This chapter reports on a common assessment project in a university intensive English program (IEP). In the program, the authors developed, implemented, and supervised the common finals project (CFP) to standardize final exams in all courses through collaborative teacher-made test development. The report provides details regarding why and how the project was implemented, with test samples, and test development and review instruments provided to demonstrate the theoretical and practical issues involved. While still ongoing, this chapter covers the beginning stages of the project, covering a time frame from August 2015 to May 2016, and involved dozens of teachers and hundreds of students. After explaining the rationale for the CFP, and details about its methodology and implementation, this report shows that the standardization project has been successful in developing and administering better final exams for IEP students.

In contrast to the assessment of reading, listening, or writing skills, the assessment of oral proficiency has seen a growing preference for interactive task formats as the context in which to evaluate a learner's spoken ability. Tasks that require learners to engage in authentic, meaningful interactions with their peers or the teacher, however, deserve attention due to potential benefits as well as unintended consequences. This is because in interactive tasks a learner's performance is not the sole display of individual competence, as it is the case with writing or listening tests: The presence of an interlocutor introduces a social dimension, raising issues of test validity and reliability, and ultimately impacting test design and scoring systems. Therefore, the goal of this chapter is to discuss the challenges and implications of assessing oral proficiency when a social dimension is added to the picture and to contribute to a better understanding of how a joint construction of speaking performance can impact not only test development but also students' scores.