectives on these tests. As a result of the correlation analyses between the written and oral tests, small correlations were detected between the written and oral pronunciation tasks. On the other hand, a higher correlation was found between the written accent and the oral accent tasks at the word level, but the correlation coefficients were smaller between the written accent task and the oral tasks at the sentence level, and smaller still, at the discourse level. The questionnaire reveals the students felt the written pronunciation and accent tests did not measure their actual pronunciation and accent abilities, but rather their knowledge of these subskills. These findings were discussed from the point of the intention of the test makers.
