Purdue News

August 9, 1990 Berns Named to Committee of Examiners West Lafayette, Ind. – Purdue University faculty member Margie Berns has been named to the Test of English as a Foreign Language Committee of Examiners. Berns is director of Purdue's English as a Second Language Program and assistant professor of linguistics in the Department of English, School of Liberal Arts. Her one-year appointment, effective through July 1, 1991, is renewable for a three-year term of service. Berns said the Committee of Examiners consists of six members, each with professional recognition in an academic field related to the teaching of English as a foreign language. She said the committee is responsible for such areas as setting and reviewing content specifications and deciding on the types of questions for the international test; reviewing questions, test results and materials for publication in information booklets; writing questions; and making suggestions for research studies that will lead to improvements in the test. Test of English as a Foreign Language programs are administered by the Educational Testing Service, Princeton, N.J., for the College Board and the Graduate Record Examinations Board. Berns, a Purdue faculty member since 1986, is a native of Dundee, Mich. She graduated cum laude from Albion College, Albion, Mich., with a bachelor's degree in English and German. She also holds a master's degree in linguistics/teaching English as a foreign language from the University of Michigan, and a doctorate in linguistics from the University of Illinois. Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; purduenews@purdue.edu