Development
The Pimsleur Language Aptitude Battery was developed by Dr.Sections
The final version of the PLAB contains six parts (Pimsleur, et al. 2004), each one testing different aspects of the four predictive factors (verbal ability, auditory ability, motivation and grade point average): *Part 1 – Grade Point Average – calculates the student's grade point average in areas other than language learning *Part 2 – Interest – measures the student's interest in learning a foreign language and is a measure of motivation *Part 3 – Vocabulary – tests word knowledge in English and is a measure of verbal ability *Part 4 – Language Analysis – tests the student's ability to reason logically in terms of a foreign language and is another aspect of verbal ability *Part 5 – Sound Discrimination – tests the ability to learn new phonetic distinctions and to recognize them in different contexts and is a measure of auditory ability *Part 6 – Sound-Symbol Association – tests the ability to associate sounds with written symbols and is another measure of auditory ability Parts 1 and 2 are not aptitude measures. Part 1 is a measure of study habits and Part 2 is measure of motivation. Both study habits and motivation correlate with success in foreign language study. Depending on the teacher's motive in testing language aptitude, these parts could be deleted, or they could be translated to the student's native language. Therefore, the PLAB could be used with students whose mother tongue is not English but whose proficiency in English is high enough to take the test. Part 3 is a short test of student's vocabulary in English. The grade level of the vocabulary is approximately grade 9-12. This part exists because breadth of native language vocabulary is related to success in learning a FL. This part could be either translated or not included for students who have limited proficiency in English. Part 4, language analysis, is a test of the aptitude for learning the grammar of a foreign language. If needed, it could be translated to the student's native language. Otherwise, the English required to understand handle these items is not at a high level. Part 5 is a sound discrimination test involving a tonal language. No translation is needed. One only has to understand the instructions. English proficiency plays no role in the score on this part. Part 6 is a sound-symbol association test using nonsense words created from English sounds. Since these are nonsense words, English proficiency is not involved. This part is a test of phonetic coding ability as described by Carroll. In summary, only part 3 requires a substantial level of English. Parts 1, 2, and 4 could be translated or adapted to the students native language for students with no or a low level of English proficiency. Part 4 for requires an Intermediate level of English proficiency. Parts 5 and 6 test auditory abilities but do not require English proficiency, beyond the comprehension of the directions to each part. Earlier versions of the PLAB also included a twenty question test measuring a student's motivation for learning a foreign language and a section on rhyming, which was another measure of auditory ability. After field testing with the Ohio State University Research Foundation, Pimsleur and his associates found that these sections could be taken out of the test without affecting the predictive ability of the PLAB. In a discussion of the MLAT and PLAB, Wesche (1981) noted that PLAB part 4 is a measure of inductive learning of foreign language grammar, while the MLAT (mentioned above) does not include a direct measure of inductive learning. She further notes that PLAB part 5 also measures the inductive learning of foreign language tones in different contexts. She states that low PLAB scores on parts 5 and 6 are often reflective of hearing problems and that PLAB Part 6 (Sound-Symbol Association) measures the phonetic coding ability described by Carroll in his description of the components of foreign language aptitude.Uses
The uses of the Pimsleur Language Aptitude Battery include program placement, program assessment and planning, and diagnosis of learning abilities and diagnosis of a foreign language learning disability. Current users include private and public secondary schools and learning disabilities specialists. The test is also used in research on foreign language teaching or learning, when a measure of language aptitude is needed as part of the research design. One advantage that the PLAB offers to researchers on second language learning is its availability to them.Program placement
The PLAB can be used to assess which students may be cognitively ready to study a foreign language in grades 7 and 8 and those students who would benefit from waiting until a later grade to begin foreign language study. It can also be used to place students in the classroom that teaches at the most appropriate pace for them when there is more than one language class.Program assessment and planning
The PLAB can be used to calculate local language aptitude norms. Using this information, schools or districts can assess the effectiveness of their current foreign language programs and use the PLAB to develop their language program. For example, a school may divide their language program into three zones, each using an appropriate textbook and moving at an appropriate pace.Diagnosis of learning abilities
Pimsleur says that a language aptitude test may be used to identify the underachiever before the course starts. He defines underachievers as students who have significantly less success in language study than in their other courses. Pimsleur gave students in his study a sound-symbol test and a Chinese pitch test. In the sound-symbol association test the student hears a nonsense syllable and must match it with its correct spelling in the test booklet. The Chinese pitch test was a 30-item test of auditory discrimination in which the student must distinguish Chinese tones. Pimsleur found that among students with similar overall GPAs, those with lower scores in these two tests received lower grades in foreign languages. From this finding, Pimsleur concluded that the auditory component of language aptitude is the main factor that accounts for differences in language learning ability that are not explained by general intelligence, interest in learning a foreign language or general study habits.Pimsleur, P. Sundland, D.M. & McIntyre, R.D. (1963) ''Under-achievement in foreign language learning''. Eric Document Reproduction Service ED 018160. The PLAB can be used to identify students with a language learning disability when used in conjunction with other forms of evidence. He also stated that looking at the individual's score on the different parts of the test can be of help in matching students' learning preferences with instructional techniques.Issues of debate
While language learning aptitude is relatively stable among adults, among adolescents it continues to grow as the child reaches adulthood. Thus, scores should be compared to age/grade norms in the test manual or to locally developed norms. It has been said thatResources
*Carroll, John B. and Stanley Sapon. ''Modern Language Aptitude Test: Manual 2010 Edition''. Rockville, MD: Language Learning and Testing Foundation, 2010. *Pimsleur, Paul, Daniel J. Reed and Charles W. Stansfield. ''Pimsleur Language Aptitude Battery: Manual 2004 Edition''. Rockville, MD: Language Learning and Testing Foundation, 2004.References
External links