Introduction 1
0.1 Background and Aims of the Research 1
0.2 Organization of the Dissertation 5
Chapter One Theoretical Basis of Communicative Language Testing 7
1.1 Hymes:Communicative Competence 7
1.2 Canale and Swain:the Notion of Communicative Competence 9
1.3 Bachman:A Framework of Language Competence 11
1.4 A Framework of Test Method Facets(TMF) 17
1.5 Other Factors Influencing Language Performance Testing 19
1.6 Distinguishing Features of Communicative Language Testing 21
1.7 Integration of the Four Skills 27
1.8 Summary 29
Chapter Two Communicative Oral Testing 32
2.1 The Nature of Oral Communication 32
2.2 Stylistic Features of Spoken Language 34
2.3 Definition of Speaking Ability 36
2.4 Types of Oral Tests 37
2.5 Elicitation Techniques 43
2.6 Historical Trends and the Present Situation of Oral Testing 46
2.7 The Difficulty in Testing Speaking Ability 48
2.8 Issues to Be Considered in Testing Speaking 50
2.9 Summary 52
Chapter Three Information Theory and Information Gap 54
3.1 Information and Information Theory 54
3.2 Information Theory in Linguistics 56
3.3 Information Gap 60
3.4 Cloze and Information Gap 61
3.5 Forms of Information Gap Used as an Oral Testing Technique 63
3.6 Summary 65
Chapter Four Cloze Test 68
4.1 Definition of Cloze Test 68
4.2 Theoretical Basis of Cloze 69
4.3 Classifications of Cloze 76
4.4 Other Varieties of Cloze 82
4.5 Previous Studies of Cloze Test 85
4.6 Criticism of Cloze Test 89
4.7 Summary 92
Chapter Five An Experimental Study 94
5.1 Rationale behind the Research 94
5.2 Research Questions 96
5.3 Development of the Oral Cloze Test 97
5.4 Administering the Test 105
5.5 Scoring the Test 107
5.6 Summary 109
Chapter Six Analysis of the Research Results 111
6.1 Statistical Analysis of the Test Results 111
6.2 Analysis of the Test Items 113
6.3 Analysis of the Questionnaire for Students 120
6.4 Analysis of the Questionnaire for Teachers 130
6.5 Correlation of the Oral Cloze Test with Other Courses 131
6.6 Summary 138
Chapter Seven Validation of the Experimental Test 140
7.1 Framework of Evaluating a Language Test 140
7.2 Four Components in the Oral Cloze Test:Reading,Speaking,Listening and Writing 144
7.3 Face Validity 146
7.4 Content Validity 147
7.5 Construct Validity 148
7.6 Concurrent Validity 149
7.7 Reliability 150
7.8 Practicality 151
7.9 Backwash Effect of the Oral Cloze Test on Language Teaching and Learning 151
7.10 Limitations of the Study and Prospect for Further Research 152
7.11 Summary 153
Chapter Eight Conclusion 155
Appendices 157
Bibliography 182