14 results on '"English Proficiency"'
Search Results
2. English Proficiency as a Predictor of ACT Scores: A Predictive Correlational Study
- Author
-
Nye, Kimberly Hensley
- Subjects
- English Language Learners, ACT, English Proficiency, High-stakes Testing, Education
- Abstract
English Language Learners (ELLs) compose the fastest growing population in United States public schools. Lack of English language proficiency for these students has created a significant problem with assessment, particularly related to high-stakes accountability requirements. Identification of relationships between language proficiency and high-stakes test scores would benefit both the student and the school system. This archival, predictive correlational study examines if a relationship exists between English proficiency as measured by ACCESS for ELLs reading scores and American College Tests (ACT) composite and subscores in reading and mathematics. The population for this study included 11th grade English Language Learners in a medium-sized school system in North Carolina during four consecutive school years, 2014-2018. This study found ACCESS for ELLs reading scaled scores to be a statistically significant, albeit weak, predictor of ACT composite scores and mathematics sub scores. More research is needed to investigate the myriad of factors that influence an ELL’s achievement on high-stakes tests like the ACT.
- Published
- 2021
3. Chinese Student Perceptions on English Test Preparation Courses in China
- Author
-
JIANG, XUE
- Subjects
- high-stakes English tests, test preparation, test scores, student perceptions, Chinese students, English proficiency
- Abstract
Because of high-stakes English language tests, Chinese students have strong desires to achieve success on tests, which contributes to enhancing the prosperity of the test preparation industry. This present study aimed to explore the perceptions of Chinese students on test preparation courses for two of the popular English language tests in Chinese society—the Test of English as a Foreign Language Internet-based Test (TOEFL iBT) and the International English Language Testing System (IELTS). The result showed that most participants valued the test preparation courses on improving their scores at different levels within a limited time. However, they also pointed out the courses focused less on English proficiency improvement. In addition, implications for English test preparation education and English language teaching were discussed in the context of Chinese students. The present study makes contributions to reflecting how Chinese students perceive two of the major English language test preparation courses in both positive and negative ways. However, more research is needed to make a stronger case.
- Published
- 2020
4. Affective Variables and Motivation as Predictors of Proficiency in English as a Foreign Language
- Author
-
Cocca, Michaela
- Subjects
- AMTB, affective variables, English proficiency, learning attitude, L2 motivation, social-cognitive approach, Bilingual, Multilingual, and Multicultural Education, Language and Literacy Education
- Abstract
English has become a key subject of educational systems worldwide. Thus, researchers have centered their attention on psychosocial processes that influence English proficiency in EFL settings. The aim of our study was to investigate the relation between affective variables, motivation and proficiency and assess which attitudinal/motivational domains can better predict English proficiency. Mini AMTB and English Proficiency test were employed to a sample of 354 university students. Our findings showed that students’ achievement was significantly associated with their motivational intensity, their attitude towards learning English and their desire to learn it, as well as with their opinion of English native speakers and their perception of the quality of the English course. Secondly, instrumental orientation, motivational intensity, attitude towards learning English, and students’ perception of the quality of the English course were found to be the predictors of achievement. Thus, creating a culturally enriching in-class environment based on student-centered strategies could impact on pupils’ proficiency more than teachers’ teaching abilities and in-class attitude.
- Published
- 2019
5. The Relationship Between English Learners’ English Language Proficiency and High Stakes Assessments in Virginia
- Author
-
DuHart, Jannette
- Subjects
- English Learners, Former English Learners, English Proficiency, Academic Proficiency, ELP Levels, SOL Assessments, Education, Educational Leadership
- Abstract
Due to increases in immigration patterns, U.S. schools face many challenges when educating this fast-growing minority immigrant population who confront many social, cultural, economic, and linguistic obstacles. Lack of English proficiency, in many instances, impedes this newly arrived group from fully integrating and participating within societal contexts. Children of immigrants have the dichotomous task of learning academic content and demonstrating subject knowledge on high stakes assessments while learning English as a new language. English Learners, Hispanics in particular, are twice as likely to drop out of school. Dropout rates create accountability issues for schools in the U.S. that have experienced a dramatic increase in the number of English Learners they service. The purpose of this quantitative correlational study was to determine if there was a statistical relationship between English Learners’ English proficiency levels and high stakes reading test scores in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The researcher analyzed the relationship between these two variables for 2017 and 2018. A convenience sample of 324 secondary English Learners and Former English Learners was collected from three school divisions in the southeast of Virginia. A Pearson’s r was used to test Null One. The results for Null Hypothesis One were r (162) = .475, p = .000. A Spearman rho rank correlation coefficient was used to test Null Two. The results for Null Hypothesis Two were rho (162) = 0.563, p = 0.000. The correlation described the direction and strength of the relationship between two high stakes assessments. The Assessing Comprehension and Communication in English state-to-state for English Language Learners or ACCESS for ELLs test is used to measure English proficiency levels and the Reading Standards of Learning test measures academic performance in reading skills in English. Based on the research findings, the results of the study may be used to inform decisions on instruction, best practices, targeted professional development opportunities for teachers, and policy changes to support English Learners in the mainstream classroom.
