Creating Assessments with English Language Learners in Mind In this module we will examine: Who are...

Creating Assessments with English Language Learners in Mind

In this module we will examine:

• Who are English Language Learners (ELL) and how

are they identified?

• What are the needs of English Language Learners?

• How can we most effectively and responsibly address the unique needs they bring to assessment?

ASSESSMENT L ITERACY PROJECT

Kansas State Department of Education

Who are English Language Learners?

English Language Learners are students. . .

– who know little or no English

– Who are beginning to know English

– Who are fairly proficient in English

– Who are language minority students who use a language other than English at home



2

ELL Students Need. . .

Instructional support in contexts both

• Academic

• Social



3

How are ELL Students Identified?

• Through intake interviews at school

• Through results of standardized tests such as the LAS

• Through state tests such as the Kansas English Language Proficiency Assessment (KELPA)

• By teacher observation in an instructional setting



4-5

Activity One

How do I evaluate an ELL student’s English Language Proficiency in listening, speaking, writing and reading?



16

Issues Surrounding Identification and Inclusion

• States are not consistent with deciding which ELL students should be included in large-scale assessments or instructional programs

• The tests that are used to identify or group ELL

students may not have included any ELL students in the original norming sample and thus may be completely inappropriate when used to describe ELL groups



7

Issues Surrounding Identification and Inclusion

• Even if ELL students were included in the test norming, if ELL performance is low, we may not know whether the cause is due to limited language skills, low content knowledge, or a combination of both

• Wide range of students included within the ELL category



8

Schools Serving ELL Students Face Challenges

1. Inconsistency in ELL classification across and within states



9


2. Sparse ELL population



10


3. Lack of ELL subgroup stability



11


4. instruments for ELL students



12


5. Disparity between ELL baseline scores and AYP targets

6. Disparity between ELL cutoff

points for Reading and Math



13

Teachers of ELL Students Need. . .

“Because of the way this distinctive group of students is tested and taught has an impact on a school in its entirety, all teachers need to know about ELL students and how to assessment them appropriately.”

– W. James Popham



14

Language Becomes a Matter of Access

• Linguistic complexity of test items not related to the content of the assessment may increase the measurement error and reduce the reliability of the test for ELL students

• Language becomes a barrier to accessing content

• For the ELL student, tests measure both achievement and language ability



15

“Reduce” Language Complexity

The principle of “universal test design” states that all tests should prefer the use of simple and more direct linguistic structures to more complex ways of expressing test items and answer choices

Let’s look at an example…



16a

An example

Complex and Less Direct Linguistic StructureWhich of the following mathematical expressions is not the equivalent of “x = 6/15”?

a. X = 40%b. X = .4c. X = 3/5d. X = 12/30

Simple and More Direct Linguistic Structure.Which one has the same value as “x = 6/15”?

a. x = 2/3b. x = 6 *15c. x = .04d. x = 40%



16b

Simple vs. Complex Language

CRESST research demonstrates that reducing the complexity of language on tests improves the performance of ELL students by as much as 10% to 20% without reducing the rigor of the test



17

Cultural Differences within ELL Populations

“For both the ELL students and the general student group, students with a Chinese-speaking background had significantly higher performance on science and reading tests than students with a Spanish-speaking background.”

--Abedi, J. and Doetal, R. (2004). Challenges in the No Child Left Behind Act for English-Language Learners. Phi Delta Kappan June 2004, pp. 782-785.



18

Other Variables that Affect the Test Performance of ELL Students

• Parents’ education

• Socio-economic status

• Length of time in

the United States

• Overall grades

• Student mobilityASSESSMENT L ITERACY PROJECT


20

Ways to Improve Academic Performance of ELL Students

1. Focus on Reading – CRESST research confirms that ELL students who are better readers, as measured on separate reading tests, perform at higher levels on NCLB testing



23

Ways to Improve Academic Performance of ELL Students

2. Closely Track the Performance of ELL Students by using multiple measures– to identify patterns of improvement or lack of improvement,

– to assess the student’s grasp of academic, not just conversational, English

– to identify successful teaching practices, and

– to determine appropriate accommodations



24

Activity Two

How do I establish performance goals for ELL Learners?



225

Ways to Improve Academic Performance of ELL Students--2

3. Following the principles of universal test design, reduce the language load on tests



26

Ways to Improve Academic Performance of ELL Students--2

4. Provide accommodations, and evaluate their validity and effectiveness



27

Activity Three

What accommodations am I able to provide my students on state assessments



328-31



Choosing Accommodations

• Existing Data: What data already exist to help teachers decide the extent to which an accommodation, such as read-aloud, should be provided?

• Validity: Does provision of accommodation alter the construct of the assessment?

• Effectiveness: What accommodation strategies would be the most effective in reducing performance gaps between ELL students and non-ELL students that are due to language factors?

32



Choosing Accommodations

• Differential impact: Which student background characteristics impact accommodated assessment?

• Feasibility: Which accommodation(s) are more feasible, particularly in large-scale assessments?

33-34

Activity Four

While reading aloud items to students, how do I read the item so as not to clue the student to the correct answer?



436

Know How to Administer the Accommodation

• Administer the accommodation during instruction on a regular basis



37


• Concepts should be tested in the same way they were taught



38


• Use “translating dictionaries” where permitted



39


• Content area teachers should focus primarily on the ESL student’s meaning and content, not on his or her language or grammar



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Content and Language

• When necessary to focus on grammar and language be careful not to overload the student by including content with the instruction in language. Separate the two.

• Focus on language in some activities and content in other activities. (Be sure that students know, in advance, what is being graded.)



41-42

Grading–Criteria

Establish grading criteria for when the focus is on language (e.g., punctuation, capitalization, appropriate title and organization, etc.)



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Do not Overload the Student

Choose the priorities, according to the student’s language proficiency level, when grading for language; the LEP student cannot focus on everything at once



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Do Not Overload the Student-2

Not advisable to give two separate grades – one for content and one for correctness of language – because that is asking the student to focus on too many things at once



45

Separate Process from Product On Different Assignments

• Grade process in some activities (e.g., brainstorming, organizing, editing, etc.)

• Grade product in other activities (e.g., the final product, in accordance with criteria established ahead of time)



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Other Sources of Strategies for ELL Students

• “Center for Applied Linguistics”

• State Departments of Education

• “National Assessment for Educational Progress”

• National Center for Research in Evaluation, Standards, and Student Testing (CRESST)

• ERIC Digests

• “ESL/ELL Students in the Classroom” www.nssd112.org/elmplace/documents/Eslstrat.doc November 30, 2010.



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Activity Five

What Instructional Strategies should I use will ELL students?



548

Conclusion



Remember the value of alternate ways to access

student learning

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