Policy guidelines of the Education Quality and Accountability Office (EQAO) state that accommodations and participation decisions on the Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test (OSSLT) do not threaten validity. However, these issues are contentious in American large-scale testing. New approaches integrate test access, administration, accommodation and participation within a unified fairness and validity construct. The current study, based on demographic and outcome data for the entire population of OSSLT-eligible students from 2006 to 2009, demonstrates changing patterns in accommodations and participation decisions across schools and years. In particular, English language learners are found to be considerably underrepresented among students receiving special needs accommodations. This has implications for the valid interpretation and fair use of test scores. Recommendations are proposed for improving fairness, consistency, and validity in administering accommodations and participation.

This study uses a mixed methods approach to investigate an achievement gap observed in the reading of Canadian-born students with a first language other than English. Quantitative analyses of large-scale reading assessment data identified characteristics of these students and showed a relationship between reading levels and students’ home language environments. This relationship was further explored using a case study approach based on interviews with students and parents. Interviews revealed the role that parental language learning can play in children’s reading. The study revealed the relative invisibility of Canadian-born English language learners, and the consequent difficulties educators have responding to their English language learning needs. School registration data was shown to be an inaccurate indication of students’ home language use. The study’s findings point to the need for policies that support the systematic identification of Canadian-born English language learners and a deeper understanding of the language learning needs of these students-at-risk.

Policy guidelines of the Education Quality and Accountability Office (EQAO) state that accommodations and participation decisions on the Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test (OSSLT) do not threaten validity. However, these issues are contentious in American large-scale testing. New approaches integrate test access, administration, accommodation and participation within a unified fairness and validity construct. The current study, based on demographic and outcome data for the entire population of OSSLT-eligible students from 2006 to 2009, demonstrates changing patterns in accommodations and participation decisions across schools and years. In particular, English language learners are found to be considerably underrepresented among students receiving special needs accommodations. This has implications for the valid interpretation and fair use of test scores. Recommendations are proposed for improving fairness, consistency, and validity in administering accommodations and participation.

This study uses a mixed methods approach to investigate an achievement gap observed in the reading of Canadian-born students with a first language other than English. Quantitative analyses of large-scale reading assessment data identified characteristics of these students and showed a relationship between reading levels and students’ home language environments. This relationship was further explored using a case study approach based on interviews with students and parents. Interviews revealed the role that parental language learning can play in children’s reading. The study revealed the relative invisibility of Canadian-born English language learners, and the consequent difficulties educators have responding to their English language learning needs. School registration data was shown to be an inaccurate indication of students’ home language use. The study’s findings point to the need for policies that support the systematic identification of Canadian-born English language learners and a deeper understanding of the language learning needs of these students-at-risk.

The purpose of this study was to find out how well Swedish pupils succeeded in their use of the progressive verb forms. A comprehensive research has been carried out in the area of second language acquisition, in which an interest in the order of acquisition of a second language as well as verb forms also was included. The material for the study was collected from second year pupils at an upper secondary school and consisted of two consecutive writing assignments. The first assignment was preceded by the teaching of the progressive verb forms, which the pupils were implicitly expected to use in their writing. In the second assignment, no grammar lessons were given prior to the assignment. A comparison of the evolution of the use of the verb forms mentioned was then conducted. The result indicates an increase of an accurate use. One conclusion that can be drawn is that learner strategies and motivation are beneficial to second language acquisition, as well as learning a more accurate grammar.

English is taught as a compulsory second language in Swedish schools and is one of three core subjects needed to be passed in order to receive a leaving certificate. Statistics show that 6.9% of the students do not aquire proficiency enough to receive a G (pass) in English in grade nine. The aim of this study is to investigate to what extent weak language learners are considered in the English classroom and if compensatory aids are used to further support their learning conditions. The method used for the study is qualitative interviews which were semi-structured. Four interviews with English teachers were conducted within the same municipality. The result shows that there are aspects that can be considered in order to provide better opportunities for weak language learners within the English classroom as well as outside the English classroom. Some teachers find it difficult to separate lack of motivation from lack of knowledge which makes discovering the students as early as possible important. In the English classroom weak language learners can be supported by smaller discussion groups since one problem seems to be oral skills. A connection to Swedish can be observed and students with difficulties in reading and writing in their native language experience more problems when learning English. The interviewees state the importance of first focusing on oral skills in the target language, before introducing written skills. Regarding support outside the English classroom the investigation shows that optional English, parents and homework are important features. In the optional English class weaker language learners get an opportunity to speak and revise previous blanks of knowledge. Parents are important for showing their children that they find English important but also for supporting the children while doing homework. Concerning compensatory aids, most teachers did not use them nor had they knowledge enough about available aids. The most frequently used aid was a CD where texts are recorded.

This study examined teachers' and administrators' perceptions of English language learner dropout antecedents at 95 secondary schools in Texas targeting two goals. First, perceptions of ninth-grade dropout were assessed to identify push, pull, or falling-out factors of dropout. Push factors include school-related consequences like attendance or disciplinary infractions. Pull factors include out-of-school enticements like jobs and family. Finally, fall factors refer to student disconnection with school leading to dropout. Second, four categories of dropout factors (student demographics, student experiences, school factors, and instructional practices) were tested to see which had the highest perceived rank. The first research question assessed ninth-grade academic engagement and dropout antecedents among ELL dropouts. Engagement factors including persistence and previous preparation for high school were perceived as highly important qualities while discipline problems were a major challenge. Falling-out factors were perceived at the highest rank in causing ninth-grade ELL dropout. Among falling-out factors, lack of L1/L2 proficiency was cited as a chief cause, conflicting with nationally representative studies. Push factors, including low achievement, ranked second and pull factors, last. The second research question assessed perceptions of ELL dropout according to four ELL dropout categories. Antecedents related to student experiences ranked highest in causing ELL dropout, including language proficiency, employment, and parenting needs. Thus, ELL's were perceived as the primary reason for ELL dropout, concurring with nationally representative studies. Overall, ESL teachers and coordinators reported ninth-grade falling-out factors and pull factors during high school at higher rates than other respondents. They placed the major blame for dropout on events in student's lives luring them from school. Regular teachers reported that ninth-grade ELL dropouts profoundly struggled with language proficiency, lack of effort, and lack of belonging, suggesting that cumulative challenges of ELLs resulted in dropout. Administrators reported a strong link between retention and ELL dropout. When combined with regular teachers, both had a unified perception of blame for dropout being on factors at home and work. Findings suggest developing comprehensive dropout antecedent lists for ELLs, studying early and late ELL dropout, and incorporating a qualitative methodology in survey techniques.

