New test system in the works

Students take the College English Tests in Shenyang, Liaoning province. [Photo/VCG]

For students looking to prove their language proficiency, the CET 4 and CET 6 may soon be a thing of the past. Zhao Xinying reports.

The College English Tests, which are known as CET 4 and CET 6, will not be canceled but could morph into a new testing and rating system, according to a professor involved in the process.

Deng Jie, a professor of English at Hunan Normal University, who is involved in creating the new system that could be released soon, envisions the assessment of English proficiency through a nine-grade ranking.

It is also expected to offer consistent standards of evaluation nationwide and make it easier for English learners of different age groups, including college students, to assess their English proficiency.

Deng's remarks were in response to reports that the College English Tests would be canceled in Anhui province this year.

Although the reports were the result of a misunderstanding over a notice released by the Anhui Education Examination Authority, some people took the issue further, saying that the tests should be scrapped as they are "not practical".

Among those calling for the scrapping was Zeng Xiangyan, a senior student at Hunan University of Commerce, who says: "For most college students, CET represents two certificates that they have to obtain. Students no longer study English once they pass the tests, not to mention that English learned for the CET is not practical."

The latest instance, however, is not the first time that people have expressed their dislike for the tests.

In 2003, Liu Runqing, a professor of English at Beijing Foreign Studies University and the director of the university's Research Institute of Foreign Languages, called for scrapping the tests, saying that they were not scientific enough to reflect students' English ability and that students spent too much time preparing for the tests and that their studies for college majors were being affected.