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The Importance of Teaching EFL Listening and Speaking to the Secondary

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 ISSN 2616-8278 THE COMILLA UNIVERSITY JOURNAL OF ARTS
Number 04 June 2019

The Importance of Teaching EFL Listening and Speaking

to the Secondary Level Students in Bangladesh:
A Study of EFL Teachers' and Learners' Perspective

*Md. Habibur Rahman

Abstract
In order to ensure a comprehensive development of students"
communication skills, teaching EFL listening, speaking, reading and
writing are equaly important to be emphasized. The present study was
designed to determine the relative importance ofteaching EFL listening
and speaking skills to the secondary level students in Bangladesh. To
carry out the study, data were collected from 50 students learning EFL
at the secondary level and from 6 teachers teaching EFL at the
secondary level. Then the data were analyzed by employing the
descriptive method as well as the SPSS programme module. The
analysis of data revealed the present nature of the teaching EFL
listening and speaking skills at the secondary level. 1The teachers
expressed their concern over some specific problems regarding EFL
teaching materials and technology usage facilities in the secondary
level classroom. The students admitted some specific language
problems they were facing in absence of teaching it. Almost all the
teachers and the students believed that the inclusion of Classroom-
Based Assessment ofEFL listening and speaking at the secondary level
willfacilitate the teaching and learning ofit.
Keywords: Importance, Teaching, EFL, Listening, Speaking

1. Introduetion
The teaching of the basic language skills such as reading, writing, listening.
speaking are equally important for a comprehensive development of students
communication skills. The secondary curriculum, according to National Education
Policy (2010), emphasizes learning English as an international language for
communicating locally and globally. In order to successfully attain these goals
regarding competency in all four language skills, the teaching of the basic language
skills bears paramount significance. The teaching of EFL reading and writing are
generally practiced at the secondary level but it is observed that still the teaching of
*Md. Habibur Rahman, Lecturer, Department of English, Bangladesh Army lnternational University Science
and Technology (BAIUST), Cumilla.

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EFL listening and speaking skills are neglected in the secondary level. Listening and
speaking are considered as the major skills of language learning. Without effective
listening and speaking skills, learners will never learn to communicate effectively.
This study aims to state the relative importance of the inclusion of teaching explicit
listening and speaking to the secondary level. The study also sheds light on the
extent to which the teachers and learners think about the significance of teaching
EFL listening and speaking. The present study tends to locate problems or
limitations of the present situation and to adjudge the relative importance of
assessing EFL listening and speaking skills at the secondary level with a view to
solving the existing problem.
This study is an endeavor to determine the relative importance of including the
teaching of explicit EFL listening and speaking to the secondary level students in

Bangladesh.
The study encompasses the following objectives:
i) To explore the extent to which the teachers and learners think about the

necessityofteaching explicit EFL listening and speaking skills.

i) To discover the nature of teaching EFL listening and speaking skills in the
present situation at the secondary level.
ii) To identify what difficulties are faced by the teachers while teaching and the
learners in the absence ofteaching explicit EFL listening and speaking skills.
iv) To adjudge the significance of testing ie. Classroom-Based Assessment) EFL

listening and speaking skills at the secondary level.

The study will focus on some questions considering the aforementioned objectives:
i) What do the teachers and learners think about the importance of including the
teaching of explicit EFL listening and speaking in the secondary level
classroom?
ii) What are the current practices of teaching EFL listening and speaking skills in
the secondary level classroom?
i) What are the difficulties faced by the teachers in teaching and by the learners in
the absence ofteaching explicit EFL listening and speaking skills?
iv) How much important is the testing (i.e. Classroom-Based Assessment) of EFL
listening and speaking skills to facilitate the teachingoftheseskills

2. Literature Review
Maniruzzaman (2015) conducted a study on the relations of washback to the
learning of English as a loreign language (EFL) at the undergraduate level in
Bangladesh. The study was conductled on 60 undergraduate students of EFL and

