English Questions in University Admission Tests

Admission test questions of general and specialised universities accommodate a portion of English questions that deserve appreciation because of their global appeal and importance. Recently, I have gone through the questions of several universities that convince me to write something on this issue. Some questions really reflect the authorities’ desire to see whether the admission seekers will be able to cope with the books written in English in higher education, go abroad for further education and face international tests in English. Of course, their current ability to use English in their everyday life is also tested. However, some questions of some universities make us baffled, as we cannot reach any conclusion about what the test contents really mean.  It seems that authorities possibly want to see whether the admission seekers will be able to teach English grammar as our English teachers usually do!
I have seen one university has asked students to write a paragraph of five sentences on ‘The influence of social media on Gen-Z’ following a given line graph. The line graph shows the proportion of three different popular drinks (tea, coffee and juice) in the country between the period of 1980 and 2020. Students will have to summarise the information within 5 sentences by describing the main findings. It proves to be a very reasonable question. It shows how students are familiar with this type of graph, which happens in the IELTS exam also. It tends to test students’ organising capacity, and the message of the graph can be described in limited words. Very good test indeed!
Another question falls in the category of argumentative writing. The question is, Bangladesh currently defines the minimum level of primary education as Class Five. However, with the rising literacy rate and the growing demand for higher-order skills in the job market, many argue that primary education should be extended to class eight, as practised in several developed countries. Do you agree or disagree with this proposal? Take a clear position and justify your answer in five sentences.  This type of question tests students’ reasoning faculty and argumentative power along with their language development. 
However, most university admission test questions are seen to contain a huge number of loose grammar items, just like many job tests. Maybe one from a verb, one from voice, one from narration, and another one from articles, and many of them are very traditional ones. These types of questions never ensure testing students’ real base or ability to use English in their writing and speaking who are going to pursue higher education. Teaching English and setting questions in this way goes against the CLT principles. Our students need to develop their communicative ability in a foreign language. They are not going to do a PhD or MPhil in English, nor are they going to teach English grammar as we do in our schools and colleges. The language teaching situation has changed quite a lot, but our system, particularly the way of teaching, has not. Still, English teaching in our schools, colleges and even universities goes on as our system used to be in previous days. 
As institutions fail to enable them to use English for practical purposes, after graduation students try to learn it, resorting to some coaching centres or individuals to learn some translations and grammatical rules.
Just like loose grammatical items, in almost all the tests loose translations are given too. Does it test admission seekers’ linguistic ability? In no way it does so. They are just like loose grammar items! If the universities must test students’ linguistic ability through translation; at least they can set a passage translation, as it shows some reason to test how students can use English in that particular situation. 
Another item known as ‘correction’ is set in admission tests where students are asked to correct sentences based on different grammatical rules. That is also another faulty approach. Students should never be taught any wrong sentence. If it is done, their brain quickly catches up to that one. Again, correction means applying rare grammar rules. Students may make mistakes while speaking spontaneously just to develop their fluency; that does not mean that some wrong sentences will be given them to correct; that again speaks to the use of traditional grammar. This correction is given in all kinds of admission tests, including cadet college admission tests, which should never be done for young children. 
University admission test questions should be set in such a way that students have to read the text thoroughly. The university authorities should select some questions from their texts. Questions should be creative and short but from the entire textbook. If admission tests adopt this process, students will be motivated to read the text. I can remember, when we sat for the admission test in college, we had questions from the SSC level. Similarly, in the university admission test, we had questions from the intermediate level along with other questions. This method was good, and it can be followed.
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The writer is President, English Teachers’ Association of Bangladesh (ETAB)