1. ACCESS for ELLs Score Report Interpretation Developed by the Center for Applied Linguistics ESL Program Asheboro City Schools

2. Today’s Topics Overview of the Structure of ACCESS Review of ACCESS Score Reports Using ACCESS Scores to Plan for Instruction

3. Test Overview

4. Review: Purposes of ACCESS for ELLs® On an annual basis, monitor the progress of ELLs’ English language proficiency in grade levels K-12 Establish when ELLs have attained English language proficiency Inform classroom instruction and assessment Provide a reliable and valid data source for accountability and aid in decision-making

5. Structure of ACCESS for ELLs® Grade Levels and Tiers K 1-2 3-5 6-8 9-12 Adaptive (no tiers) A B C 101 (roll-out Winter 2006) 102 (roll-out Winter 2007) 103 (roll-out Winter 2008) Listening —group administered, machine scored Reading —group administered, machine scored Speaking —individual administered, TA scored Writing —group administered, rater scored Domains Series

6. 6 Performance Definitions At this level, English language learners process, understand, produce or use:

7. ACCESS for ELLs®: Types of Scores ACCESS for ELLs® Scores Raw Scale (100 to 600) ELP Levels (1.0 to 6.0)

8. ACCESS for ELLs® Scores Listening (L) Speaking (S) Reading (R) Writing (W) Composite Scores Oral = L + S Literacy = R + W Comprehension =.3 L +.7R Overall =.15L+.15S+.35R+.35W

9. Score Reports 9

10. 10 ACCESS for ELLs® Score Reports There are 5 ACCESS Score Reports:  Teacher Report  Parent/Guardian Report  Student Roster Report  School Frequency Report  District Frequency Report

11. 11 Score Reports Available Score Report Audience or Stakeholder Types of Information 1. Parent/ Guardian  Students  Parents/ Guardians  Teachers  School Teams Proficiency levels for each language domain Overall Score Comprehension Available in multiple languages on the WIDA website 2. Teacher  Teachers  Administrators  School Teams Individual student’s scale scores and language proficiency levels for each language domain, and four composites Raw scores for Comprehension Tasks, Speaking, and Writing Tasks by English language proficiency standard 3. Student Roster  Teachers  Program Coordinators/ Directors  Administrators Scale scores and language proficiency levels for each language domain and four composites by school, grade, student, Tier, and grade level cluster 4. School Frequency  Program Coordinators/ Directors  Administrators Number of students and percent of total tested at each proficiency level for each language domain and four composites within a school 5. District Frequency  Program Coordinators/ Directors  Administrators  Boards of Education Number of students and percent of total tested at each proficiency level for each language domain and four composites by proficiency levels for grades within a district

12. Did You Bring Reports from Your School? As we discuss each of the above 5 reports, you may wish to look at the comparable report for your School  Observe how your reports compare to the samples and consider the implications to your School

13. What does the Parent Report tell us? The Parent Report, like the Teacher Report, contains individual student data. 13

14. 14 Parent/Guardian Report Student’s parent or guardian gets the report Provided in English and 19 additional languages (visit www.wida.us)www.wida.us A letter to accompany the report in parents’ primary language is suggested Other stakeholders – student, teachers, school teams

15. 15 Demographic Information About the Student Description of the ELP Levels Student’s ELP Level by Domain Parent Report Comprehension Score Overall Score

16. What does the Student Roster Report tell us? The Student Roster Report lists the scale scores and proficiency levels for a group (or class) of students. 16

17. 17 Student Roster Report Scale Score and ELP Level by Domain Scale Score and ELP Level by Composite: Oral Language, Literacy, Comprehension and Overall Cluster Tier

18. 18 Use of Student Roster Report Audience includes Teachers, Program Coordinators, and Administrators District administrators may examine scores from each language domain within a Tier and grade level cluster to detect any patterns. To what extent are there differences in student performance between the language domains? Are these differences attributed to second language development or delivery of instructional services? Development of school and district improvement plans for ELLs; development of school staffing plans and scheduling A starting point for grouping students for support services according to their Overall Score or by their profiles according to language domains (ex: homogeneous groupings for reading in elementary schools, Math clusters, Language Arts Clusters).

19. What does the School Frequency Report tell us? The School Frequency Report lists the numbers of students tested in each domain of ACCESS by grade level within a school. 19

20. 20 Highest & Lowest Scores Total Tested Number of Students Tested who scored at each ELP level by Domain and Composite % of Total Students Tested who scored at each ELP level by Domain and Composite

21. School Frequency Report 21

22. 22 Use of School Frequency Report Indicates number of students and percent of total tested for language domains (including range of scaled scores), Comprehension, Oral Language, and Literacy by proficiency levels for grade levels within a school School Frequency Reports for two consecutive years provide cross-sectional data Use the information contained in the report to gain a sense of the school-wide effort in educating English language learners

23. What does the District Frequency Report tell us? The District Frequency Report lists the numbers of students tested in each domain of ACCESS by grade level within a district. 23

24. 24 Use of District Frequency Report Indicates number of students and percent of total tested for language domains (including the range of scale scores), Comprehension, Oral Language, and Literacy by proficiency levels for grade levels within a district. Based on an individual state’s criteria for “attainment” of English language proficiency and its definition of cohort groups, this report may serve as a district’s estimate of the number and/or percent of students who have met that criterion for Annual Measurable Achievement Objectives (AMAOs).