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investigated the relations of washback to the EFL leamers in terms of, a) the
syllabus, b) tasks and activities, c) materials, and d) teaching methods and
techniques. Item related to the syllabus (ltem Nos. 3 and 4, p. 58-59), the data
analyses revealed that the activities in their classroom were test oriented, and they
concentrate on the lessons and contents relevant to the examinations. Items related
tasks and activities (Item Nos. 7 and 8, p. 61), the data analyses revealed that the
students did not consider the importance of attaining competence, rather they
considered whether they learned the items that would be tested. Items relating to
materials (Item Nos. 9 and 10, p. 63), the data analysis revealed that 67% students
studied supplementary materials than those the teachers suggest to succeed in the
examination and 68% students practiced the questions of the previous examinations
for relatively better preparations for the examinations. Items related to teaching
methods and techniques (Item Nos. 13 and 14, p. 66) exhibited that 88% students
liked the EFL teaching methods and techniques so as to succeed in the examinations
examination
and 60% students preferred leaning test-taking strategies when the
was near. The results revealed that the examinations had influenced the EFL

teaching methods and techniques to a substantial extent. That is, the teachers were
compelled to change and modify their teaching methods and techniques with a
view
to helping their students get prepared for the examinations. The study revealed that
the students at the undergraduate level were more concerned with scoring good
grades in the examinations than acquiring communicative skills. In the study most
but cannot
of the students are found to have scored good grades in the examinations,
efficiently and effectively use their listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills of
EFL for communication in their real-life situations. The study revealed the negative
washback of examinations and the recommendations were made so as to reduce

negative washback and develop positive effects ofthe examination.

Gudu (2015) conducted a research on teaching speaking skills in the English
language in secondary level in Kenya. In his study, he found that the classroom
activities used by teachers to promote learners' active participation in speaking
skills lessons. The study recommended that: a) the students should be given chances
practice using the authentic English language in context, b) teachers' should
integrate various activities into a lesson to meet learners' needs and c) currieulum to
acknowledge learners' cultural backgrounds in order to enhance their learning
outcomes. The study revealed that learners' motivation to speak English was
important and argued that the teacher should endecavor to explain to their learners the
mportanceoflearning the English language in order to develop internal motivation.

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Alonso (2014) caried out a research about teaching speaking in secondary

education institutions and state language schools in Spain. In her study, she
conducted her survey on eighty secondary school teachers. The study revealed that
students were generally not able to speak fluently at the end of compulsory
education. He showed that teachers play an essential role in the acquisition of the
speaking skill and they were in charge of promoting meaningful communication in
the classroom. The findings of her study unfolded that the teachers had to devote
more time to the teaching and practice of speaking.
Al Hosni (2014) carried out a study about speaking difficulties encountered by
young EFL learners. In her study, she addressed the oral communication problems in
an EFL context, the nature of those problems and the circumstances in which
problems' were constructed. The study revealed that the main speaking difficulties
encountered by Grade 5 students' linguistic difficulties, mother tongue use and
inhibition. The study showed that the teachers believe in the teaching of speaking
yet they did not give time for that because of the shortage of time and because the
times were allotted to teach other text related topics.
Nombre et al. (2012) conducted a study on the importanceofteaching listening and
speaking in the EFL context of Spain. The study gave emphasis on some activities to
develop with the students topractice in the classroom inorderto develop these skills
and also tried to show why the proposed activities are important and the dificulties
leamers have. This paper's focus was centered on the proper development of
teaching activities in order to develop these skills. The study revealed that it was
easy to obtain students participation and motivation when the suggested materials
were "entertaining, original and surprising"
Ma (2009) carried out an empirical study on teaching istening through CLT in
China. The study found that in traditional teaching method of ELT, practiced in
China, was emphasized on students' mastery ofvocabulary and grammar. The study
also reported that much emphasis was given to teaching language skills and more
and more attention was drawn to learners listening ability in CLT. The study
advocated the integrated methodofteachingoflanguage skills. The paper discussed
the task design, strategy training, possible teaching plan, and elassroom
management in detail. The findings of the study revealed that the task where
speaking and writing were integrated the students kept interest in the target text all
the time.
Hinkel (2006) carried outa research on the current perspectives of teaching four
skills (i.e., listening, speaking, reading and writing). The study represented an

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OF ARTS 04 (June 2019)

overview of the recent developrment of second

language teaching and
trends of teaching that are likely to affect instruction in L2 skills contemporary
development.
gave equal emphasis on the teaching of four language skills. He located "four
He

themes in current L2 pedagogy' and they were:(a) the decline of methods, (b) a
growing emphasis on both bottom-up and top-down skills, (c) new knowledge about
English, and (d) integrated and multiple skills taught in context. He gave emphasis
on integrated and multiple skills teaching of English language. The findings of the
study revealed that the current purpose of learning EFL/ESL was evolved from
cultural and cducational enterprise to that of international communication.
Manjarres (2005) conducted a study to examine washback in high-stakes tests. The
study was carried out in order to investigate the washback effect of the English
national examination in the teaching of English in a 10th-grade classroom held in
public schools in Columbia. The study disclosed a positive relationship between the
examination and the teachers. The study demonstrated that the teachers were not
familiar with how to develop the students' communicative competence and one of
the teachers admitted that listening and speaking skills were not evaluated in the
examination.

