Abstract
Mediation is one of the four communicative language activities, with reception, production, and interaction (Council of Europe, 2020). Cross-linguistic mediation, a language switch from one language to another, is part of mediation activities; it is reportedly practiced in English classes (Chiappini & Mansur, 2021) and assessed in some examinations (Kerr, 2022). However, the number of items that measure examinees’ cross-linguistic mediation skills has gradually decreased in Japanese high school entrance examinations (Masuda & Matsuzawa, 2023, 2024). This current study explores the items appearing in the second-stage national university entrance examinations in Japan. It was found that five different types of cross-linguistic mediation items appeared in 54 out of 62 examinations (87%) implemented in 2024. It also revealed that the items have been set with a high percentage of over 80 percent since 2014, regardless of academic discipline. The study suggests that the objectives of fostering and assessing mediation skills be added to the Courses of Study for junior and senior high schools, and that a test specification be announced by each university, thereby aligning curriculum, teaching, and assessment. This will equip Japanese learners of English with reading skills in academic contexts and communicative skills in real-life contexts.
https://ror.org/04ww21r56 
