English Learners and Constructed-Response Science Test Items Challenges and Opportunities

• Published in: Educational assessment 2023-10, Vol.28 (4), p.246-272
• Main Authors: Noble, Tracy, Wells, Craig S., Rosebery, Ann S.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Assessment; Constructed Response; Educational evaluation; Elementary school students; English as a second language; English as a second language learning; English proficiency; Language proficiency; Large-scale Assessment; Quantitative analysis; Reading-writing relationship; Science education
• ISSN: 1062-7197; 1532-6977
• DOI: 10.1080/10627197.2023.2226387

This article reports on two quantitative studies of English learners' (ELs) interactions with constructed-response items from a Grade 5 state science test. Study 1 investigated the relationships between the constructed-response item-level variables of English Reading Demand, English Writing Demand, and Background Knowledge Demand and the performance of ELs vs. non-ELs on those items. English Writing Demand was the strongest predictor of Differential Item Functioning favoring non-ELs over ELs for constructed-response items. In Study 2, we investigated the student-level variable of English language proficiency level and found that lower English language proficiency was related to greatly increased odds of omitting a response to a constructed-response item, even when controlling for science proficiency. These findings challenge the validity of scores on constructed-response test items as measures of ELs' science proficiency.