IOE alumnusās MA dissertation awarded a major prize in language testing
22 March 2019
UCL Institute of Education (IOE) alumnus Chi Lai Heskey Tsang (MA Applied Linguistics) has won the 2018 Caroline Clapham IELTS Master's Award for his dissertation.
The award is given to an English Language dissertation that āmakes the most significant contribution to the field of language testingā.
His dissertation, entitled āExamining Washback on Learning from a Sociocultural Perspective: The Case of a Graded Approach to English Language Testing in Hong Kongā, was supervised by (UCL Centre for Applied Linguistics). The dissertation was also commended for the 2018 ELT Masters Dissertation Award for its potential impact on English language teaching.
Heskey presented his dissertation and received a winnerās cheque at the Language Testing Research Colloquium (LTRC) in Atlanta, United States.
Dr Isaacs said: āThis is an outstanding, carefully constructed, ambitiously conducted dissertation that approaches washback on learning from a sociocultural perspective.
āThis is the first empirical study, to my knowledge, that examines washback effects in Hong Kongās HKDSE-English, a high-stakes test that helps determine test-takersā career prospects and educational futures. The dissertation moves beyond existing small-scale washback studies to examine intrinsic and extrinsic dimensions by combining qualitative elements with advanced statistical modelling.
āThe study argues for the adoption of a fairer, more scientific way to inform test-takersā decision-making that takes into account their individual differences and seeks to empower test takersā voices. Congratulations to Chi Lai Heskey Tsangā.
Links
- MA Applied Linguistics
- UCL Centre for Applied Linguistics
- Department of Culture, Communication and Media
Image
Photo credit:Ā Dr Gad Lim