English-as-a-Foreign-Language Assessment in Taiwan
Viphavee Vongpumivitch2012, Language Assessment Quarterly
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Abstract
English-as-a-Foreign-Language Assessment in Taiwan This special issue is about English-as-a-foreign-language (EFL) assessment in Taiwan, an oceanic nation located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. Taiwan is a small country with a complex history, linguistic background, and socio-political situation, all of which are related to the important role that English plays in Taiwan today. Thus, some background information about Taiwan is provided here so that the international readership can obtain a better understanding of the rationale behind the articles presented in this issue. Taiwan, or the Republic of China, comprises the main island of Taiwan and the archipelagoes of Penghu, Kinmen, and Matsu, along with a number of small islands. First settled by Austronesian people thousands of years ago, the main island of Taiwan was believed to be mentioned in ancient Chinese history as early as the 3rd century and referred to as "Ilha Formosa" by the Portuguese in the 16th century. Throughout its history, Taiwan has been governed by many groups of settlers, namely, the Dutch in the 17th century, the Chinese through Koxinga and the Qing Dynasty from the 17th century to the 19th century, the Japanese at the end of 19th century up until the 1940s, and back to the Chinese again after the Nationalist Party ("Kuomingtang") moved from mainland China to Taiwan in the 1940s. By 2010, of the population of 23 million in Taiwan, 95% are Han Chinese, with a small percentage of Taiwanese aboriginals remaining (The Republic of China Yearbook, 2010). In recent years, the Taiwanese population has also included immigrants from different countries, especially South East Asians who come to marry Taiwanese citizens or for job opportunities. Within the larger group of Han Chinese, the majority speak Southern Min (also known as "Taiwanese Hokkien," or "Hoklo"), whereas the rest speak Hakka and other Chinese dialects. For all Taiwanese, Mandarin, referred to as "guoyu" (literally meaning "national language"), has been the official language since the Nationalist government took control. It is used at every level of education and as lingua franca among the various linguistic groups in Taiwan. In the decades following World War II, Taiwan's rapid economic growth has transformed it into an industrialized developed country and one of the "Four Asian Tigers" (Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea, and Taiwan). Ever since the "Taiwan Miracle" in the 1980s, the Taiwanese advanced technology industry has played a key role in the global economy, because a large portion of the world's consumer electronics parts are made by Taiwanese companies. As a result, it is not surprising to see that more and more young Taiwanese put serious effort into
