Accommodations for English Language Learner Students: The Effect of Linguistic Modification of Math Test Item Sets

Title:	Accommodations for English Language Learner Students: The Effect of Linguistic Modification of Math Test Item Sets
Description:	REL West's study on middle school math assessment accommodations found that simplifying the language—or linguistic modification—on standardized math test items made it easier for English Language learners to focus on and grasp math concepts, and thus was a more accurate assessment of their math skills. The results contribute to the body of knowledge informing assessment practices and accommodations appropriate for English language learner students. The study examined students' performance on two sets of math items—both the originally worded items and those that had been modified. Researchers analyzed results from three subgroups of students—English learners (EL), non-English language arts proficient (NEP), and English language arts proficient (EP) students. Key results include: Linguistically modifying the language of mathematics test items did not change the math knowledge being assessed. The effect of linguistic modification on students' math performance varied between the three student subgroups. The results also varied depending on how scores were calculated for each student. For each of the four scoring approaches analyzed, the effect of linguistic modification was greatest for EL students, followed by NEP and EP students.
Online Availability:	Browse this document. Download, view and print the report as a pdf file. (2MB)
Cover Date:	June 2010
Web Release:	June 28, 2010
Publication #:	REL 20094079
Center/Program:	REL
Associated Centers:	NCEE
Authors:	Edynn Sato, Principal Investigator; Stanley Rabinowitz, Principal Investigator; Carole Gallagher, Senior Research Associate; and Chun-Wei Huang, Senior Research Analyst: WestEd
Type of Product:	Evaluation Report
Keywords:	Assessment English Language Learners (ELL) Mathematics • mathematics tests Middle School
Questions:	For questions about the content of this Evaluation Report, please contact: Erin Pollard.