Key Issues and Opportunities in the Initial Identification and Classification of English Learners

Since its 1947 founding, ETS has conducted and disseminated scientific research to support its products and services, and to advance the measurement and education fields. In keeping with these goals, ETS is committed to making its research freely available to the professional community and to the general public. Published accounts of ETS research, including papers in the ETS Research Report series, undergo a formal peer-review process by ETS staff to ensure that they meet established scientific and professional standards. All such ETS-conducted peer reviews are in addition to any reviews that outside organizations may provide as part of their own publication processes. Peer review notwithstanding, the positions expressed in the ETS Research Report series and other published accounts of ETS research are those of the authors and not necessarily those of the Officers and Trustees of Educational Testing Service.

show abstract

“…See also the earlier reports in this series (i.e., Guzman‐Orth et al, ; Hauck et al, ; Lopez et al, ; Wolf et al, ).…”

mentioning

confidence: 62%

Approaches to Automated Scoring of Speaking for K–12 English Language Proficiency Assessments

Evanini

Hauck

Hakuta

2017

ETS Research Report Series

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Because of the variation in tests and thresholds, a student with a given true (unobserved) English proficiency level might be classified as an EL in one school in the ECLS-K:2011 sample, while another child with the exact same true English proficiency level may not be classified as an EL. A substantial body of research has confirmed these conclusions (Abedi, 2004(Abedi, , 2008Linquanti & Cook, 2015;Lopez et al, 2016;Mavrogordato & White, 2017;Ragan & Lesaux, 2006;Sireci & Faulkner-Bond, 2015;Solórzano, 2008). This variation in EL classification rules and implementation amounts to exogenous variation in student classification assignment, once accounting for student Teacher Perceptions of EL-Classified Students English proficiency level.…”

Section: Identification Strategymentioning

confidence: 92%

English Learner Labeling: How English Learner Classification in Kindergarten Shapes Teacher Perceptions of Student Skills and the Moderating Role of Bilingual Instructional Settings

Umansky¹,

Dumont

2021

American Educational Research Journal

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Prior research has shown that English learner (EL) classification is consequential for students; however, less is known about how EL classification affects student outcomes. In this study, we examine one hypothesized mechanism: teacher perceptions. Using a national data set (Early Childhood Longitudinal Study—Kindergarten Cohort of 2010–2011 or ECLS-K:2011), we use coarsened exact matching to estimate the effect of kindergarten EL status on teachers’ perceptions of students’ academic skills. We further explore whether that impact is moderated by instructional setting (bilingual vs. English immersion). We find evidence that EL classification results in lower teacher perceptions. This impact is, however, moderated by bilingual environments. In bilingual classrooms, we do not find evidence that EL classification results in diminished perceptions. This study adds to research on teacher perceptions and the effects of EL classification.

show abstract

“…In education, screener tests are typically used to streamline decision-making processes, including identification (i.e., as a member of a population of learners) and classification (i.e., as a member of a higher- or lower-proficiency group of learners) decisions. Screeners used for identification may help educators identify a student as an English learner (EL) for administrative and instructional purposes (Abedi, 2008; Bailey & Kelly, 2011; Lopez, Pooler, & Linquanti, 2016; Mahoney & MacSwan, 2005). Screeners used for classification may identify a student as a member of a more- or less-proficient group (Xi, 2008), or help a test taker to decide on whether his or her level of ability is appropriate for a particular test (Stansfield & Hewitt, 2005).…”

Section: Overviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

Screener tests need validation too: Weighing an argument for test use against practical concerns

Schmidgall

Getman

2017

Language Testing

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

In this study, we define the term screener test, elaborate key considerations in test design, and describe how to incorporate the concepts of practicality and argument-based validation to drive an evaluation of screener tests for language assessment. A screener test is defined as a brief assessment designed to identify an examinee as a member of a particular population or subpopulation. Consequently, its focus of measurement is to provide information that distinguishes the targeted subpopulations. Although the trade-off between measurement quality and practicality is an important consideration for any assessment (Bachman & Palmer, 1996), practicality is a particularly critical feature of low-stakes screener tests in language assessment given their use in routing examinees to other assessments, rather than serving as the basis for higher-stakes decision making. In order to demonstrate how an evaluation may be applied to a screener test, we describe the development and evaluation of a proposed screener test for the TOEFL Primary Reading test. The claims articulated through the development process and evidence collected throughout development and pilot testing enable a wide-ranging, comparative evaluation of five- and 10-item TOEFL Primary Reading screener tests that systematically incorporate the concepts of measurement quality, impact, and practicality.

show abstract

Key Issues and Opportunities in the Initial Identification and Classification of English Learners

Cited by 17 publications

References 18 publications

Approaches to Automated Scoring of Speaking for K–12 English Language Proficiency Assessments

Approaches to Automated Scoring of Speaking for K–12 English Language Proficiency Assessments

English Learner Labeling: How English Learner Classification in Kindergarten Shapes Teacher Perceptions of Student Skills and the Moderating Role of Bilingual Instructional Settings

Screener tests need validation too: Weighing an argument for test use against practical concerns

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About