Chun-Wei Huang

Bio: Chun-Wei Huang is an academic researcher. The author has contributed to research in topics: Standardized test & English-language learner. The author has an hindex of 1, co-authored 1 publications receiving 25 citations.

“I never thought of it as freezing”: How students answer questions on large‐scale science tests and what they know about science

Abstract: Education policy in the U.S. in the last two decades has emphasized large-scale assessment of students, with growing consequences for schools, teachers, and students. Given the high stakes of such tests, it is important to understand the relationships between students' answers to test items and their knowledge and skills in the tested content area. Due to persistent test score gaps, students from historically non-dominant communities, and their teachers and schools, are differentially affected by the consequences of large-scale testing. As a result, it is particularly important to understand how students from historically non-dominant communities interact with test items on large-scale tests. We report on a study in which we interviewed 36 students about their responses to six multiple-choice science test items from the Massachusetts state science assessment for fifth grade. The 36 students included 12 students from low-income households, 12 English Language Learners, and 12 middle-class native English speakers. We found that for five of the six selected test items, students' descriptions of the science content knowledge they used to answer the test items frequently did not match the content knowledge targeted by the items. In addition, students from low-income households and English Language Learners were more likely than middle-class native English speakers to answer incorrectly despite demonstrating knowledge of the targeted science content for the items. We argue that such evidence challenges the expectation that students' answers to individual test items reflect their knowledge of the targeted science content, and that evidence of this kind should be included in investigations of the validity of large-scale tests. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 49: 778–803, 2012

The Effects of Dynamic Strategic Math on English Language Learners’ Word Problem Solving:

Abstract: English language learners (ELLs) struggle with solving word problems for a number of reasons beyond math procedures or calculation challenges. As a result, ELLs may not only need math support but also reading and linguistic support. The purpose of this study was to assess the effectiveness of a math comprehension strategy called Dynamic Strategic Math (DSM) on word problem solving for Latino ELLs. The strategy provides performance-contingent feedback based on the student’s reading and language comprehension level. A multiple baseline design was used to assess 6 second-grade Latino ELLs at risk for math failure/math disability. As compared with the baseline phase, DSM increased word problem solving for all the participants. All students’ level of performance was maintained during follow-up sessions. The results suggest the intervention facilitated math problem–solving performance.

The Use of Computer Technology in Designing Appropriate Test Accommodations for English Language Learners.

Abstract: Among the several forms of accommodations used in the assessment of English language learners (ELLs), language-based accommodations are the most effective in making assessments linguistically accessible to these students. However, there are significant challenges associated with the implementation of many of these accommodations. This article reviews studies that explain the impact of language factors on the assessment of ELLs, presents major forms of language-based accommodations, and discusses how computers can assist in the proper administration of these accommodations.

Science Assessments and English Language Learners: Validity Evidence Based on Response Processes

Abstract: English language learners (ELLs) and their teachers, schools, and communities face increasingly high-stakes consequences due to test score gaps between ELLs and non-ELLs. It is essential that the field of educational assessment continue to investigate the meaning of these test score gaps. This article discusses the findings of an exploratory study of the response processes of grade 5 ELLs and non-ELLs on multiple-choice science test items from a high-stakes test. We found that the ELL students in our sample were more likely than the non-ELL students to answer incorrectly despite demonstrating knowledge of the science content targeted by the test items. Investigating the interview transcripts of ELL students who answered in this way revealed that ELL students’ interactions with specific linguistic features of test items often led to alternative interpretations of the items that resulted in incorrect answers. The implications of this work for the assessment of ELLs in science are discussed.

Linguistic simplification of mathematics items: effects for language minority students in Germany

Abstract: In large-scale assessment studies, language minority students typically obtain lower test scores in mathematics than native speakers. Although this performance difference was related to the linguistic complexity of test items in some studies, other studies did not find linguistically demanding math items to be disproportionally more difficult for language minority students than for native speakers. Furthermore, previous studies investigating the effectiveness of linguistic simplification of test items have yielded inconsistent results. We tested the impact of linguistic simplifications of mathematics test items in Germany with a specific focus on the role of academic language features included in the items. Specifically, we carried out a large-scale linguistic simplification study to test whether the performance gap between language minority students and German monolinguals is smaller when students are assessed with linguistically simplified items. We additionally determined whether students' socioeconomic status (SES) or their language proficiency moderate the effect of linguistic simplification. The study uses data from 17,738 fourth graders, 17 % of whom sometimes or always spoke a language other than German at home. Although differences between language minority students and German monolinguals in mathematics achievement were related to differences in their language proficiency and SES, we found no significant main effects of linguistic simplification. Differential effects for language minority students emerged, however, when we took the moderator effects of SES and language