ABSTRACT
This chapter presents a variety of task types that can be used to assess a number of language skills, including lexico-grammar, listening, reading, speaking, and writing. It introduces the history of development of different task types, which is closely related to theoretical movements in linguistics and psychology. The chapter argues that, while there is no single best method to assess language ability, awareness of different assessment methods enhances one’s test development options. It analyses the tasks used to assess different components of language ability. Since the beginning of language testing as a field, the tasks used in language tests have expanded from discrete-point items to open-ended, integrated tasks. Despite the changing conception of language ability in language testing, discrete-point items remain an effective approach to measuring lexico-grammatical knowledge. Task complexity can come from both the nature of the language performance elicited by the prompt questions, and the linguistic and content complexity of the input material.
