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Topic

Fairness and Justice in High-stakes Language Testing: Test-taker Perspectives on the IELTS Speaking Test for Immigration and Higher Education in Canada

School of Languages, Linguistics and Cultures

Date & location

• Thursday, June 12, 2025
• 4:30 P.M.
• Virtual Defence

Examining Committee

Supervisory Committee

• Dr. Li-Shih Huang, School of Languages, Linguistics and Cultures, ßÉßɱ¬ÁÏ (Supervisor)
• Dr. Ben Pin-Yun Wang, Department of Pacific and Asian Studies, UVic (Outside Member)

External Examiner

• Dr. Valia Spiliotopoulos, Official Languages and Bilingualism Institute, University of Ottawa

Chair of Oral Examination

• Dr. Daniela Damian, Department of Computer Science, UVic

Abstract

The International English Language Testing System (IELTS) is a high-stakes, standardized English proficiency test. It is used by governments and post-secondary institutions when deciding whether to accept or rejecting applicants for immigration and admission to academic programs. This study explores test-taker perspectives on the validity of the speaking portion of the IELTS test for these purposes, using Messick’s (1989) concept of unified validity, framed by McNamara and Ryan (2011) as concerning the fairness and justice of the test. Seven participants who identified as having taken or needing to take a high-stakes standardized English test for admission into a post-secondary program and/or for immigration purposes provided perspectives on the fairness and justice of IELTS through questionnaire responses and semi-structured interviews. Subsequent coding of the interview transcripts resulted in 13 top-level codes and 133 child codes, for a total of 495 child code references across all seven transcripts. Child codes were divided into four overarching themes: Factors that Impacted Performance, Relevance of the Test to Academic and Everyday Contexts, Costs and Benefits of the Test, and Considering Whether There Should Be a Test, What Kind of Test, and Who Should Take It.

Quantitative data collected from the questionnaires and the qualitative data from coding of the semi-structured interviews produced a variety of findings relevant to the ongoing discussion about the validity of IELTS as it is currently used in Canada. These include the impact of emotional factors and test topic on test performance, the importance of language assessment in both immigration and academic admission, and the need for greater flexibility in how one demonstrates English language ability.