Abstract
Today language studies are one of the most popular international practices, both for everyday purposes and academic reasons. That is why development and implementation of reliable tools and methods for testing and assessment of language proficiency have become an important goal for instructors and linguists across the globe. To promote a universal understanding of the concepts in this area of knowledge there should exist a comprehensive terminology system of testing and assessment. Borrowing of terms from a more developed terminology system has become a common practice, but whether it always brings satisfactory results remains to be seen. This research paper aims at describing the techniques of integrating English language testing and assessment terms into Russian. In order to establish those techniques we conducted the comparative analysis of the most frequently used English terms on language testing and assessment based on their appearance in specialized texts on the subject and their Russian equivalents. The analysis procedure involved examining the phonetic and orthographic form, definitions and contextual usage of both the original terms and their equivalent borrowed into Russian language. Based on that, we can point out the most productive ways of transferring these terms into Russian, in particular, using calques, half-calques and transformational translation. Those methods prove to be effective in terms of securing the transparency of the meaning and providing a universal understanding of the concepts behind the terms which is necessary for successful communication of the experts in the field on international level and development of valid testing instruments. Nevertheless, integration of some terms is less successful due to the significant discrepancies in meaning between the original and borrowed terms leading to misunderstanding and potentially faulty testing and assessment practices. Therefore, the subject matter of borrowing terms in the abovementioned area shall be addressed in a more thorough fashion, and there should be more studies conducted on this issue.
Highlights
Modern science is characterized both by its interdisciplinary nature and internationality
One of the most crucial elements of successful communication in any sphere is transparency or universal understanding of the described phenomena, methods and tools used by researchers, and this transparency can be achieved through creation of specific terminology in the corresponding languages of communication that would facilitate adequate interpretation of terms and prevent misunderstanding of their meaning
This research paper studies basic English terms related to the sphere of testing and assessment that were selected for The Dictionary of Language Testing and Assessment using such criteria as their frequency, topicality and practical application in the abovementioned area
Summary
Modern science is characterized both by its interdisciplinary nature and internationality. One of the most crucial elements of successful communication in any sphere is transparency or universal understanding of the described phenomena, methods and tools used by researchers, and this transparency can be achieved through creation of specific terminology in the corresponding languages of communication that would facilitate adequate interpretation of terms and prevent misunderstanding of their meaning. One example of the sphere in need of such borrowings is testing and assessment in foreign language teaching. Standard tests designed for different purposes, including assessment of language proficiency have become very popular for both European and Asian languages. The need for their development emerged in the context of the current international migration processes, labor and educational mobility and opportunities for studying and communicating online. The most well-known language tests include TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language), IELTS
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