<p>English is taught as a compulsory second language in Swedish schools and is one of three core subjects needed to be passed in order to receive a leaving certificate. Statistics show that 6.9% of the students do not aquire proficiency enough to receive a G (pass) in English in grade nine. The aim of this study is to investigate to what extent weak language learners are considered in the English classroom and if compensatory aids are used to further support their learning conditions. The method used for the study is qualitative interviews which were semi-structured. Four interviews with English teachers were conducted within the same municipality.</p><p>The result shows that there are aspects that can be considered in order to provide better opportunities for weak language learners within the English classroom as well as outside the English classroom. Some teachers find it difficult to separate lack of motivation from lack of knowledge which makes discovering the students as early as possible important. In the English classroom weak language learners can be supported by smaller discussion groups since one problem seems to be oral skills. A connection to Swedish can be observed and students with difficulties in reading and writing in their native language experience more problems when learning English. The interviewees state the importance of first focusing on oral skills in the target language, before introducing written skills.</p><p>Regarding support outside the English classroom the investigation shows that optional English, parents and homework are important features. In the optional English class weaker language learners get an opportunity to speak and revise previous blanks of knowledge. Parents are important for showing their children that they find English important but also for supporting the children while doing homework.</p><p>Concerning compensatory aids, most teachers did not use them nor had they knowledge enough about available aids. The most frequently used aid was a CD where texts are recorded.</p>

This quantitative study explored the impact of literacy integration in a science inquiry classroom involving the use of science notebooks on the academic language development and conceptual understanding of students from diverse (i.e., English Language Learners, or ELLs) and low socio-economic status (low-SES) backgrounds. The study derived from a randomized, longitudinal, field-based NSF funded research project (NSF Award No. DRL - 0822343) targeting ELL and non-ELL students from low-SES backgrounds in a large urban school district in Southeast Texas. The study used a scoring rubric (modified and tested for validity and reliability) to analyze fifth-grade school students’ science notebook entries. Scores for academic language quality (or, for brevity, language) were used to compare language growth over time across three time points (i.e., beginning, middle, and end of the school year) and to compare students across categories (ELL, former ELL, non-ELL, and gender) using descriptive statistics and mixed between-within subjects analysis of variance (ANOVA). Scores for conceptual understanding (or, for brevity, concept) were used to compare students across categories (ELL, former ELL, non-ELL, and gender) in three domains using descriptive statistics and ANOVA. A correlational analysis was conducted to explore the relationship, if any, between language scores and concept scores for each group. Students demonstrated statistically significant growth over time in their academic language as reflected by science notebook scores. While ELL students scored lower than former ELL and non-ELL students at the first two time points, they caught up to their peers by the third time point. Similarly, females outperformed males in language scores in the first two time points, but males caught up to females in the third time point. In analyzing conceptual scores, ELLs had statistically significant lower scores than former-ELL and non-ELL students, and females outperformed males in the first two domains. These differences, however, were not statistically significant in the last domain. Last, correlations between language and concept scores were overall, positive, large, and significant across domains and groups. The study presents a rubric useful for quantifying diverse students’ science notebook entries, and findings add to the sparse research on the impact of writing in diverse students’ language development and conceptual understanding in science.

Due to our constantly evolving society and our opportunity to communicate across borders,English language learning is becoming increasingly important for the individual and his/herability to act and live in the world. The importance of learning English as a foreign language(EFL) is also emphasized in the Swedish curriculum, which further states that the teaching inthe lower grades of schooling should focus on communicative skills such as vocabularyacquisition. This is in line with previous research studies which describe that the knowledge ofvocabulary is main key to learn a language. Previous research studies have been done withinthis area of EFL teaching where storytelling has been used as a method for English vocabularyacquisition. The results of these research studies indicate that the storytelling method is verybeneficial to use within EFL teaching in the lower grades of schooling as it creates a teachingcontent familiar and interesting to the students. With the knowledge of the importance ofvocabulary acquisition and, the benefits the storytelling method can contribute with it isinteresting to further investigate how this method is implemented in a Swedish context. As ofthis, the main aim of this empirical study is to investigate how storytelling can be used as amethod for teaching English vocabulary to 1-3rd grade EFL students in Sweden and also, whatteachers think about this method.To collect data to this study six semi-structured interviews were conducted with 1-3rd gradeteachers in Sweden. The results show that the informants have an overall positive attitudetowards storytelling as a method to teach English vocabulary. Additionally, all teacher expressthat they use this method in their own EFL teaching but in various extent. The most interestingfindings were the different approaches the teachers use within the storytelling method and also,how the teachers support their students in order to enhance their comprehension of the teachingcontent. Future research within this area is needed and specifically within a Swedish context.More research on the storytelling method and its possibilities to EFL acquisition could strengthen the argument why this method should be used more frequently to teach vocabulary within EFL education in Sweden. / <p>Engelska</p>