- Published
- 2019
6. The Effect of Household Members' Language Use and English Ability on SNAP Participation Decision
- Author
-
Park, Dojin
- Subjects
- English proficiency, Food insecurity, Food stamps, Language use, Program participation, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program
- Abstract
The participation rate of non-citizen households eligible for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is much lower than the average participation rate of all eligible households. Using the Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP), this thesis explores the effect of household members' language use and English proficiency on their SNAP participation decision by estimating panel data econometric models. The main finding is that households whose members speak English at home are 5.1% more likely to participate in SNAP. The result implies that non-native households may have difficulties in applying for SNAP because of higher transaction costs of application. Therefore, policies targeted to reduce transaction costs facing non-native households would likely help increase their SNAP participation, which may lead to less food insecurity. However, the results also show that the effect of household members' English proficiency on their SNAP participation is not statistically significant. Since this result could be due to the limitations of the data, it would be worthwhile to conduct future research using more reliable measurement of English proficiency such as a well-designed test score.
- Published
- 2018
7. Hmong American Children's Perceptions of Parents' Influence on Their Education
- Author
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St. Charles, Jordan
- Subjects
- English proficiency, Hmong, parent-child communication, parent involvement, perceived academic ability
- Abstract
Previous research on children’s academic outcomes has often highlighted parent involvement behaviors as key predictors of students’ academic outcomes, but previous research has typically neglected Hmong American children. Using a sample of N = 423 Hmong American elementary students from Hmong-focused charter schools, the present study seeks to understand the ways in which various parent involvement behaviors (including parent involvement in schooling at home, parent involvement in schooling at school, and parent communication about the importance of education) relate to these students’ perceived academic abilities in reading and math. The present study also investigates whether or not students’ English proficiency moderates these relationships. Findings from regression analyses indicate that English proficiency is the strongest predictor of students’ perceived math and reading abilities. Parent involvement in schooling at school also significantly predicts students’ perceived abilities in both content areas, and parent communication about the importance of education significantly predicts students’ perceived abilities in math but not reading. Parent involvement in schooling at home was not a significant predictor of outcome. Implications for practice and future research are discussed.
- Published
- 2018
8. The Impact of Summer Programs on the English Language Scores of Migrant Children in Northwest Ohio
- Author
-
Schmitt, Ann M.
- Subjects
- English As A Second Language, Language, Literacy, Education, Educational Evaluation, Migrant education, English proficiency, English language learners
- Abstract
Migrant and Seasonal Farmworkers (MSFWs) are integral to the agriculture industry inthe United States, but are marginalized in society. Their children face a myriad of educationalissues because of language barriers, disjointed schooling due to migration, and other factors.Funded by Title I-Part C of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, Migrant EducationPrograms (MEPs) offer specialized support and resources for migrant students. Thisquantitative research study investigates summer MEPs in Northwest Ohio, and seeks to answerthe question: Do summer programs for migrant students prevent summer learning loss inEnglish proficiency? The students’ proficiency was measured with pre- and post-tests on twoinstruments, the IDEA Proficiency Test (IPT), which assessed Basic InterpersonalCommunicative Skills and Cognitive/Academic Language Proficiency, and the iReadyLanguage Arts Diagnostic, which assessed Cognitive/Academic Language Proficiency. Pairedt-tests were used to investigate differences between pre- and post-tests scores, and Analysis ofVariance (ANOVA) and Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) were also used to investigatedifferences in gains between groups, namely by school location or grade level. The resultsindicate that these programs are effective at preventing learning loss, even resulting in scoregains over the summer, and are effective at supporting the children of MSFWs in their academicachievement.
