LATs Information

Language Acquisition Tests - Foundations And Academic English Courses

The LATs are a major part of what determines if a student will study at the next level, skip a level, or repeat a level during the next semester of study. During the LATs, ELC students take four tests: Writing, Speaking, Reading, and Listening. All of the tests are computerized. The Writing and Speaking tests were developed by the English Language Center and the Reading and Listening tests were developed by the Center for Language Studies at BYU.

Speaking-Open Oral Response—Approximately 12 Minutes

The Speaking LAT is structured to be like an ACTFL Oral Proficiency Interview where students are asked questions at different proficiency levels to find where they are most comfortable and where they are stretched. The Speaking LAT has 12 prompts that range from Novice to Superior, and all students answer all of the questions. By doing this, students can show their best English in the prompts that line up with their language proficiency. In the Novice prompts, students have 10 seconds to prepare and 30 seconds to speak about their immediate surroundings. In the Intermediate prompts, students also have 10 seconds to prepare and 30 seconds to speak, but they are talking about their everyday lives. In the Advanced prompts, students have 15 seconds to prepare and 45 seconds to speak about things connected to their personal lives or communities. In the Superior prompts, students have 20 seconds to prepare and 80 seconds to speak about topics that are academic, global, or abstract. The Speaking LAT lasts a total of 12 minutes.

Writing-Open Written Response—Approximately 40 Minutes

The Writing LAT has two prompts, one that is Intermediate and one that is Superior. All students respond to both prompts. They begin with the Intermediate prompt, which is connected to the students’ everyday lives. They have 10 minutes to write their response. When the students finish the Intermediate prompt, they move on to the Superior prompt, which is connected to academic, global, or abstract topics. They have 30 minutes to write a response to the prompt. The Writing LAT lasts a total of 40 minutes.

Listening and Reading—Approximately 45 Minutes

For the Listening and Reading LATs, the ELC uses the Adaptive Listening Test and the Adaptive Reading Test developed by the CLS. These two tests are also based on the ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines. It includes test items at the Intermediate, Advanced, and Superior levels. Each item has a standard length of time to listen to or read the passage and then answer the question. Intermediate questions are 90 seconds, Advanced questions are 120 seconds, and Superior questions are 240 seconds. The two tests are computer-adaptive, so the students answer items at one level, and depending on how they answer the items, they then answer items that are above or below the level of items they just answered. Because the two tests are adaptive, each student will experience a different test. The items could be different, and the length of the test could be different. The minimum amount of questions a student would need to answer is 10 questions and the maximum is 45, but the average is about 25 questions. The minimum length of time a test could take is 15 minutes and the maximum is 90, but the average is about 45 minutes.