Resumen

CASART, Yris; FANG FUNG, Pue  y  TRIAS, Marta. COMPLEXITY OF COGNITIVE TASK AND ITEM DIFFICULTY IN READING COMPREHENSION TESTS OF ENGLISH FOR SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY (EST). Paradígma [online]. 2011, vol.32, n.2, pp.023-038. ISSN 1011-2251.

In the field of reading comprehension assessment of L2, there are different views about the relationship between item difficulty and complexity of cognitive processes required to find the correct answer in reading comprehension tests. It is commonly believed that those items which require higher order skills are more difficult than those requiring lower order skills. Nonetheless, findings reported by Alderson and Lukmani (1989) and Alderson (1990) cast doubts on this relationship. It is furthermore assumed that the acquisition of reading skills proceeds in a lineal-cumulative fashion; that is, before higher order skills can be developed, lower order ones should be acquired. Statistical analysis of the pattern of student responses on a reading comprehension test of English for Science and Technology showed that the variations observed in item difficulty are not linked to the complexity of the cognitive processes required to answer a question correctly. Likewise, our results also raise questions about the belief that reading skills are acquired in a lineal-cumulative order.

Palabras clave : Reading Comprehension in L2; complexity of cognitive processes; item difficulty; acquisition order of reading skills.

        · resumen en Español     · texto en Español     · Español ( pdf )