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Evaluating social impact of the Chinese Proficiency Exam from the perspective of language policy—based on discourse approach
Tianxiong Lyu
Shanghai International Studies Universities, China, People's Republic of
As China's international influence grows and the implementation of the "Double First-Class" initiative takes place, the degree of openness in Chinese higher education continues to increase. In this process, the Chinese Proficiency Exam(Hanyu Shuiping Kaoshi, or HSK), organized and implemented by the Ministry of Education of China as a policy-driven assessment, is gradually becoming a high-stakes test significantly impacting the admission, scholarships, and graduation of foreign students. In the discipline of language policy and planning, language testing is commonly regarded as a product of social-political systems (Spolsky, 1995), and is seen as a language policy or a kind of mechanisms (Shohamy, 2007), whose social impact has been greatly concerned. Presently, studies largely focus on global English high-stakes tests like IELTS and TOEFL, while attention toward non-English language tests remains relatively limited.
This study, influenced by the "discourse turn" within language policy research (Barakos & Unger, 2016), employs a critical discourse approach for policy-driven tests proposed by Shin (2023), based on Bachman and Palmer's (2010) Assessment Use Argument (AUA) framework and Fairclough's (1992, 2001) critical discourse analysis framework, to analyze the social impact of the Chinese Proficiency Exam. By encompassing discourse practices of various stakeholders at different scales, this research aims to provide a more authentic and comprehensive reflection of the social significance and value of the new Chinese Proficiency Exam. It can also enrich the study of non-English high-stakes tests within the language policy perspective, and help to develop discourse approach as a research paradigm in the field of language policy and planning.
