Evaluation of the Multilingual Naming Test (MINT) as a quick and practical proxy for language
proficiency
The present study compares the performance of two quick lexical tests, the Multilingual Naming Test (MINT) and the
Lexical Test for Advanced Learners of English (LexTALE), to evaluate their suitability to serve as proxies for English proficiency
in second language learners. Specifically, it investigates how well these tests’ results align with those of the Quick Placement
Test (QPT), an objective placement test employed in previous validations of the LexTALE. Considering recent findings by
Puig-Mayenco et al. (2023) suggesting the LexTALE is apt for measuring advanced
proficiencies but is less reliable with lower ones, our study aims to test the performance of both the LexTALE and MINT across
different proficiencies. Two hundred nineteen Chinese learners of English, spanning both higher and lower proficiency levels,
participated in the study. The results showed that the relationship between the MINT and QPT was similar to that between the
LexTALE and QPT. However, the MINT demonstrated better performance than the LexTALE in assessing lower proficiency levels. These
results underscore the MINT’s potential to serve as a quick and valid proxy for proficiency across all levels, particularly in
research contexts where the use of longer and more comprehensive assessment tools is not possible.
Article outline
- 1.Introduction
- 1.1Ways of measuring proficiency
- 2.Methods
- 2.1Participants
- 2.2General procedure
- 2.2.1MINT
- 2.2.2LexTALE
- 2.2.3Quick Placement Test (QPT)
- 3.Results
- 4.Discussion
- Acknowledgements
- Declaration of conflicting interests
- Data availability statement
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References