Aligning China's Standards of English Language Ability with the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages

In the field of second language assessment, there is limited empirical research on the alignment of different language proficiency standards. This study aims to establish level correspondences for overall language proficiency between China's Standards of English Language Ability (CSE) and the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR). All 467 CEFR descriptors and 104 CSE anchor descriptors were used in 15 questionnaires. Approximately 5441 teacher ratings and 23,260 student ratings were collected and analysed by Rasch analysis, fixed common item equating, and statistical comparison. The results show that CSE descriptors of a certain level tend to scatter at several adjacent CEFR levels, one of which is relatively predominant. CSE level 1 corresponds mainly to the CEFR below A1 level, level 2 to A1, level 3 to A2, level 4 and level 5 to B1, level 6 to B2, level 7 to B2 and C1, level 8 to C1 and C2, and level 9 to C2. This study enriches the literature on alignment between standards. It has implications for language teaching, learning, and assessment for different stakeholders in China and abroad.