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Revisions, Revised: Reviewed. Changes to the Common Test for University Admissions Contextualised and Discussed

Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: In 2016, MEXT announced the replacement of the National Center Test for University Entrance (henceforth NCT) with the Common Test, which launched in 2021.In the leadup to this announcement and alongside it, MEXT proposed to replace the receptive-skill based English section of the NCT with a four-skills test (MEXT, 2013;2016).A transitional period from 2020 to 2023 was announced in which candidates could take the English section of the NCT/Common Test, or submit scores from a commercially-available private test in place of the English score (Mainichi: May 16th, 2017).This change could have caused a washback effect (Alderson & Wall, 1993) on primary and especially secondary education, in terms of syllabi and lesson content, test design, classroom materials, and in teacher training.However, in 2019, the replacement was announced as postponed until 2024, and in 2021, the introduction of submitting private test scores was cancelled.As of the time of writing in 2025, the four skills section has not been introduced, and no announcements have been made regarding a timeframe to do so.Changes to the existing sections have removed productionfocused elements, under the logic of including them, the sections are directly focused on production skills.(National Center for University Entrance Examinations, 2021).Functionally, then, at the time of writing, the Common Test is arguably testing production skills less than the test it replaced, despite MEXT policy mandating that productive skills be cultivated in balance with receptive skills at high school (MEXT, 2018).This paper seeks to contextualise and clarify these seemingly contradictory moves, with a view towards resolving the gap between curriculum and testing, and continuing to develop the admissions stage of tertiary education.This is undertaken in the belief that the entrance test can act as a positive influence on primary and secondary English education and that in its current form is not only not doing so, but actively hindering the achievement of stated policy goals.
Author: King, Daniel James
Language: English
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W7151183165
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