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Standardization of the Saudi Secondary School Certificate Examinations and their anticipated impact on Foreign Language Education
Dr. Ahmed Gumaa Siddiek

Abstract
Scholastic Achievement tests are standardized in form and content to fairly serve all the audience - who take them - under similar circumstances. Therefore, they are reliable tools for measuring the performance of the examinees. On the other hand, proficiency tests are intended to measure the overall abilities of the learners. So they cannot serve as yardstick to tell us about the degree of the attainment of the national educational objectives embedded in the textbooks. The Education authority is advised to recall the national certificate examinations which qualify learners for higher education, under fair national competition. The role of other proficiency tests should be integrative and complimentary to the major role of the Ministry of Education, who alone should have the right to interpret the usefulness and credibility of secondary school certificate, and how to use this national document in the assessment of students' performance at the personal, national or international level.

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