Administering Literacy Assessments in English and Spanish: Implications for Identifying Students for Intervention Support

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Friday 8:00 am Four Seasons Ballroom 1
  In Roundtable Session: Language, Identity, and Resistance: English, Spanish, and Spanglish in Bi-/Multilingual Education (Table 1)

Abstract

An equitable approach to assessment for students receiving instruction in two languages necessitates monitoring performance in both languages to provide an accurate picture of students’ literacy proficiency. This study compares the percentages of multilingual learners whose home languages are Spanish and English identified as needing intervention support when assessed in both languages. Results indicate that assessing only in English may underestimate the literacy skills of Spanish MLs, by failing to capture the literacy skills they have in their home language; and overestimate the literacy skills of English MLs, who may have sufficient skills to access core instruction in English but need more intensive instruction in Spanish.

Authors

• Deni L. Basaraba, Amplify Education, Inc.

• Rocío C. Seoane, Amplify Education, Inc.