Cross-disciplinary collaboration in research on a specific-purpose language test in the healthcare setting
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1558/japl.31857Keywords:
English for Specific Purposes, healthcare communication, interdisciplinary collaboration, Language Testing, medical records, research methodologyAbstract
Central to teaching and assessing languages for specific purposes is collaboration between domain experts and applied linguists; yet, the complexity of the process has been little documented. A project involving collaboration between language testers, applied linguists and healthcare professionals in Australia provided an opportunity for exploration of this complexity. The project focused on interprofessional written communication about patient care, which forms the basis of a writing task in the Occupational English Test (OET), an English for Specific Purposes (ESP) test for health professionals. The project aimed to identify criteria indigenous to the work setting in order to inform the criteria used by language professionals in judging performance on the OET. This methodological paper examines the decisions involved in designing the collaboration and considers the possible effect of decisions on the validity of findings. The decisions include the choice of workplace writing tasks, of participants, of work settings and of written materials to be used as stimuli, the mode of eliciting responses to the stimuli from the domain experts and the coding and interpretation of data. The ways in which the research results are to be implemented in practice are examined, as well as the broader implications for the methodology of ESP research.
References
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Douglas, D. and Selinker, L. (1985) Principles for language tests within the ‘discourse domains’ theory of interlanguage: Research, test construction and interpretation. Language Testing 2 (2): 205–226. https://doi.org/10.1177/026553228500200208
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Elder, C. and McNamara, T. (2016) The hunt for ‘indigenous criteria’ in assessing communication in the physiotherapy workplace. Language Testing 33 (2): 153–174. https://doi.org/10.1177/0265532215607398
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Knoch, U., Elder, C., Woodward-Kron, R., Flynn, E., Manias, E., McNamara, T. and Zhang, B. (2017) Towards Improved Quality of Written Patient Records: Final Report to the Australian Research Council. Melbourne: Language Testing Research Centre, University of Melbourne.
Knoch, U., McNamara, T., Elder, C., Woodward-Kron, R., Manias, E., Flynn, E. and Huisman, A. (2016) The challenge of capturing the construct of written communication for a health-specific language test. Paper delivered at the Language Testing Research Colloquium, Palermo, Sicily, 20–24 June.
Knoch, U., McNamara, T., Woodward-Kron, R., Elder, C., Manias, E., Flynn, E. and Zhang, Y. (2015) Towards improved language assessment of written health professional communication: The case of the Occupational English Test. Papers in Language Testing and Assessment 4 (2): 60–66.
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OET (2018) Test information. Available online: https://www.occupationalenglishtest.org/test-information/
Pill, J. [T. J. H.] (2013) What Doctors Value in Consultations and the Implications for Specific-Purpose Language Testing. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, University of Melbourne, Melbourne.
Pill, J. (2016) Drawing on indigenous criteria for more authentic assessment in a specific-purpose language test: Health professionals interacting with patients. Language Testing 33 (2): 175–193. https://doi.org/10.1177/0265532215607400
Roberts, C. and Sarangi, S. (2003) Uptake of discourse research in interprofessional settings: Reporting from medical consultancy. Applied Linguistics 24 (3): 338–359. https://doi.org/10.1093/applin/24.3.338
Sarangi, S. (2007) The anatomy of interpretation: Coming to terms with the analyst’s paradox in professional discourse studies. Text & Talk 27 (5–6): 567–584. https://doi.org/10.1515/TEXT.2007.025
Sarangi, S. (2015) Experts on experts: Sustaining communities of interest in professional discourse studies. In M. Gotti, S. Maci and M. Sala (eds) Insights into Medical Communication, 25–47. Bern: Peter Lang.
Sarangi, S. and Candlin, C. N. (2003) Trading between reflexivity and relevance: New challenges for applied linguistics. Applied Linguistics 24 (3): 271–285. https://doi.org/10.1093/applin/24.3.271
Sarangi, S. and Candlin, C. N. (2010) Applied linguistics and professional practice: Mapping a future agenda. Journal of Applied Linguistics and Professional Practice 7 (1): 1–9. https://doi.org/10.1558/japl.v7i1.1
Sarangi, S., Clarke, A., Bennert, K. and Howell, L. (2003) Categorisation practices across professional boundaries: Some analytic insights from genetic counselling. In S. Sarangi and T. van Leeuwen (eds) Applied Linguistics and Communities of Practice, 150–168. London: Continuum.
