On the Relationship among EFL Learners’Test Taking Strategies, Performance on Test Method Facets and Language Proficiency Levels

The use of test taking strategies and the impact of test wiseness on the test takers performance on the high stake tests such as TOEFL and IELTS have been greatly studied since the last three decades. The review of the related studies also show that learners and teachers perceptions about the impact of test taking strategies and test wiseness in the realm of applied linguistics were studied by the scholars of the field. However, to the best of the researchers knowledge the interaction between test takers language proficiency, test facets and test taking strategies need further study. This study aimed at investigating the relationship between EFL learners test taking strategies and their performance on test method facets (i.e., Multiple Choice vs. Cloze test). It also aimed at investigating the difference between pre-intermediate and upper-intermediate EFL learners test taking strategies. In doing so, 120 EFL learners were selected based on their scores on the Oxford placement test. The data were collected through test-taking strategies test and reading comprehension test consisting of two facets. The data were analyzed through running Pearson correlation, independent samples-t-test, and a two way ANOVA. The results of the study showed that both pre-intermediate and upper-intermediate Iranian EFL learners are good users of test-taking strategies. Also, Upper-intermediate Iranian EFL learners outperformed the pre-intermediate ones in the measured variables: test taking strategies, multiple choice test, and cloze passage test. Results also show that there is a significant positive correlation between the learners use of test taking strategies and their performance on cloze passage and multiple choice tests. In line with the findings it can be concluded that the more EFL test takers use test-taking strategies the better performance on reading comprehension test they have. It can also be concluded that language proficiency is a good indicator of the learners performance on reading.

Keywords:

Between EFL Learners , Test Taking Strategies , Language Proficiency Levels