25. What does the Teacher Report tell us? The Teacher Report contains individual data for one student. 25

26. Demographic Information About the Student Description of the ELP Levels Student’s ELP Level by Domain Student’s Composite Scores Student’s Scale Score by Domain Student’s Scale Composite Scores Student’s Comprehension by Standard (Raw) Student’s Speaking Performance by Standard (Raw) Student’s Writing Performance by Standard (Raw)

27. 27 Teacher Report (top)

28. 28 Teacher Report (bottom) Raw Scores by Standard

29. 29 Teacher Report cont’d: Writing Tasks Writing raw scores are presented by standard next to the maximum number of points for the given standard(s) and scoring category reported

30. Considerations on the use of ACCESS for ELLs ® Reports 1. Target certain reports to specific audiences 2. Offer Professional Development on how to understand and use the information on the reports 3. Consider summarizing or consolidating the suggestions for using the information from each score report according to target audience 4. Look at different configurations of data in the reports for individual and group placement or to develop a plan for organizing services for English Language Learners for the coming school year 5. Archive copies of the interpretive guide along with copies of the score reports so that new personnel for the 2007-08 academic year can become acclimated with data from ACCESS for ELLs®

31. Reports from Your District Now that the score reports have been described, take 5 minutes to look at the reports you have brought with you from your district. Consider questions:  What audience will you target with your reports?  Will professional development for understanding/using score reports be provide? What type of professional development?  How will you summarize the data for different audiences?

32. Group Activity Now let’s look at two student profiles. The following students are all in the 5 th grade. Tenzin took a Tier A test, and Marietta took a Tier C test. All two students received an Overall Composite score of 2.9. 32

33. Activity: Tenzin What are Tenzin’s strengths? Weaknesses? 33

34. Activity: Marietta What are Marietta’s strengths? Weaknesses? 34

35. Breathing life into Student Reports With your group, decide on whom you would like to focus: Student A or Student B What are some of the areas in language in which Student A or B needs support What are some strategies teachers may use with this student? What additional information may be helpful? What are some additional resources you may use?

36. Now – Look at Score Reports from Your District Reviewing Tenzin’s and Marietta’s score reports as in the previous exercise provided an example of how a teacher might use the scores in the classroom. Look at the score reports from your district. How might you encourage/use score reports in your district?  Will others need to be trained/encouraged to use the score reports?  What strategies might administrators use to encourage score use in instruction?

37. 37 How do we use this information? Standards-based results help inform curriculum, instruction and assessment of ELLs The Overall Composite Score summarizes student’s global language proficiency Domain subscale scores allow for examination of strengths and weakness by domain

38. Raw scores by standards allow for examination of strengths and weakness by content area language Individual report components offer a starting point for differentiating instruction and assessment Writing and Speaking Rubrics in Interpretative Guide - criteria within rubrics scaffold across the levels of language proficiency and may be used in assessing classroom tasks and projects throughout the year

39. 39 Programmatic Implications (1) Does this student have the language skills necessary to access the content in the mainstream classroom without additional language support services? What additional evidence is needed to make a determination? If the student’s English proficiency is weak in a particular language domain (e.g., Writing)? If the student’s English proficiency is weak in a particular standard area (e.g., the language of Social Studies)?  If so, consider additional content language support. High scores (Levels 5-6) may indicate a need for Monitoring or Targeted Support. School teams should consider:

40. 40 A balanced, long-term approach that focuses on grade-level academic standards and English proficiency standards, and utilizes strategies that increase comprehension and communication in English (e.g., sheltered instruction) Enhancement of both oral language and literacy development Providing L1 instruction (bilingual education) and/or support where feasible Programmatic Implications (2) Mid-level scores (Levels 3-4) may indicate a need for 1-3 more years of ELL support services. School teams should consider:

41. 41 Providing targeted communicative / social & instructional English briefly Enrolling student in “newcomer” program if available and appropriate Using content-based strategies (e.g., sheltered instruction) and L1 instruction, if possible Scaffolding within programs and school  Graphic support  Peer support  Supplemental and modified materials Programmatic Implications (3) Beginner level scores (Levels 1-2) may need 5 or 6 more years of ELL support services. School teams should consider:

42. Sources for this presentation include : “Collaborating to Meet the Needs of English Language Learners Trainer’s Manual,” WIDA Consortium, ©Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System, 2007. Clarke, Jessica “A Guide to ACCESS for ELLs Score Interpretation,” 2007. Cranley, Elizabeth. “ACCESS for ELLS® Interpreting the Results,” 2007.

43. ACCESS for ELLs ® Interpretive Guide The ACCESS for ELLs ® Interpretive Guide for Score Reports (M. Gottlieb, April 2007) contains detailed information on the use of scores from this assessment. Recommendation: Download the full document (61 pages) from www.wida.us 43