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Arab World English Journal (AWEJ) Volume 16. Number 2, June 2025 Pp.276-310
Faculty of Education, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia,Bangi, Malaysia
Faculty of Education, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Bangi, Malaysia
Faculty of Education, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia,Bangi, Malaysia
This qualitative case study investigated how a Cognitive Diagnostic Assessment framework enhanced International English Language Testing System speaking skills among Chinese high school English as a Foreign Language learners. The significance of this research lies in addressing the critical gap between diagnostic assessment theory and practical implementation in examination-oriented educational contexts. The study examined three key questions: how cognitive subskills develop through diagnostic assessment, what feedback processing strategies students employ, and what pedagogical challenges teachers face during implementation. The 16-week intervention at an international school in southwest China involved five Grade 11 students at the Common European Framework of Reference A2 level and one experienced teacher. Data collection included semi-structured interviews, classroom observations, mock test recordings, and document analysis. Findings revealed significant improvements across five subskills: linguistic knowledge, syntactic complexity, pronunciation mastery, discourse management, and speech structure awareness. Students evolved from surface-level feedback engagement to sophisticated metacognitive processing strategies, particularly in pattern recognition and cross-contextual transfer. The teacher’s implementation emphasized culturally sensitive adaptations, addressing face-saving concerns and reconciling diagnostic assessment with examination traditions. The study demonstrates that integrating diagnostic assessment principles with culturally responsive pedagogy enhances speaking development for high-stakes examinations, with implications for curriculum design and teacher education. The single-site nature and small sample size limit generalizability, warranting broader implementation studies across diverse Chinese educational contexts.
Liu, M., Hashim, H., & Sulaiman, N. A. (2025). Cognitive Diagnostic Assessment for IELTS Speaking Skills: A Chinese High School Case Study. Arab World English Journal, 16(2):276-310
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Mengjia Liu is currently a Ph.D. candidate in TESL at Faculty of Education, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia. She holds an MA in Applied Linguistics and TESOL (Newcastle University, UK) and served as a university lecturer in China. Her research focuses on English speaking, writing, and language testing and assessment. ORCid ID: https://orcid.org/0009-0002-2641-2639
Harwati Hashim, Ph.D, is an associate professor at the Centre for Innovation in Teaching and Learning, Faculty of Education, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia. Her areas of concentration are mobile learning, Mobile-assisted Language Learning (MALL), innovative pedagogy and technology in teaching and learning English as a Second Language (ESL). ORCid ID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8817-427X
Nur Ainil Sulaiman, Ph.D, is a lecturer at the Faculty of Education, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia. Her research and teaching expertise includes second language acquisition, vocabulary development, and sociolinguistics within the broader domain of arts and applied arts education. ORCid ID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6212-7494