State assessment policy and practice for English language learners : a national perspective / edited by Charlene Rivera, Eric Collum.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Rivera, Charlene.

Collum, Eric.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

English language--Study and teaching--Foreign speakers--Evaluation.

English language.

English language--Study and teaching--United States--Evaluation--States.

English language--Study and teaching.

United States.

Evaluation.

Physical Description:

xlviii, 449 pages : illustrations, maps ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

Mahwah, N.J. : Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 2006.

Summary:

State Assessment Policy and Practice for English Language Learners: A National Perspective presents three significant studies, each examining a different aspect of states' strategies for including English language learners in state assessments.

With the rise in population of English language learners and the subsequent stepped-up legislative focus on this student population over the past decade, states have been challenged to include English language learners in state assessment programs. Until now, the little data available on states' policies and practices for meeting this challenge has been embedded in various reports and professional journals and scattered across the Internet. This volume offers, for the first time, a focused examination of states' assessment policies and practices regarding English language learners. The three studies were supported by OELA, the U.S. Department of Education's Office of English Language Acquisition, Language Enhancement, and Academic Achievement for Limited English Proficient Students.

State Assessment Policy and Practice for English Language Learners: A National Perspective is of interest to researchers and professionals involved with the assessment of English language learners; state- and district-level policy makers; and academics, teacher educators, and graduate students in a number of fields, including educational and psychological assessment, testing and measurement, bilingual education, English as a second language, and second language acquisition.

Contents:

Introduction: Including and Accounting for English Language Learners in State Assessment Systems / Charlene Rivera, Eric Collum xxxiii

The Legislative Drive to Account for ELLs xxxvii

Inclusion Requirements xxxviii

Accountability Requirements xxxix

The Challenge of Including ELLs and Accounting for ELLs' Academic Performance xli

Review of State Assessment Policy Studies xliii

Study 1 An Analysis of State Assessment Policies Regarding the Accommodation of English Language Learners / Charlene Rivera, Eric Collum, Lynn Shafer Willner, Jose Ku Sia, Jr. 1

Research Design and Methodology 2

Key Issues Informing the Accommodation of ELLs 5

Research on Accommodations 8

How Second Language Acquisition Research Informs the Use of Accommodations 22

Accommodations for ELLs in State Assessment Policies 26

General Characteristics of States' Assessment Policies Addressing the Accommodation of ELLs 26

Analysis of Individual Accommodations Found in States' Assessment Policies 38

The Accommodations Decision-Making Process 82

Analysis of Subgroups of States' Policies 92

How States' Policies Addressed Accommodations for ELLs 116

Accommodations Available to ELLs 121

The Accommodation Decision-Making Process 122

Analysis of Subgroups of States' Policies 125

Recommendations 127

Guide Selection of ELL-Responsive Accommodations Through Clear and Comprehensive Policy 127

Develop the Accommodations Knowledge Base Through Research 129

Overview of Accommodations Research 137

Review of Individual Studies 137

Policy Documents Submitted by States 149

Study 2 Test Translation and State Assessment Policies for English Language Learners / Charles W. Stansfield, Melissa Bowles 175

Purpose and Methodology 176

Purpose 176

Methodology 177

Key Issues Affecting Test Translation 179

Factors Affecting States' Decisions to Translate State Assessments 180

Factors Affecting Test Equivalence 183

Analysis of State Policies Regarding Test Translation 193

General Policy 194

Sight Translation 195

Written Translation 200

Caveats 207

Case Studies of States' Test Translation Procedures 209

Arizona 211

Colorado 212

Delaware 221

Massachusetts 228

Minnesota 237

New Mexico 244

New York 250

Oregon 260

Rhode Island 269

Texas 275

Utah 283

Vermont 289

Discussion and Recommendations 294

Guidelines for Written Translation 296

Guidelines for Audiotaped Translation 301

Guidelines for Sight Translation 301

Guidelines for Response in Native Language 302

Recommendations 303

Interview Protocol 307

I Background Questions 307

II The Translation Process 308

III Other Forms of Communication in the Non-English Language 309

IV Technology 309

V Research 309

VI District Translation 310

VII The Future 310

Policy Documents Submitted by States 311

Study 3 State Practices for Reporting Participation and Performance of English Language Learners in State Assessments / Martha L. Thurlow, Debra Albus, Kristin K. Liu, Charlene Rivera 315

Review of Research on State Assessment Reports 316

Purpose and Methodology 318

Purpose 318

Methodology 319

State Practices: Availability and Comprehensiveness of ELL Data in State Assessment Reports 323

Availability of State Reports 324

Comprehensiveness of Reporting on ELLs 324

Summary of Findings 334

Reporting Participation and Performance 338

Accounting for All ELLs 339

Participation Reporting Categories 341

Reporting on Exempted Students 342

Types of Scores Reported 344

Accommodated Tests 346

Native Language Tests 349

ELL Participation and Performance in Native Language Tests 349

Summary of Findings 352

Reporting by States with Large and Small ELL Student Populations 354

States With Large ELL Populations 354

States With Small ELL Populations 355

Summary of Findings on Reporting and ELL Student Population Size 357

Content Area Assessment: Participation and Performance of ELLs 357

Participation Reported for Content Areas 358

Content Area Assessment Performance 360

National Percentile Rank Reporting 362

Summary of Findings 362

Statewide Alternate Assessments for ELLs and Assessments Designed for ELLs 364

Findings 364

Data Reported for Alternate and ELL-Specific Assessments 366

Summary of Findings on ELL-Specific Assessments 368

Effective State Reporting Practices 368

Print Reporting 369

Web Reporting 380

Highlights of the Findings 384

Recommendations 386

State Accountability Reports 393

Print Sources 394

Web-Based Sources: Study Data Actively Displayed 397

Web-Based Sources: Study Data No Longer Displayed 402

List of Acronyms for State Tests Referenced in the Study 417

Description of Elements Found in State Score Reports Examined in the Study 419.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and indexes.

ISBN:

0805855688

0805855696

OCLC:

61228757