In second/foreign language education, a large number of studies have been carried

out to date to explore the nature of teaching listening and speaking skills in the
classroom at a different level. Nombre et al. (2012) concluded that it was easy to
obtain students participation and motivation when the suggested materials are
"entertaining, original and surprising". The emphasis was centered on learning
materials to facilitate the teaching of EFL listening and speaking. Ma (2009)
reported that in recent time much emphasis had been given in teaching language
skills and more and more attention had been drawn on learners listening ability in
CLT. The study advocated the integrated method of teaching language skills.
Alonso's (2014) study unfolded that teachers have to devote more time to the
teaching and practice of speaking. In addition to these, Manjarres' (2005) study
stated that there is a strong correlation between classroom teaching and evaluating
practices, and what the examination measures. Thus, the present study aims at
determining the relative importance of teaching listening and speaking with other
language skills namely reading and writing; the balanced distribution of time to the
explicit teaching of EFL listening and speaking in comparison with other skills; the
teachers' and the students' attitude towards the teaching and learning of listening
and speaking skills; the problems encountered by the teachers and the learners to
teach and to learn those skills, and to ascertain the importance of the inclusion of
testing EFL listening and speaking to the assessment processes in the EFL context of
Bangladesh.

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Habibur/THE COMILLA

3. Research Methodology
3.1 Respondents
is entirely from primary sources. Six EFL
The data collected for this research
teachers from two secondary level
schools (namely, Saint Louis High School,
and fifty students from
Natore; Jahangimagar School and College, Savar, Dhaka)
Dhaka city in Bangladesh are the
three secondary schools of Dhaka and outside of
Dhaka Residential Model College, Dhaka;
respondents of the research (namely,
Pabna Zilla School, Pabna and Saint Louis High School, Natore) who provide
The students who take part in the
primary data by responding to the questionnaires.
data collection process have the same mother tongue, Bangla, and they have already
level.
studied EFL compulsory subject at their primary and junior secondary
as a
as a sampling method for
Stratified random sampling (Brown, 1999) was employed
this study.
3.2 Instrument and Data Collection

The researcher has employed a questionnaire as the only data collection instrument.
and another for the
Two versions ofclose-ended questionnaires-one for the teachers
students were developed for the study.
The questionnaire, for the teachers, was comprised of 16 items relevant to the
research objectives on which the teachers have the choice to agree or disagree
and
through five options- 'Strongly Agree', 'Agree', 'No Opinion', 'Disagree'
the
Strongly Disagree'. The items of the questionnaire were concerned with
Nos.
importance of including the teaching of explicit listening and speaking (Item
1,2,3, and 4), the current practices of teaching listening and speaking in the
classroom (Item Nos. 5,6,7, and 8), difficulties faced by the teachers in teaching
listening and speaking (Item Nos. 9,10,11, and 12), and the importance of testing
listening & Speaking skills (Item Nos. 13,14,15, and 16). That is, they were
designed to uncover the importance of teaching explicit EFL listening and speaking
to the secondary level students.
The questionnaire designed for the students was comprised of 19 items relevant to
the research objectives on which the students are given the alternatives to agree or
disagree through five options- "Strongly Agree', 'Agree', 'No Opinion', 'Disagree'
and 'Strongly Disagree'. The items of the questionnaire were concerned with the
importance ofincluding the teaching ofexplicit listening and speaking (ltem Nos.
and 2), the current practices of teaching listening and speaking in the classroom
(Item Nos. 3,4,5 and 6), difficulties faced by the teachers in teaching listening and
speaking (Item Nos. 7,8,9,10,11,12,13,14 and 15), and the importance of testing
listening & Speaking skills (ltem Nos. 16,17,18, and 19). That is, they were

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ARTS 04 (June 2019)

designed to uncover the importance of teaching explicit EFL listening and speaking
to the secondary level students.

