Multilingual Learners

In this exploratory, cross-cultural study, we examined students’ interpretations of graphic devise-based illustrations used in science tests. Graphic devices are visual components (e.g., arrows, dotted lines) intended to ensure proper understanding of the scientific processes or phenomena represented by the illustrations. We address cultural differences in terms of the interaction of two factors, students’ country of origin and items’ country of origin.

This paper introduces a coding system used to compare the ways English language learners (ELLs) and mainstream students make sense of multiple-choice science items administered in English. Thirty-nine native Spanish-speaking ELLs and thirty-nine monolingual, mainstream students participated in cognitive interviews in which they were asked to report their thinking during and after responding to science items. The coding system was developed based on the analysis of the transcriptions invoking theories of bilingualism, sociolinguistics, and reading comprehension.

This paper presents a framework and a procedure for developing vignette illustrations as a form of testing accommodation for English language learners (ELLs). Vignette illustrations are defined as illustrations added to test items originally created without illustrations, with the intent to provide a visual support for ELLs that increases their chances of accessing the content of those test items.

We present a conceptual framework for designing and analyzing illustrations used in science assessment. This conceptual framework is intended to help test developers to systematically create and examine illustrations used in science test items. Unlike previous approaches to examining illustrations, which rely on the use of vague or polysemic terms