The project Time to fill the gaps: A mixed-methods study into the role of the time variable in the construct of computer-based C-Tests in three languages funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG project number 462766474) launched in May 2022.

In the C-Test, language learners are asked to fill in partial gaps in several (4 - 8) short texts. The participants usually have five minutes to complete one text. The project team around Prof. Dr. Anastasia Drackert is investigating a new time-reduced speeded C-Test (S-C-Test), which promises a more efficient use, as the processing time per text and thus for the entire C-Test is halved. In addition, it seems reasonable to assume that the time-reduced C-Test might capture a different construct.

However, this instrument has not yet been sufficiently studied and it is not clear what influence the reduction in processing time might have on the construct, i.e. the ability being measured. According to Grotjahn (2010), the canonical C-Test measures the extent of declarative and procedural knowledge, whereas the S-C-Test also measures the degree of automaticity of different components of language proficiency and the efficiency of information processing. Thus, the S-C-Test would correlate higher with listening comprehension and speaking than the C-Test, but lower with writing and reading. Thus, it can be assumed that the S-C-Test taps into a partly different construct.

Although initial findings on the role of time in the construct are available (Fadaeipour & Zohoorian, 2017; Zimmermann, 2019), many questions remain unanswered, especially for computer-based C-Tests: e.g. regarding the influence of time on test reliability and learners' performance depending on their language level, as well as regarding the role of different components (i.e. declarative and procedural knowledge and the degree of its automaticity) in the construct of time-limited C-Tests. Furthermore, systematic evidence on the effect of time on cognitive processes expressed in learners' strategies is lacking.

Given the crucial role time seems to play in the construct, the multilingual project systematically investigates this role in order to allow for a higher degree of generalisability of the results with regard to 1) different levels, 2) different languages (English, German, Russian) and 3) computer-based C-Tests. To this end, comparative analyses of learner performance in the canonical and speeded C-Tests will be conducted and compared with other measures of declarative and procedural knowledge, among others.

Using a sample (n=540) of language learners in higher education, the study aims to show what differently timed C-Tests actually measure by building on and deepening investigations of the fluidity of the construct (Drackert & Timukova, 2020 a&b; Sigott, 2006). This is the first study to look at the component structure of the construct using structural equation modelling and a process-oriented video-based analysis of test-taking strategies. An improved understanding of the influence of time on the construct will be of great benefit to the application of C-Tests: researchers and teachers can adapt the instrument for different contexts to make more feasible decisions about learners' language competence. This will make the instrument more accurate, efficient and economical.

• Darja Felberg
• Ilka Plesse

Registration for study participation!