Purdue School of Languages and Cultures shifts to fully online language placement testing

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — The Purdue University School of Languages and Cultures solved one problem caused by COVID-19 by moving its language placement testing completely online.

The overhauled SLC Language Placement Test will eliminate the uncertainty many students would have felt when enrolling in language courses, according to Atsushi Fukada, a professor of Japanese and linguistics and director of the Center for Technology-Enhanced Language Learning.

“I’m gratified that I was able to use my skills to help the School of Languages and Cultures and the whole university,” said Fukada, who led the implementation effort. “Several thousand incoming freshmen would have been in trouble not knowing what level language course to sign up for this summer.”

Fukada said Purdue already used a web-based language placement testing system, but it took approximately three weeks to replace the human proctors in the previous testing process with digital proctors. Now students with a computer, a webcam, a fast and reliable internet connection, and a valid Purdue ID or other document showing their name and Purdue ID number can learn their placement results immediately at the conclusion of their online tests.

The testing system video records students as they take the test, allowing SLC officials to review test session footage and validate placement results typically within one day.

Initially implemented as a temporary measure while public health orders required citizens to stay home to stop the spread of COVID-19, the new testing system has worked so well that it might become permanent.

“It was necessitated by the pandemic, but we had the idea in the back of our mind as a ‘dream’ system. Now that we’ve implemented it, we love it,” Fukada said. “We are pretty sure that we’ll continue to use the system even after the pandemic is over.”

The online placement testing is available for eligible students who wish to study Chinese, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Latin, Russian and Spanish. According to the placement testing homepage, the following eligibility rules apply:

• Students who have had two years or more of high school study of a language must take a placement test or complete a placement interview in order to determine their first course in a language sequence.
• Students who have had less than two years of high school study, or for whom it has been five years or more since their last language course, may begin at the 10100 level or may sit for a placement exam.
• Students with advanced credit (transfer, dual credit) or who are enrolled in or have completed a course in a language may not sit for a placement exam.
• Students may sit for a placement exam only once in any language.
• Students with no previous study of a language should not sit for a placement exam and should contact their advisor for permission to enroll in 10100.

A manual with step-by-step instructions is available at the placement testing homepage. Those with additional questions may email slcplace@purdue.edu.

About Purdue University

Purdue University is a top public research institution developing practical solutions to today’s toughest challenges. Ranked the No. 6 Most Innovative University in the United States by U.S. News & World Report, Purdue delivers world-changing research and out-of-this-world discovery. Committed to hands-on and online, real-world learning, Purdue offers a transformative education to all. Committed to affordability and accessibility, Purdue has frozen tuition and most fees at 2012-13 levels, enabling more students than ever to graduate debt-free. See how Purdue never stops in the persistent pursuit of the next giant leap at purdue.edu.

Writer: David Ching, dching@purdue.edu

Media contact: Joseph Paul, paul102@purdue.edu (working remotely but will provide immediate response)

Source: Atsushi Fukada, afukada@purdue.edu