MEASURING 2ND-LANGUAGE (L2) PROFICIENCY IN HIGH-SCHOOL LEVEL EXCHANGESTUDENTS

This paper reports on a study designed to identify appropriate standar dized instruments to measure English as a second language (ESL) perfor mance within a language contact experience. The purpose of the study w as to define operationally, according to recognized academic standards , the ESL level of high school level exchange students after a three-m onth stay in an English milieu. The instrument identified as the most appropriate would later serve as one of a battery of instruments for p re/posttesting to examine ESL proficiency gain. The subjects were 185 French native-speaking high school level students. Five different stan dardized language proficiency tests (SLEP, CELT, TOEFL, MTELP, and CAT ) were used. Test results were compared to appropriate corresponding n orm groups. Three tests were identified as potential instruments. Disc ussion of final test selection includes consideration of the different factors contributing to test performance within this context. The imp lications and limitations of this type of testing for language contact experiences is addressed.