This research introduces an English language program of a research-oriented science and engineering university in Korea. The university had established a PBT TOEFL score of 550 as one of its graduation requirements in 1995, implementing it for fifteen years. The policy, however, created problems such as students’ learning focus on receptive skills of the language and the discrepancy between the English curriculum and the graduation requirement. In addition, students who were unable to graduate on time due to not meeting the graduation requirement had increased. Facing these issues, the institute abolished the TOEFL policy and developed a new English program, which is characterized by a level-based curriculum, the implementation of an in-house placement test, mandating a number of courses to take, focus on productive skills, and teaching both general English and ESP-oriented courses. With the aim to introduce its rationale, placement test and curriculum, this study also reports on the results of questionnaires designed to determine students’ perceptions of the new English program and main issues raised in a panel discussion designed to examine the program. Limits and suggestions for the program are lastly presented.

This paper aims to provide guidelines on developing English language proficiency (ELP) tests based on the experience from ELP assessments in the U.S. after the implementation of No Child Left Behind (NCLB). While there might be substantial differences between the content and purpose of ELP tests developed from country to country, there are, however, areas that experts in charge of ELP test development in other countries can benefit from. The NCLB legislation in the U.S. made the assessment of English language learners (ELL) students’ level of proficiency in English mandatory once a year and provided useful guidelines for developing ELP assessments. This mandate, along with its useful guidelines, helped improve the quality of ELP assessment significantly and led to the development of several batteries of ELP assessments either through consortia of states or by test publishers in the U.S. The newly developed assessments were based on states’ ELP standards. They incorporated the concept of academic language which is an essential requirement for ELL students’ performance in the academic content areas, and were tested in extensive pilot and field studies. Some implications were drawn from such improvements for ELL assessment and accountability not only in the U.S. but in other countries including Korea.