The Communication Matrix is used to assess how infants and children are communicating with others. The matrix allows people to gauge the range of communicating the children are able to do. It was first designed to test children with disabilities, but can be used for a variety of other purposes. The matrix pinpoints seven different levels of communication, four reasons to communicate and nine categories of communicative behavior. The seven levels of communication focus on children from birth to adolescence and evaluate how they communicate using words, sounds, movements and symbols. The four reasons of communication are to refuse something, to obtain something, to be social, and to learn some information. And the nine categories of communicative behavior, such as body movement and facial expressions, are studied to see how a child can communicate and express himself, including his language. All three areas are studied and put together on a graph to better understand how well the child in the study can communicate and where he could use help in developing some new skills.
TOEFL stands for "Test of English as a Foreign Language." It's a test that foreign students who speak English as a second language take when they want to attend college in an English-speaking country. Many colleges and universities use the TOEFL as an admission requirement for international students who don't speak English as a first language. The test looks at speaking, reading, listening and vocabulary to determine how well a foreign language speaking student would be able to perform at an English university. The TOEFL exam is available online and on paper.
Much like the TOEFL, the ACT is a standardized test used for college admissions. Unlike the TOEFL however, the ACT is given to English-speaking students. Although it looks at many different sections, the English section is a tool used to assess how well students can communicate through correct grammar, punctuation and writing. The writing portion of the exam asks students to read a short story and use their power of expression to answer a question. The test determines how the students are able to express their ideas and thoughts through writing in a period of time.
The TOAL exam stands for "Test of Adolescent and Adult Language," and it is used to identify how effectively people of all ages can speak English. The test is used by schools, counselors and public health figures, among others. It looks at words and details how well people are able to create sentences and make comparisons to different words. The test looks at spoken words, written words and general language and asks the participants to fill in blanks, identify word opposites, and to use correct punctuation.