The widely known DTEC Test was first launched in 1992 under the former Department of Technical and Economic Cooperation (DTEC). Over the years, it has provided a reliable and transparent way to assess the linguistic ability of those who:

• wanted to apply for scholarships, training and / or study visits overseas
• applied for overseas postings
• applied for specific government projects (e.g. High Performance Project and Potential Civil Servants Project)
• were seeking promotion
• wished to receive the English language pay increment

As part of the bureaucratic reforms in 2002, the former Department of Technical and Economic Cooperation (DTEC) became part of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) and was renamed the Thailand International Development Cooperation Agency (TICA). At the same time, the mandates of DVIFA and TICA were reviewed to avoid overlap in the services provided.

The mission of TICA has been to administer and implement Thailand's development cooperation programmes in developing countries. The DVIFA has focused on the training and testing of Thai and foreign government officials in diplomacy, foreign affairs, foreign languages and communication skills to facilitate their work in their respective countries. It prepares individuals from various agencies for postings overseas; and through the administration of the DTEC Test provides the information needed by TICA for the selection of overseas scholarship candidates. It is therefore the responsibility of DVIFA to undertake the development of the new DIFA TES.

Firstly, the new DIFA TES targets four skills (reading, listening, writing and speaking) to better reflect current linguistic needs of the targeted test population. All test takers must take the reading and listening components of the DIFA TES; eligibility for the writing and speaking components is dependent on performance on the reading and listening tests.

Secondly, authentic texts and soundfiles are used in the reading and listening components of the DIFA TES.

Thirdly, new test methods have been introduced in the reading and listening tests. These include:

• Matching (reading and listening)
• Short Answers (reading and listening)
• True/False and Justification (reading only)

Fourthly, the assessment of language in use (knowledge of grammar, vocabulary and syntax) is no longer tested explicitly but as part of the reading and listening tests. This area of language knowledge is also tested in the writing and speaking components.

Retakes are possible for both the compulsory (reading and listening) and optional (writing and speaking) modules of the test.

Compulsory Tests
The reading and listening tests are compulsory for all test takers and are taken on the same day. After taking the tests:

• if the test taker is satisfied with their performance in terms of the CEFR level they have been awarded, they can keep both the test scores
• if the test taker does not achieve the desired level of performance on either of these tests, they must wait 6 months to re-take both the tests

Optional Tests
Only test takers who score B2 level in both the reading and listening tests will be invited to take the writing and speaking tests. These tests are optional. The test taker may choose to do both, only one or neither of the tests.
After taking one or both of the tests:

• if the test taker takes one or both tests and is satisfied with their performance in terms of the CEFR level they have been awarded, they can keep the test score(s)
• if the test taker takes one or both tests but does not achieve the desired level of performance on either of the tests, they can retake the test(s) after 6 months

All the test materials were trialled on volunteers from a range of different ministries and agencies. Data on every item and task was collected and analysed. Based on these trial results, the tasks were:

1. banked for future use
2. revised for future trials
3. dropped

Stakeholders from a wide range of ministries, agencies and organisations were invited to participate in stakeholder meetings throughout the task development stage. During these meetings, participants were provided with information about the:

• procedures followed in the development of the tests
• trial procedures used
• validity and reliability estimates of the test scores

A total of four stakeholder meetings were organized, one for each of the four skills. Stakeholders had the opportunity to:

• look at some sample tasks
• examine test taker performances
• ask questions
• provide feedback