Development of SPOT for the purpose of Placing Japanese Language Students

在组织语言课程时，有必要确定学生的一般语言水平，并将他们安排在适当的班级。我们发明了SPOT （Simple Performance-Oriented Test）作为一种新工具，可以让不同水平的学习者简单、快速、准确地进行测试。研究结果表明，SPOT是一种足够准确的方法来安置学生。SPOT由一段以日语为母语的人朗读一系列完整句子的录音组成，测试者一边听录音，一边在答题纸上朗读同样的日文句子。答题纸上的每句话都有一个空格，考生必须根据磁带填空。每个空白由一个平假名字符组成，它代表一个语法项目的全部或部分。本研究项目阐明了以下几点。1)对日本和国外多家机构在不同情况下的试验结果进行了分析，结果表明SPOT得分具有较高的可靠性。2) SPOT似乎不适合测试语言知识的每个离散点，但对测试综合能力是有效的。3)语音变化（音长、音高轮廓、元音或辅音的消音或弱化）与分数有很强的关系。4)研究表明，SPOT通过测量日语学习者的自动加工能力来对他们进行排名。5) SPOT是研究日语学习者语法习得过程和结果的一个很好的工具。

When organizing a language course, it is necessary to determine the general language proficiency level of the students and place them in the appropriate class. We have invented SPOT (Simple Performance-Oriented Test) as a new device that allows learners at various levels to be placed simply, swiftly and accurately. The results of the research suggest that SPOT is a sufficiently accurate means to place students.SPOT consists of an audio taped recording of a native speaker reading a series of complete sentences, to which the testee listens while reading the same sentences in Japanese script on the answer sheet. Each sentence on the answer sheet contains a blank which the testee must fill in based on the tape. Each blank consists of a single hiragana character which represents all or part of a grammatical item.This research project has elucidated the follwings.1) The results of trials at several institutions (both in Japan and foreign countries) under different circumstances has been analyzed and the results show the score of the SPOT is highly reliable.2) The SPOT does not seem suitable for testing each discrete point of language knowledge, but is effective for testing intergrated proficiency.3) The phonetic variations (duration, pitch contour, devoicing or weakening of vowels or consonants) of the sentences read in the SPOT have strong relation with the score.4) The research suggests that SPOT ranks Japanese learners by measuring their automatic processing ability.5) The SPOT would be a good instrument to investigate the process and outcome of grammar acquisition by Japanese Language lerarners.