The challenge of cross-cultural assessment—The Test of Ability To Explain for Zulu-speaking Children

Solarsh, Barbara; Alant, Erna

doi:10.1016/j.jcomdis.2005.11.002

Cited by 13 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 25 publications

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“…Conceptually, a discussion of the role of assessment characteristics in differential response patterns is evident, for example, in recent efforts from sub-Saharan Africa (Alcock, Holding, Mung’ala-Odera, & Newton, 2008; Solarsh & Alant, 2006). The accumulating knowledge about the role of assessment characteristics might lead to higher-level project changes rather than individual assessment changes.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Getting something out of nothing: Analyzing patterns of null responses to improve data collection methods in sub-Saharan Africa

Hein

Reich

Marks

et al. 2016

Learning and Individual Differences

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Careful development and adaptation of assessments is imperative for cultural psychological research. However, despite the best efforts, the use of assessments in new contexts can reveal atypical and/or unexpected patterns of performance. We found this to be the case in the testing of assessments to be used for a larger investigation of Specific Reading Disabilities in Zambia. In a sample of 207 children (100 female) from grades 2 to 7, we illustrated that assessment characteristics (i.e., stimulus type, answer choice, and response type) differentially impact patterns of responsiveness. The number of missing values was highest for assessments that (1) used written stimuli, (2) had an open-ended answer choice, and (3) required an action response. Age and socio-economic status explained some of the variance in responsiveness in selected, but not all assessments. Consideration of the impact of stimulus and response types when adapting assessments cross-linguistically and cross-culturally is essential.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Getting something out of nothing: Analyzing patterns of null responses to improve data collection methods in sub-Saharan Africa

Hein

Reich

Marks

et al. 2016

Learning and Individual Differences

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“…Ideally, it is recommended that the translation process include 2-4 individuals who are bilingual and bicultural. Multiple team members enable identification of problematic translations (Solarsh & Alant, 2006;van Widenfelt, et al, 2005). While it is generally preferable to keep the translation as close as possible to the original test, it should also be kept in mind that wordfor-word translations may not retain the original meaning of an instruction or item (van Widenfelt, et al, 2005).…”

Section: Steps For Successful Test Adaptationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The steps involved in producing an accurate translation include (Solarsh & Alant, 2006) Also, children may misunderstand instructions that do not present any difficult for adults.…”

Section: Steps For Successful Test Adaptationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Examining Early Child Development in Low-Income Countries

Fernald¹,

Kariger²,

Engle³

et al. 2009

196

191

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All rights reserved The findings, interpretations, and conclusions expressed herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Executive Directors of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank or the governments they represent. The World Bank does not guarantee the accuracy of the data included in this work. The boundaries, colors, denominations, and other information shown on any map in this work do not imply any judgment on the part of The World Bank concerning the legal status of any territory or the endorsement or acceptance of such boundaries.

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“…It can thus be argued that language is a cultural phenomenon (Ball & Peltier, 2011;Riley, 2007;Sardar & Van Loon, 2004). Bearing this in mind, it becomes essential for professionals in the language field to understand and always draw on mother tongue, sociocultural meanings when involved in the assessment of language of multilingual and multicultural populations (Gopaul-McNicol & Armour-Thomas, 2002;Solarsh & Alant, 2006;Westby, 2009). In South Africa, the majority of EAL speakers use an African language as their mother tongue (http://www.statssa.gov.za), and the majority of SLTs do not.…”

Section: Discussion and Implications Of The Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Are South African speech-language therapists adequately equipped to assess English additional language (EAL) speakers who are from an indigenous linguistic and cultural background? A profile and exploration of the current situation

Mdlalo¹

2017

J Speech Pathol Ther

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This article presents an aspect of a larger PhD study, the aim of which was to critically evaluate and interrogate the use of language assessment tools, in their current form, within the South African context and to produce guidelines for adaptations to these tools that will better accommodate English Additional Language (EAL) speakers. These guidelines and principles could be used by language professionals to manage the assessment process and interpretation of findings from EAL speakers in a more accurate, appropriate and equitable manner. The term 'EAL speaker' is used here to specifically refer to South African multilinguals who are non-mother tongue speakers of English and are from indigenous language and cultural backgrounds 1 .The larger study makes use of a specific screening tool as a model, to exemplify and illustrate the argument. In this study, the cultural and linguistic relevance of this commonly used screening tool is interrogated from four different viewpoints: firstly, the perspective of the children, who are the target population of the tool; secondly, that of the parents and community, who play a significant role in the socialisation of the children; thirdly, from the perspective of the academics from an indigenous language and cultural background, who provide an academic perspective of the tool; and, finally, that of Speech-Language Therapist (SLT) practitioners who administer the tool and interpret the findings. As language assessments are conducted on people who exist within a cultural context, the cultural capital is embedded in language (Peltier, 2010;Seidman, 2008;Westby, 2009). Since the larger study focuses on the relationship between language and culture and adopts an ecological approach to the problems addressed in the study, a conceptual model that encompasses a strong ecological and cultural component was selected; that is Taylor's (1986) cultural framework for viewing normal and pathological communication.As part of this larger study, a national survey was conducted with SLTs to establish current practices in assessment and intervention, training and challenges experienced when working with a client who is an EAL speaker. Not a homogenous group there may be inter-and intra-linguistic and cultural variabilityThis article presents the results of a survey conducted on Speech-Language Therapists (SLTs) regarding current practices in the assessment of English Additional Language (EAL) speakers in South Africa. It forms part of the rationale for a broader (PhD) study that critiques the use of assessment instruments on EAL speakers from an indigenous linguistic and cultural background. This article discusses an aspect of the broader research and presents the background, method, findings, discussion and implications of the survey. The results of this survey highlight the challenges of human and material resources to, and the dominance of English in, the profession in South Africa. The findings contribute to understanding critical factors for acquiring reliable and valid assessment results ...

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The challenge of cross-cultural assessment—The Test of Ability To Explain for Zulu-speaking Children

Cited by 13 publications

References 25 publications

Getting something out of nothing: Analyzing patterns of null responses to improve data collection methods in sub-Saharan Africa

Getting something out of nothing: Analyzing patterns of null responses to improve data collection methods in sub-Saharan Africa

Examining Early Child Development in Low-Income Countries

Are South African speech-language therapists adequately equipped to assess English additional language (EAL) speakers who are from an indigenous linguistic and cultural background? A profile and exploration of the current situation

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