The present researcher developed the questionnaire on the model of Maniruzzaman

(2015) and used a five-grade Likert Scale (1932) from 'strongly agree' to 'strongly
disagree. The questionnaires were distributed by the researcher himself and the
data were collected directly from them in order to ensure the legitimacy of this work.

3.3 Data analysis

The data collected from six secondary level EFL teachers and fifty secondary level
students of EFL students were analyzed by employing the descriptive method. In
addition, the students' responses to the questionnaire were computed and analyzed
module. The statistical measurements used here
using the SPSS programme
included means and standard deviations for each item of the questionnaire.

The statements assessing the expected responses of the participants were adopted
On thescale, the statements coded 1
through a five-point Likert Scale.
were as

3 "No Opinion', 4 Disagree', and 5

indicating *Strongly Agree, 2 *Agree',
The mean score of each of the items of the
indicating 'Strongly Disagree.
mean scores 3.00-
questionnaire follows- mean scores 0-2.99 suggesting 'agreed",
3.50-5.00 suggesting 'disagreed'. The
3.49 suggesting 'neutral"' and mean scores
closed the collected data
standard deviations used here are to show how scattered or
as 1,2,3,4, and 5; standard deviations
are. As the researcher has coded the responses
valid.
less than 3 are taken as close as to be considered the mean score to be
4. Findings and Discussion

The present study investigated the importance of teaching EFL listening and

speaking to the secondary level students in Bangladesh. The study employs the
SPSS programme module to analyze the data collected through the questionnaires.
Along with the statistical package, the descriptive method was used for data
analysis. In the questionnaire for the teachers, the first issue dealt with the
importance of including the teaching of EFL listening and speaking; the second
issue was related to the current practices of teaching EFL listening and speaking in
the classroom; the third issue was concerned with the difficulties faced by the
teachers in teaching EFL listening and speaking; and the fourth issue was linked to
the importance of testing EFL listening and Speaking skills to the secondary level
students. Again, in the questionnaire for the students, the first issue dealt with the
importance of including the teaching of EFL listening and speaking; the sccond
issue was related to the current practices of teaching EFL listening and speaking in
the classroom; the third issue was concerned with the difficulties faced by the

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ARTS 04 (June 2019)

fourth issue was

students in absence of teaching EFL listening and speaking; and the
linked to the importance of testing EFL listening and speaking skills to the
secondary level students.

4.1 Analysis of Data Collectedfrom Teachers

The table below demonstrates the mean scores and standard deviations of each ofthe

items of thequestionnaire.

Table 4.1.1: Mean and Standard Deviation for Teacher Questionnaire

No. Item Mean Standard

Deviation
2.00 1.10
1. I teaching of explicit listening should
think the be
incorporated at the secondary level.
should be| 1.84 0.41
2. I think the teaching of explicit speaking
incorporated at the secondary level.
3. I believe a balanced distribution of time to teach the 1.34 0.82
basic skills of English language is necessary to attain
communicative competence in all four language skills.

3.00 1.10
4. I Approach)
think CLTA (Communicative Language Teaching
gives partial importance to the
teaching/learning ofListening and speaking skills.
1.67 0.52
I use both Bangla and English as a medium of
classroom instruction.

6. I use English as a medium of classroom instruction. 2.34 1.37

materials (audio) practice 1.00 0.00

7 I use NCTB's listening to

istening activities in the classroom.

8. The teaching ofspeaking is limited to dialogue writing 2.33 .37
and role-playing activities.

9. The allocation of time to teach English langu 2.00 1.10

inadequate to teach it properly at the secondary level.
10. Listeningmaterials, in the coursebook, are inadequate 2.34 0.82
to teach it properly in the classroom.

11.Speakingmaterials, in the coursebook, are inadequate 2.34 1.03

to teach it properly in the classroom.

12. I do not use NCTB's listening materials (audio) to 2.67 1.21

teach listening because the classrooms are not
equipped with a sound system.

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 Habibur/THE COMILLA UNIVERSITY JOURNAL OF
ARTS 04 (June 2019)

No.
Item Mean Standard

13.| Tbelieve the testing of listening skill will smooth the 1.67
Deviation
0.52
progress ofteaching it.
14. I believe the testing of speaking skill will smooth
progress ofteaching it.
the 1.67 0.52

15.I think the teachers will be more enthusiastic to teach 1.17 0.41
listening ifit is tested in the examinations.
16. I think the
teachers will be more enthusiastic to teach .17 0.41
speakingifit is tested in the examinations.

