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Article published In:
The Assessment of Functional Adequacy in Language Performance: Special issue of the Journal on Task-Based Language Teaching and Learning 2:1 (2022)
Edited by Folkert Kuiken and Ineke Vedder
[TASK 2:1] 2022
► pp. 8–32

Measurement of functional adequacy in different learning contexts

Rationale, key issues, and future perspectives

ORCID logo | University of Amsterdam
ORCID logo | University of Amsterdam

Linguistic performance elicited by language tasks has generally been operationalized in terms of complexity, accuracy, and fluency (CAF). However, this study argues that assessment of L2 proficiency is impossible without taking into account the adequacy and efficacy of L2 performance. To that end, we developed a rating scale for measuring functional adequacy (FA). In order to investigate the validity, reliability, and applicability of the rating scale, a number of studies are reviewed in which FA was assessed by both expert and non-expert raters, in different learning contexts, for L2 and L1, involving various source and target languages, proficiency levels, task types and modalities. We discuss perspectives and challenges for the use of the FA rating scale, particularly with regard to task-based language assessment (TBLA).

Keywords: functional adequacy (FA), rating scale, reliability, validity, applicability, task-based language assessment (TBLA)
Article outline
  • Complexity, accuracy and fluency vs. functional adequacy
  • Task-based language assessment
  • Assessment of functional adequacy
    • Task requirements
    • Content
    • Comprehensibility
    • Coherence & Cohesion
  • Testing the FA rating scale
  • Studies in which the FA rating scale has been used
  • Outcomes
    • Use of the FA rating scale
    • Relationship with CAF, task type, and language proficiency
  • Discussion
  • Note
  • References
Available under the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) 4.0 license.

For any use beyond this license, please contact the publisher at [email protected].

Published online: 20 June 2022
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/task.00013.kui
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