Abstract
The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of test-wiseness training on ESL student performance on a standardized, computerized basic skills test of reading and writing and on computer anxiety. Thirty-two high-proficiency ESL students attended a three-and-a-half-hour workshop designed to give students information about the Computerized Placement Test (CPT). The Experimental Group received a component which included test-taking skills training, familiarization with computer keyboards, discussion of the specific CPT form and content, and practice on similar test questions.Data were obtained through the following instruments: a demographic questionnaire, the Florida Multiple Assessment Placement Programs and Services (FL-MAPS) and CPT reading and writing sub-tests, and the Computer Anxiety Scale by Marcoulides (1985). Statistical analyses included t-tests and analyses of covariance to assess significant differences between pre- and post-training scores and computer anxiety, and correlations to test the relationships between computer anxiety and test results.Analysis of the data revealed that: ESL students who received test-wiseness training for computerized examinations did not perform significantly higher on the reading or writing sub-tests of the basic skills tests than those ESL students who do not receive the training; ESL students in the Experimental Group who received test-wiseness training for computerized examinations scored significantly higher on the reading and writing sub-tests of the basic skills tests than they did on the pre-test, and, surprisingly, students in the Control Group also scored significantly higher on the reading post-test than on the pre-test; placement results on the reading sub-test were significantly altered by attendance at the workshop; the treatment seemed to have no significant effect on reducing computer anxiety for either the Control Group or the Experimental Group; and there was no significant negative correlation between level of computer anxiety and reading sub-test CPT scores for ESL students. A detailed discussion of the findings includes recommendations for further research.