Writing English Language Tests is for all teachers who write tests of English, from the classroom teacher writing for a particular class to the test constructor writing for an examination board. It gives detailed guidance on how to write, administer and score test questions, and how to avoid the pitfalls, It outlines the general principles of language testing, and shows how different types of test questions can be applied to different language tests.
The new edition of this well-established title reflects reccent development in language testing techniques, and contains a more comprehensive selection of sample test items from current examinations and tests administered by the major exmining bodies.

《语言测试的设计与评估》：An understanding of the principles of test construction has become increasingly important for many people involved in language teaching. This book, by three leading professionals.clearly describes and illustrates up-to-date principles of test design, construction and evaluation. Each chapter deals with one stage of the test construction process; drawing up specifications writing test items, test papers and moderation trialing draft tests training test markers and administrators monitoring examiner reliability reporting results validation writing reports on tests feedback, research and improving/developing tests In the final chapter, current practice in the examining of English as a foreign language(EFL) Language Test Construction and Evaluation will be invaluable for anyone who wishes to understand how language tests are , and should be ,constructed.

这是作者为英语教师撰写的语言测试课程的教材，主要介绍语言测试中常用的统计知识和技术，非常实用。语言测试作为一门学科发展很快，虽然本书出版于1987年，但是书中内容对于我国英语教师以及从事语言测试开发的人来说仍然非常有用。
本书用深入浅出的语言介绍了语言测试中常用的统计方法和手段，读者只需具备基本的教学知识即可掌握书中内容，因此非常实用。

'Larry Trask's introduction to historical linguisties is what I've been wanting for many years: an introductory undergraduate textbook which presents the latest developments in historical research in a clear, exciting, and straightforward way.'
Dorothy Disterheft, University of South Carolina This book is an introduction to historical linguistics- the study of language change over time, written in an engaging style and illustrated with examples from a wide range of languages, the book covers the fundamental concepts of language change, methods for historical linguistics,linguistic reconstruction, sociolinguistic aspects of language change, language contact, the birth and death of languages, language and prehistory and the issue of very remote relations.
The book is thoroughly up to date, and covers the most recent work on the study of phonological change in progress, on morphological and syntactic change, and on typological approaches to change, It also addresses such reccent controversies as the Nostratic hypothesis and the Greenberg/Cavalli-Sforza work on language, genes and teeth.
A minimal knowledge of linguistic concepts is needed and the book is suitable for students approaching the subject for the first time. The exercises will be particularly useful to teachers and students alike. The approach is data-oriented throughout and students are encouraged to confront data, to spot patterns and to draw on their own knowledge of languages.