شبكة المعلومات العربية التربوية

It is very well-known that testing controls the process of teaching and the development of testing is appropriate with the development of language theories where the central focus of testing is to measure the test-taker communicative competence as well as the linguistic competence. The English Department of College of Education in Tikrit University had been following a constant system of testing. But in recent years, the Higher Education and Scientific Research Ministry has given the failed students a chance to participate in a third final test after declaring the results of the second final test. The study assumes that the third final test is useless in the processes of English language teaching simply because it is believed that the more the student use English language, the more automatic control he acquires over using the English language. Therefore, the increase of the number of final tests does not help the students to develop their language. Accordingly, the study presents a survey of testing and its historical development as well as the classic criteria of a good test and the types of the tests. Moreover, some practical observations concerning the results of grammar tests for several years in English Department are pointed out. To verify the assumption of the study, the results of the tests of English grammar of 43 students of the first year of English Department, who all have given the chance to participate in the third final test of the year (2010-2011), have been taken form the master sheet of English Department. The analysis of these results shows out that the success percentage of students in the third final test of grammar is about 1.68% from the total number of students of the year (who are 178 students) and forms about 6.97 % from the total number of students who participated in the third final test. It is made clear that the great majority of the third final test students is far behind the student level of the succeeded students. Therefore, one may say, that the increase of the number of final tests does not help the students to develop their abilities. Consequently, it is recommended to cancel the third final test just because it seems useless and its results not appropriate with the great deal of efforts of organizing the test. But, if there is a necessity related to the governmental planning, the chance of participation in a third final test can be given to the students whose scores of the terms are about 40% only. (Published abstract)