Transcript No Slide Title

ELL-Focused Accommodations for Content Area
Assessments: An Introduction
The University of Central Florida
Cocoa Campus
Jamal Abedi
University of California, Davis
July 7, 2011
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Accommodations for ELL Students
1. What is an accommodation for ELL
students?
2. Why should ELL students be
accommodated?
3. Can the same accommodations used for
students with disabilities be used for
ELLs?
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1. What is an accommodation for
ELL students?
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Accommodations are changes in the test
administration or in the test itself as long as those
changes do not impact the focal construct
Accommodations are provided to ELL students to
level the playing field, i. e., making assessments
accessible for these students
A distinction is made between accommodations
and modifications
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2. Why Should English Language
Learners be Accommodated?
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Their possible English language deficiency may
interfere with their content knowledge learning and
performance.
Assessment tools may be culturally and
linguistically biased for these students.
Linguistic complexity of the assessment tools may
be a source of measurement error which may
negatively impact reliability of the assessments for
ELLs.
Language factors may be a source of construct
irrelevant variance and affects validity of
assessments for ELLs.
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Performance Gap Between ELL and Non-ELL Students Reduces
as the Level of Language Demand of Assessment Decreases
Reading
M
SD
Science
M
Math
SD
M
SD
Grade 10
ELL
ELL with disab
Non-ELL/SWD
24.0
16.3
38.0
16.4 32.9
11.2 24.8
16.0 42.6
15.3
9.3
17.2
36.8
23.6
39.6
16.0
9.8
16.9
Grade 11
ELL
ELL with disab
Non-ELL/SWD
22.5
15.5
38.4
16.1 28.4
12.7 26.1
18.3 39.6
14.4
20.1
18.8
45.5
25.1
45.2
18.2
13.0
21.1
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Performance/Reliability-Gaps Between ELL
and non-ELL Students
Performance-Gap
ReliabilityGap
Reading
20% - 60%
15% - 40%
Science/Social
Sciences
10% - 40%
12% - 35%
Math Problem
Solving
8% - 25%
10% - 30%
Math Computation
0% - 10%
10 – 15%
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ELL Students’ Performance Outcomes
Suffer From Lower Reliability
Sub-scale (Items)
Reading , N=
Vocabulary (30)
Reading Comp (54)
Average Reliability
Math, N=
Total (48)
Language, N=
Mechanics (24)
Expression (24)
Average Reliability
Science, N=
Total (40)
Social Science, N=
Total (40)
English Only
181,202
0.835
0.916
0.876
183,262
0.898
180,743
0.803
0.812
0.813
144,821
0.805
181,078
0.805
LEP
52,720
0.666
0.833
0.750
54,815
0.802
52,863
0.686
0.680
0.683
40,255
0.597
53,925
0.530
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There are 73 Accommodations Listed
47 (64%) are not related
7 (10%) are remotely related
8 (11%) are moderately related
11 (15%) are highly related
Rivera. (2003). State assessment policies for English language
learners. Presented at the 2003 Large-Scale Assessment
Conference
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Samples of Accommodations Used for ELL
Students that may not be Relevant
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Test-taker marks answers in a test booklet
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Copying assistance provided between drafts
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Test-taker indicates answers by pointing or other
similar method
Paper is secured to work area with tape/magnet
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Samples of Accommodations Used
for ELL Students
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Enlarged answer sheets
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Providing breaks
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Tests administered individually
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Tests administered in small groups
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Tests administered in a location with minimal
distractions
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Evidence
Many states are aware of the validity concerns regarding
accommodations that may alter the construct.
Thus, accommodations are grouped into two distinct categories: (1)
Accommodations and (2) Modifications.
 Accommodations are changes in test format, directions, etc. that do not
alter the construct.
 Modifications, however, are changes that alter the construct.
The main question, however, is whether the categorization of
accommodations is based on credible research evidence.
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Accommodations for ELLs
1.
Bilingual Version of the Tests (Native Language
Assessment)
2.
English/Bilingual Glossary
3.
Customized English/Bilingual Dictionary
4.
English/Bilingual Commercial Dictionary
5.
Linguistically Modified Assessment
6.
Computer Accommodation with dictionary and pop-up
glossary
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Conclusion
 There is not enough research to support many of the
accommodations that are currently used in national
and state assessments.
 The only way to make judgments about the efficiency
and validity of these accommodations is to use them
in experimentally controlled situations with both ELL
and non-ELL students and examine their validity and
effectiveness under randomized experimental design.
 The results of studies nationwide, have provided
support for some of the accommodations used for ELL
students.
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Conclusion
Examples of research-supported accommodations:
 Providing a customized dictionary is a viable alternative
to providing traditional dictionaries.
 The linguistic modification of test items that reduce
unnecessary linguistic burdens on students is among
the accommodations that help ELL students without
affecting the validity of assessments.
 Computer testing with added extra time and glossary
was shown to be a very effective, yet valid
accommodation (Abedi, Courtney, Leon and Goldberg,
2003)
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