4.2 Analysis of Data Collectedfrom Students

The table below demonstrates the mean scores and standard deviations of each of the
items of the questionnaire

Table 4.2.1: Mean and Standard Deviation for Student Questionnaire

No. Item Mean Standard

Deviation
1. I think listening lessons are helpful to learn and use| 1.72 0.61
English properly.
2. I think speaking lessons are helpful to learn and use 1.54 0.71
English properly.
3. Teachers give lectures in English. 3.10 0.93

4.
Teachers give lectures in both Bangla and English
because we understand and feel comfortable with it.
1.34 0.63

5. Teachers usually do not take classes on listening skills. 3.20 0.93

6. Teachers usually do nottakeclasses on speaking skills. 3.46 1.01
7. I have difficulty giving oral presentations or oral 2.200.95
interview in English.

8 I am comfortable in conversational English, i.e.,| 2.46 0.89

English that is used to carry out day-to-day
conversation.

9. My pronunciation of words in English is not 2.50 0.99

satisfactory in comparison with standard English
pronunciation.

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 Habibur/THE COMILLA UNIVERSITY JOURNAL OF ARTS 04 (June 2019)

No. Item Mean Standard

Deviation
10.| Iusuallyface problems to saysomething in English. 2.10 0.86
11. Ifind itdifficult toenterthe discussion in English. 2.02 0.77
12. I have trouble understanding lectures in English. 2.82 1.04
13. Ihave trouble taking effective notes in English. 2.58 0.99
14. I have trouble understanding spoken instructions in 2.90 1.07
English.
15. I have trouble understanding the subject matter of a| 3.00 1.17
talk, i.e., what is being talked about, in English.
16.| Ifspeaking skills are tested in the examinations, it will| 1.72 1.11
make learmers more enthusiastic to learn it.
17. If listening skills are tested in the examinations, it will | 1.72 1.11
make learners more enthusiastic to learn it.
18. I study some relevant materials to perform well in the| 1.78 1.18
examinations.
19. I practice the questions of previous examinations for 2.00 0.96
relatively better preparations for the examinations.

4.3 Analysis
There are four research questions of this
paper. The first research question is "What
do the teachers and learners think about the
importance of including the teaching of
explicit EFL listening and speaking in the secondary level classroom?" The study
revealed that both the teachers and the students admitted
the importance oft
including the teaching of EFL listening and speaking skills at the secondary level.
That is, the teaching of EFL
listening and speaking skills is equally important like
the teaching of EFL reading and
writing. They opined that the explicit teaching ot
EFL listening and speaking skills should be
incorporated at the secondary level.
Majority of the teachers thought about a balanced distribution time to
basic skills of English language was of teach the
necessary to enhance the progress of teaching
it. Teachers expressed their concern over the
CLTA (Communicative
Teaching Approach) practiced in Bangladesh and they opined that it Language
gave partial
importance to the teaching of EFL lstening and speaking skills.
The second research question is, "What are the
current practices of
listening and speaking skills in the secondary level classroom?" The teaching EFL
study thus

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revealed a mixed response from the teachers and the students. Most of the students
admitted that the teachers took some classes on listening and speaking skills but the
teachers also expressed their concern over the inadequacy of teaching materials
regarding EFL listening and speaking skills. Majority of the teachers used both
Bangla and English language as a medium of classroom instruction. This at the same
time indicates the amount of classroom listening.

The third research question is, "What are the difficulties faced by the teachers in
teaching and by the leamers in absence of teaching explicit EFL listening and
speaking skills?" The study revealed secondary level teachers' concem over the
time given for EFL teaching. They marked it completely inadequate and at the same
time, they talked about the secondary level syllabus and the number of subjects each
of the students had to read. This huge workload works as a barrier to EFL
teaching
and also unmotivated them. The teachers also expressed their concern over the
poorly equipped classroom to use the technology again some of the teachers
expressed their gratitude over the well-equipped classroom with the opportunity of
technology usage in EFL teaching. This is because some government-financed
schools already have multimedia classroom facilities but semI-government and
non-government schools still are not having multimedia classroom facilities. The
students suffered a lot in absence of teaching EFL listening and speaking skills and
they expressed their concern about the lack of proficiency in the English language
according to their level.
The fourth research question is "How much important is the testing (i.e. Classroom-
Based Assessment) of EFL listening and speaking skills to facilitate the teaching of
these skills?" Both the teachers and the students spontaneously opined in favor o
the inclusion of EFL listening and speaking skills as a test item at the secondary
level. They think it will facilitate the teaching and learning of EFL listening and
speaking skills to a greatextent.
To sum up, this chapter has presented and discussed the data on the basis ot
quantitative analysis. The two sections presented data respectively collected from
teachers and from the students. Based on the responses of the participants the data
were analyzed and exposed in the tables.