- Published
- 2017
9. A Causal-Comparative Study of the Affects of Benchmark Assessments on Middle Grades Science Achievement Scores
- Author
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Galloway, Melissa
- Subjects
- Assessments, Benchmark, ACCESS, English Proficiency, Curriculum and Instruction, Education, Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research, Educational Methods
- Abstract
The purpose of this causal comparative study was to test the theory of assessment that relates benchmark assessments to the Georgia middle grades science Criterion Referenced Competency Test (CRCT) percentages, controlling for schools who do not administer benchmark assessments versus schools who do administer benchmark assessments for all middle school students including those enrolled in Special Education (SPED) and English to Speakers of other Languages (ESOL) programs across the state of Georgia. CRCT pass percentages were collected from fifteen schools that administered benchmark assessments and fifteen schools that did not administer benchmark assessments. The data was collected from The Governor’s Office of Achievement website. A t test was used to determine if there was a statistically significant difference between eighth grade science CRCT pass percentages of schools who administer benchmark assessments compared to those schools who did not administer benchmark assessments. The t test resulted in no statistically significant difference for the whole group and the SPED group; however, there was a statistically significant difference for the ESOL group with the non-benchmark mean being higher than the benchmark mean. Future research was recommended that included determining if a correlation exists between the number of assessments administered each year and standardized test scores, the impact ACCESS (Assessing Comprehension and Communication in English State-to-State) scores have on standardized test scores, the impact of English proficiency on standardized test scores, and determining if teachers who use data gained from benchmarks have a positive impact on standardized test scores compared to those teachers who do not use the data obtained from benchmark assessments to drive their instruction.
- Published
- 2016
10. A Differential Item Functioning Analysis of The New Mexico English Language Proficiency Assessment
- Author
-
Gilmore, Walter
- Subjects
- English Language Learners, Home Languages, English Proficiency, Logistic Regression, Differential Item Functioning
- Abstract
English language proficiency assessments are currently in use by the 50 states (Wolf, Farnsworth, & Herman, 2008). Unfortunately, validations studies seldom address the effects of home languages on the use and interpretation of these assessments. If this step is overlooked, the assessment may include items that unfairly position one group of home language scores over another group. An omission of home languages was the case for the New Mexico English Language Proficiency Assessment (NMELPA) (Harcourt Assessment, Inc., 2006, 2007). For this reason, the NMELPA was investigated for group differences between those with first language origins in Spanish and Navajo, the largest groups in New Mexico. The investigation focused on the Reading and Listening subscales of the NMELPA. A Differential Item Functioning (DIF) analysis determined if items on the NMELPA exhibited different scores between the Navajo and Spanish groups. DIF occurs when two groups matched on ability have different probabilities of correctly answering an item (AERA, APA, & NCME, 1999; Camilli & Sheppard, 1994; Osterlind & Everson, 2009). For this study, a method based on Logistic Regression (LR) was used to examine the items for DIF. The DIF analysis determined if the two groups performed differently on any particular items. The results revealed DIF for 22 out of 24 items on the Reading subscale. Whereas, 15 out of 20 items on the Listening subscale indicated DIF. After correcting for effect size, five items on the Reading subscale indicated relatively large' DIF (Cole, Kawachi, Maller, & Berkman, 2000, p. 286). Conversely, no 'relatively large' DIF was detected for items on the Listening subscale. Based on these findings, the NMELPA contained certain items that clearly favored the Navajo group over the Spanish group. Overall, these findings illustrate how home languages could be a source of construct irrelevant variance in the internal structure of English proficiency assessments. Therefore, the validation argument for assessments of English proficiency should consider the effects of different home languages on score outcomes.'
- Published
- 2014
11. Are Two-Way Immersion Programs Effective for English Language Learners?
- Author
-
Gleason, Tania Marie
- Subjects
- Statistics, Education policy, dual language, english language learners, english proficiency, structured english immersion, two sample t test, two way immersion
- Abstract
There are two camps of thought on the early education of English Language Learners (ELLs) in the United States: i) They should be taught primarily in their native language with a gradual increase in the amount of English in their curriculum over the course of Kindergarten through 5th grade, or ii) They should be fully immersed in English immediately, with only ancillary support in their native language for particularly difficult academic concepts. When California voters passed Proposition 227 in 1998 they effectively agreed with the latter theory and banned bilingual education in public elementary schools for children who are not yet proficient in English.This thesis investigates the apparent effectiveness of Two-Way Spanish Immersion in English language acquisition by analyzing aggregate results of samples taken from two distinct populations of Public Elementary Schools in California: schools that are exclusively Two-Way Spanish Immersion (\textgreater50\% of their curriculum is taught in Spanish), and schools that are exclusively Structured English Immersion and/or English Language Mainstream. This analysis uses a sampling design that controls for confounding factors such as income and parent education level.
