Statement from ETS on TOEFL
Cancellation at Three Test Centers in China
ETS representatives have confirmed that TOEFL test administrations at three test centers in China were cancelled on November 15th when it was discovered that the audio-cassettes for the listening portion of the test were actually cassettes for another ETS test, the Test of Spoken English. Careful investigation revealed that the unusual mis-shipment appears to be the result of human error.
The affected testing centers were located at Zhengzhou University, Shandong University, and Heilongjiang University.
While ETS's representative in China, NEEA attempted to solve the problem, due to circumstances beyond their control, the correct tapes could not be sent to the universities in time to avoid canceling the test. NEEA immediately announced to the 433 candidates who were at the test centers at the time of the test that they could either get a full refund of their testing fees, or take a free make-up test.
Following a period of consultation with students and partners, a retest date of Dec. 13, 2003 has been scheduled to help students obtain their scores at the earliest possible time.
ETS is also providing NEEA with an official explanation of the incident that will be placed on their web site. Students may print it out and mail it, or send it electronically to the colleges where they are applying, to notify them of the delay in scoring. The notice will explain that the delays are through no fault of the test taker.
ETS regrets any inconvenience to the TOEFL candidates affected by the cancellations and is taking measures to ensure this does not happen again. ETS is working closely with NEEA to implement an improved process to ensure that all shipments are correct in advance of the test day.
Students with questions or concerns about the TOEFL exam should contact:
ETS
Phone: 1-609-771-7100
Fax: 1-609-771-7710
Email: [email protected]
Mail: TOEFL Services
Educational Testing Service
PO Box 6151
Princeton, NJ 08541-6151 USA
NEEA
Tel: 010-62512994
E-mail:[email protected]
Website:www.51test.com
译文
美国教育考试服务中心关于取消中国三处考点托福考试的声明
美国教育考试服务中心(ETS)的代表证实，由于托福考试听力部分的磁带被误寄为用于英语口语测试(TSE)的磁带，中国三处考点11月15日进行的托福考试已经被取消。经调查发现，这次少见的误寄可能是人为失误造成的。
受影响的考点分别设在郑州大学、山东大学和黑龙江大学。
教育部考试中心作为ETS在华的合作单位，已经为解决这个问题尽了最大努力。由于适用的考试磁带无法被及时送达有关考点，教育部考试中心立刻宣布，433名当时来考点参加考试的考生可以获得考试费用的全额退款或免费参加补考。
ETS和教育部考试中心经过与考生及有关单位的广泛协商，将补考日期确定为2003年12月13日，以便考生尽早获得托福考试成绩。
目前，ETS正在就本次事件向教育部考试中心做出正式说明，ETS和考试中心的官方网站上也将发布该说明。考生可打印并通过邮寄或电子邮件方式将说明寄给其正在申请的学校，通知考分延误情况。该正式说明将解释延误并非由于考生的失误所致。
ETS为考试取消给考生造成的不便表示歉意。ETS正在采取多项措施，确保类似事件不再发生。ETS目前正在与教育部考试中心密切合作，实施改进措施，保证考试日期之前的所有寄送工作准确无误。
如考生需要查询或了解关于托福考试的详细信息，请联络：
美国教育考试服务中心(Educational Testing Service)
电话：1-609-771-7100
传真：1-609-771-7710
电子邮件：[email protected]
地址：TOEFL Services
Educational Testing Service
PO Box 6151
Princeton, NJ 08541-6151 USA
教育部考试中心
电话：010-62512994
电子邮件：[email protected]
网页：www.51test.com
