Analyzing the Appropriateness of Vocabulary in O-NETs of Grade 12 Thai Students

Abstract

The objectives of this present research were to examine the appropriateness of words used in the English O-NETs of grade 12 Thai students and to explore the consistency of the word difficulties used in these tests. The instruments used in this research were the 2008-2010 English O-NETs. Check Words Up Software was used to classify words based on their difficulty levels, 1st-20th word levels. In order to answer the research questions, basic statistics were applied. The results revealed that the words used in each English O-NET were quite suitable to grade 12 Thai students, based on the expected level of their English proficiency set by the Basic Education Core Curriculum (A.D. 2008). However, there were some inappropriate words in some parts of each test. In terms of the consistency, 2008-2010 O-NETs seemed to use equal levels of word difficulties.