- Published
- 2014
12. Assessing the Protective Effects of School Belonging Against the Risk of Limited English Proficiency
- Author
-
Barclay, Christopher M
- Subjects
- Korean American, immigrants, school belonging, English proficiency, perceived scholastic competence, school grades, academic expectancies
- Abstract
A study was conducted among a sample of Korean American students to investigate the potential moderation of the risks related to English proficiency by the protection of school belonging. Perceived scholastic competence, self-reported school grades, and academic expectancies were used for dependent variables. It was hypothesized that students with higher sense of belonging would be less affected by English proficiency than their peers with lower sense of belonging. The risk of English proficiency was confirmed. However, school belonging did not have as much of an effect as expected and students with higher English proficiency seemed to gain more benefit from increased school belonging. This finding reminds educators of the pressing importance of English proficiency, and future research is suggested to investigate the unique effects of belonging among students of Korean, and perhaps other Asian, backgrounds.
- Published
- 2011
13. An exploration of Chinese international students' social self-efficacies
- Author
-
Lin, Shu-Ping
- Subjects
- social self-efficacy, acculturation stress, cross-cultural adjustment, English proficiency, international students, Chinese international students, self-esteem
- Abstract
Despite a growing literature regarding both the social self-efficacy and the cross-cultural adjustment of international students, an integration of research in these two areas is still not yet well developed. Given concern over this lack of integration and interest in understanding the nature of the adjustment process of international students, this present study endeavored to explore the role of social self-efficacy in the process of cross-cultural adjustment for Chinese international students. Accordingly, the main purpose of this study is to seek to examine whether there is a discrepancy in the levels of social self-efficacy in different language settings for Chinese international students. Also, the relationships between social self-efficacy in different language settings and other constructs, such as acculturation stress, global self-esteem, and English proficiency, would be examined. Other hypotheses examining the predicting relationships between these variables would be discussed in this study as well for applications in intervening. The sample of participants consisted of 203 Chinese international students who were mainly recruited from the Ohio State University. There were four measures administered in this study: the scale of Perceived Social Self-Efficacy, the Unconditional Self-Regard Scale, the Acculturative Stress Scale for International Students, and a Demographic Questionnaire, which contained three questions regarding English proficiency. Several important findings have been evident in this study. First, Chinese international students reported different levels of social self-efficacy in different language settings. That is, they perceived a significantly higher social self-efficacy in Chinese interactional setting than in English setting. Secondly, English social self-efficacy is the major resource in influencing international students’ adjustment outcomes. That is, a higher level of social self-efficacy will predict a lower level of acculturation stress. Third, both the cognitive (social self-esteem) and affective (global self-esteem) parts of an individual contribute to the psychological adjustment outcomes, such as acculturation stress, in an essential fashion. Finally, variables like English proficiency and the length of residency in the USA have indirect influence on acculturation stress through social self-efficacy. That is, social self-efficacy is the mediator for the predicted relationships.
- Published
- 2006
14. The Development and Testing of a Three-Section Cloze Test of English Proficiency
- Author
-
Lindholm, Lauralee
- Subjects
- cloze tests, English proficiency, language proficiency testing, English language -- Ability testing, English language -- Study and teaching -- Foreign speakers, Cloze procedure
- Abstract
The purpose of this research was to develop and test a three-section cloze test of English proficiency and to norm it for use as a means of level placement. The study sample consisted of ESL students at Brookhaven Community College and the Intensive English Language Institute of North Texas State University, as well as a group of native speakers. Four types of statistical analysis were used: analysis of variance, Pearson product-moment correlations, a t-Test, and a multiple comparison procedure, the Scheffé test. The cloze test was sensitive to significant differences between every level at both schools. Subsequently it was normed to a four-level system and score ranges for each level were suggested.
- Published
- 1985
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