An ad hoc committee will evaluate the different approaches that (1) exist to assess foreign language proficiency and that (2) the State Department's Foreign Service Institute (FSI) could potentially use to assess language proficiency. The committee will consider the key assessment approaches in the research literature that are appropriate for language testing, including, but not limited to, assessments that use task-based or performance-based approaches, adaptive online test administration, and portfolios.

The committee will collect information that helps answer the following questions:

• What assessment formats and approaches are feasible for language proficiency testing? What are the advantages and disadvantages of the various approaches?
• How well do different assessment approaches measure reading and listening comprehension (interactive and non-interactive)?
• How well do different assessment approaches measure speaking proficiency?
• To what extent would different assessment approaches provide information to support the intended inferences about a candidate's language proficiency?
• What are the psychometric characteristics (reliability, validity, classification accuracy) associated with different approaches?
• Are the different assessment approaches equally effective (fair and unbiased) for all groups that typically take the FSI assessments?
• To what extent is unconscious bias a concern with different assessment strategies? Which assessment approaches minimize the effect of unconscious bias in foreign language proficiency testing?
• Are the different assessment approaches equally practical and cost effective in a resource-limited government environment?

The committee will not recommend any specific assessment approach, but will describe the strengths and weaknesses of different assessment approaches, in light of the latest research and current scientific consensus. The committee will also take into account the practicality of various options in a resource-limited, government environment (in contrast to academic or private sector assessment applications). To the extent possible, the study should address the steps involved in conducting proficiency assessments to ultimately enable the State Department to determine the most appropriate method to utilize for the Foreign Service.

The assessment process currently used by FSI and the definition of language proficiency developed by the Interagency Language Roundtable provide the context for the study. However, the purpose of the consensus study is not to evaluate FSI's current assessment process. That process can serve as one possible benchmark for comparison when identifying the strengths and weaknesses of other assessment approaches. The focus of the study is also not to evaluate the current definition of language proficiency used by FSI, or its approach to language learning, but instead to identify the most effective means of assessing language proficiency as currently defined in the context of the U.S. Foreign Service.