Selinker, L. (1979) On the use of informants in discourse analysis and language for specialized purposes. International Review of Applied Linguistics 17 (1–4): 189–215. https://doi.org/10.1515/iral.1979.17.1-4.189
Basturkmen, H. and Elder, C. (2004) The practice of LSP. In A. Davies and C. Elder (eds) Handbook of Applied Linguistics, 672–694. Oxford: Blackwell. https://doi.org/10.1002/9780470757000.ch27
Bridgelal Ram, M., Carpenter, I. and Williams, J. (2009) Reducing risk and improving quality of patient care in hospital: The contribution of standardized medical records. Clinical Risk 15 (5): 183–187. https://doi.org/10.1258/cr.2009.090018
Dias, P., Freedman, A., Medway, P. and Paré, A. (1999) Worlds Apart: Acting and Writing in Academic and Workplace Contexts. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
Douglas, D. (2000) Assessing Language for Specific Purposes. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Douglas, D. (2001) Three problems in testing language for specific purposes: Authenticity, specificity and inseparability. In C. Elder, A. Brown, E. Grove, K. Hill, N. Iwashita, T. Lumley, T. McNamara and K. O’Loughlin (eds) Experimenting with Uncertainty: Essays in Honour of Alan Davies, 45–52. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Douglas, D. and Myers, R (2000) Assessing the communication skills of veterinary students: Whose criteria? In A. J. Kunnan (ed.) Fairness and Validation in Language Assessment: Selected Papers from the 19th Language Testing Research Colloquium, Orlando, Florida, 60–81. Cambridge: University of Cambridge Local Examinations Syndicate.
Douglas, D. and Selinker, L. (1985) Principles for language tests within the ‘discourse domains’ theory of interlanguage: Research, test construction and interpretation. Language Testing 2 (2): 205–226. https://doi.org/10.1177/026553228500200208
Elder, C. (ed.) (2016) Exploring the limits of authenticity in LSP testing. Language Testing 33 (2): 147–152. https://doi.org/10.1177/0265532215607397
Elder, C. and McNamara, T. (2016) The hunt for ‘indigenous criteria’ in assessing communication in the physiotherapy workplace. Language Testing 33 (2): 153–174. https://doi.org/10.1177/0265532215607398
Elder, C., McNamara, T., Woodward-Kron, R., Manias, E., McColl, G., Webb, G., Pill, J. and O’Hagan, S. (2013) Developing and validating language proficiency standards for non-native English speaking health professionals. Papers in Language Testing and Assessment 2 (1): 66–70.
Elder, C., Pill, J., Woodward-Kron, R., McNamara, T., Manias, E., Webb, G. and McColl, G. (2012) Health professionals’ views of communication: Implications for assessing performance on a health-specific English language test. TESOL Quarterly 46 (2): 409–419. https://doi.org/10.1002/tesq.26
Erd?sy, M. U. (2005) Responding to Native and Non-Native Writers of English: A History Professor’s Indigenous Criteria for Grading and Feedback in an Undergraduate Sinology Course. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, University of Toronto, Toronto.
Erd?sy, M. U. (2009) Chasing Proteus: Identifying indigenous assessment criteria in academic settings. In A. Brown and K. Hill (eds) Tasks and Criteria in Performance Assessment, 111–133. Frankfurt am Main: Peter Lang.
Griffith, R. (2004) Putting the record straight: The importance of documentation. British Journal of Community Nursing 9 (3): 122–125. https://doi.org/10.12968/bjcn.2004.9.3.12436
Jacoby, S. W. (1998) Science as Performance: Socializing Scientific Discourse through the Conference Talk Rehearsal. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, University of California, Los Angeles.
Jacoby, S. and McNamara, T. (1999) Locating competence. English for Specific Purposes 18 (3): 213–241. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0889-4906(97)00053-7
Kim, H. (2012) Exploring the Construct of Aviation Communication: A Critique of the ICAO Language Pro?ciency Policy. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, University of Melbourne, Australia.
