Cambridge University Press & Assessment’s Dr Nick Glasson has won the Jacqueline Ross TOEFL Dissertation Award for his doctoral dissertation in the field of language assessment.
Glasson, a PhD graduate from the University of Bedfordshire and a senior research manager at Cambridge English, was presented with the award at this year’s Language Testing Research Colloquium (LTRC) a major conference for language assessment professionals held in Bangkok. The award recognises doctoral dissertations that go above and beyond in the field of second and foreign language testing.
Glasson explored how people interacted in an online discussion task. His award-winning dissertation shines a light on the importance of interactional skills – the subtle yet observable ways learners use language to steer conversations and express themselves.
Building real-world communication skills
Through studying online group discussions, Glasson found that learners often use every day phrases like “I mean” to clarify, correct, or manage conversations. These small but powerful interactional practices, he argues, are key to building real-world communication skills and reflect how L1 speakers use such practices.
His dissertation ‘Left to their own devices: Exploring interactional practices in an online group speaking task’ – was described as a ‘model of academic excellence’ from the external selection committee.
“It was a wonderful surprise to win such a prestigious award,” said Glasson from Cambridge University Press & Assessment. “When learning a language, interactional skills are fundamental because it’s through interaction we achieve things on a daily basis. The fact this task was delivered entirely online and with relatively little effort points to how we might develop a greater focus on interactive tasks in future perhaps.”
Key takeaways from LTRC
The LTRC is the annual conference organised by the International Language Testing Association (ILTA). The event brought together professionals from the education, academic, and corporate sectors to discuss language assessment in different multicultural contexts. Cambridge experts were out in full force presenting and engaging in discussions on some of the big topics for language assessment today.
This included contributions on the impact AI and other digital tech is having on language assessment, the importance of integrating learning and assessment in the classroom, the key role of business English skills in increasing employability, and the challenges and opportunities around English for healthcare workers.
SOURCE: Cambridge English
