Computer-Based English Language Testing in China: Present and Future

In this special issue on high-stakes English language assessment in China, the two articles on computer-based English language testing (Jin & Yan; He & Min) highlight a number of consistent, ongoing challenges and concerns in the development and implementation of the nation-wide IB-CET (Internet Based College English Test) and institutional computer-adaptive English tests, respectively. Such challenges and concerns include, for example, how to conceptualize the construct of computer-based language assessment, to ensure fairness for test takers of different computer literacy, and to achieve comparability between tests or tasks of different delivery modes. In this article, we provide an overview of the research studies on computer-based English language testing conducted by Chinese scholars and published in major Chinese academic journals in recent decades, aiming to identify the research gaps and needed future research agendas which can have implications beyond China and Chinese contexts in promoting and making better use of computer technologies in and for English language assessment.