On the Substantive and Predictive Validity Facets of the University Entrance Exam for English Majors

Abstract

This study examined the substantive and predictive validity facets of the University Entrance Examination for English Major (UEEEM) students. To that aim, 111 English major students were recruited to report their scores on each of the subtests of the test as well as their grade point average. Sequential multiple regressions and factor analysis were used in the analysis of the data. Results acknowledged a 2-factor structure underlying the test. Moreover, multiple regression analyses indicated that the presence of a large number of seemingly construct irrelevant items, Arabic, and theology, coupled with items with no unique contribution to variation to the response variable, the General English subtest, has compromised the predictive validity of the test. The paper concludes with the implications it carries for the test's stakeholders, particularly its developers and score users.