Kim, H. (2013) Exploring the construct of radiotelephony communication: A critique of the ICAO English testing policy from the perspective of Korean aviation experts. Papers in Language Testing and Assessment 2 (2): 103–119.
Kim, H. and Elder, C. (2015) Interrogating the construct of aviation English: Feedback from test takers in Korea. Language Testing 32 (2): 129–149. https://doi.org/10.1177/
0265532214544394
Knoch, U. (2014) Using subject specialist to validate an ESP rating scale: The case of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) rating scale. English for Specific Purposes 33: 77–86. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.esp.2013.08.002
Knoch, U. (in preparation) Involving domain experts in LSP criteria development: The development and validation of a rating scale for written handover communication in medical settings.
Knoch, U., Elder, C., Woodward-Kron, R., Flynn, E., Manias, E., McNamara, T. and Zhang, B. (2017) Towards Improved Quality of Written Patient Records: Final Report to the Australian Research Council. Melbourne: Language Testing Research Centre, University of Melbourne.
Knoch, U., McNamara, T., Elder, C., Woodward-Kron, R., Manias, E., Flynn, E. and Huisman, A. (2016) The challenge of capturing the construct of written communication for a health-specific language test. Paper delivered at the Language Testing Research Colloquium, Palermo, Sicily, 20–24 June.
Knoch, U., McNamara, T., Woodward-Kron, R., Elder, C., Manias, E., Flynn, E. and Zhang, Y. (2015) Towards improved language assessment of written health professional communication: The case of the Occupational English Test. Papers in Language Testing and Assessment 4 (2): 60–66.
Long, M. H. (ed.) (2005) Second Language Needs Analysis. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511667299
McNamara, T. F. (1996) Measuring Second Language Performance. London: Longman.
OET (2018) Test information. Available online: https://www.occupationalenglishtest.org/test-information/
Pill, J. [T. J. H.] (2013) What Doctors Value in Consultations and the Implications for Specific-Purpose Language Testing. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, University of Melbourne, Melbourne.
Pill, J. (2016) Drawing on indigenous criteria for more authentic assessment in a specific-purpose language test: Health professionals interacting with patients. Language Testing 33 (2): 175–193. https://doi.org/10.1177/0265532215607400
Roberts, C. and Sarangi, S. (2003) Uptake of discourse research in interprofessional settings: Reporting from medical consultancy. Applied Linguistics 24 (3): 338–359. https://doi.org/10.1093/applin/24.3.338
Sarangi, S. (2007) The anatomy of interpretation: Coming to terms with the analyst’s paradox in professional discourse studies. Text & Talk 27 (5–6): 567–584. https://doi.org/10.1515/TEXT.2007.025
Sarangi, S. (2015) Experts on experts: Sustaining communities of interest in professional discourse studies. In M. Gotti, S. Maci and M. Sala (eds) Insights into Medical Communication, 25–47. Bern: Peter Lang.
Sarangi, S. and Candlin, C. N. (2003) Trading between reflexivity and relevance: New challenges for applied linguistics. Applied Linguistics 24 (3): 271–285. https://doi.org/10.1093/applin/24.3.271
Sarangi, S. and Candlin, C. N. (2010) Applied linguistics and professional practice: Mapping a future agenda. Journal of Applied Linguistics and Professional Practice 7 (1): 1–9. https://doi.org/10.1558/japl.v7i1.1
Sarangi, S., Clarke, A., Bennert, K. and Howell, L. (2003) Categorisation practices across professional boundaries: Some analytic insights from genetic counselling. In S. Sarangi and T. van Leeuwen (eds) Applied Linguistics and Communities of Practice, 150–168. London: Continuum.
Selinker, L. (1979) On the use of informants in discourse analysis and language for specialized purposes. International Review of Applied Linguistics 17 (1–4): 189–215. https://doi.org/10.1515/iral.1979.17.1-4.189
Published
2018-12-31
Issue
Section
Articles
License
Equinox Publishing Ltd.
How to Cite
McNamara, T., Elder, C., Flynn, E., Knoch, U., Manias, E., Woodward-Kron, R., & Yahalom, S. (2018). Cross-disciplinary collaboration in research on a specific-purpose language test in the healthcare setting. Journal of Applied Linguistics and Professional Practice, 13(1-3), 189-210. https://doi.org/10.1558/japl.31857