5. Conclusion

The present study was designed to determine the relative importance of teaching
EFL listening and speaking skills to the secondary level students in Bangladesh, to
explore the extent to which the teachers and learners think about the necessity of the
teaching of explicit EFL listening and speaking skills, to discover the natureot

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UNIVERSITY JOURNAL
Habibur/THE COMILLA

in the present situation at the secondary

teaching EFL listening and speaking skills
the teachers while teaching and the
level, to identify what difficulties are faced by
and speaking skills and to
learners in absence of teaching explicit EFL listening
EFL listening and speaking skills at the
adjudge the significance of testing
secondary level.
CLTA (Communicative Language Teaching Approach) puts emphasis on gaining
communicative competence by acknowledging the interdependence of language
and communication. According to the National Education Policy (2010), English
for Today textbooks have been developed to attain competence in all four language
skills, i.e. listening, speaking, reading and writing. As the study revealed, the
students were far behind from attaining competence in EFL listening and speaking
skills in comparison with EFL reading and writing skills. However, both the teachers
and the students have admitted the relative importance of including the explicit
teaching of EFL listening and speaking to the secondary level. The study thus
revealed the present nature of the teaching of EFL listening and speaking skills were
not at a satisfactory level. The teachers expressed their concern over some specific
problems regarding EFL teaching materials and technology usage facilities in the
secondary level classroom. The students were suffering greatly in the absence of
teaching EFL listening and speaking and they deliberately admitted some of the
problems they were facing in the absence of teaching it. Almost all the teachers and
the students believed the testing (i.e. Classroom-Based Assessment) of EFL
listening and speaking at the secondary level will smooth the progress of teaching it.
5.1 Recommendations
Based on the findings, some recommendations might be made in order to make the
teaching of EFL listening and speaking more effective.
Firstly, the explicit teaching of EFL listening and speaking skills should be
incorporated at the secondary level. Primarily, EFL listening and speaking are
regarded as complex skills and which are needed to be developed consciously. They
can be best developed with practice
in the classroom
through activities which
promote interaction between students. That is why adequate classes on
EFL listening and speaking skills are needed to be teaching
ensured. In the EFL context of
Bangladesh, the major barriers are the lack of time to teach EFL skills and the lack of
teacher training. These problems should be addressed
properly in order to ensure the
progress of teaching it. Moreover, English
departments
of different public and
private universities can play a vital role by sending their
graduates
teaching EFL skills at secondary level schools across theinternship
to an
programme on

This can work as a country.

bridge betwecn the young and the experienced EFL teachers and

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may create an opportunity for the graduates to work further to address the problems
they have encountered and which will make the researches in this field more

practical.
Secondly, the course-book materials should be consistent with the goals and the
objectives of the syllabus. The course-book should be provided with adequate
materials to teach the basic EFL skills, i.e. listening, speaking, reading and writing.
Again, the materials selected for teaching should meet the students' needs and
interests. It should reflect real-life situations in terms of subject matters, tasks,
culure, gender, linguistics elements, linguistics level, test format and so forth.
Thirdly, the secondary level classroom should be equipped with technological
support according to the materials provided for teaching, i.e. a well-equipped sound
system in the classroom is necessary to teach EFL listening skill. Besides, the
teachers should be trained well in using technology before going to the classroom
implementation.

Finally, the testing of EFL listening and speaking skills should be incorporated at the
secondary level examinations. Simultaneously, all the basic skills encompassing
listening, speaking, reading and writing should receive equal importance in the
assessment system. Following this, the examination system should reflect the
purpose and principles of communicative testing. That is, tests should measure
students' communicative competence, e.g. grammatical competence,
sociolinguistic competence, strategic competence, and discourse competence.
Again, the test should measure how much the students are able to use what they have
learned in their real-life situations.

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