#4159. Questioning in TOEFL iBT speaking test: a case of washback and construct underrepresentation

September 2026publication date
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Journal’s subject area:
Language and Linguistics;
Linguistics and Language;
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Abstract:
Admission in English-medium universities or institutions of higher education depends on the results obtained by candidates in large-scale proficiency tests including Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) internet-based test (iBT). This study highlights the significance of non-native students’ skills to ask oral English questions in academic contexts as experienced by non-native graduates from English-medium universities and in the view of TOEFL iBT instructors. Further, the washback of the absence of the skill in the TOEFL iBT test was investigated in speaking preparation classes. Twelve non-native graduates and nineteen TOEFL iBT instructors participated in the study. They were all interviewed about the significance of oral questioning. The instructors’ views were also sought about the consequences of the disregard of questioning in the test. To triangulate the data, two classes of the instructors were also observed. The results indicated that the participants generally assumed questioning as indispensable in academic interactions.
Keywords:
Construct underrepresentation; Higher education; Preparation courses; Questioning; TOEFL iBT; Washback

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