1 New York State English as a Second Language Achievement Test (NYSESLAT) Presented by: Vanessa Lee Mercado Assistant in Educational Testing Office of State Assessment New York State Education Department Teachers Institute November 17, 2006

2 Update on the Administration of the 2006 NYSESLAT & 2006 Activities Testing Dates: Speaking 4/24-5/26/2006 Listening, Reading, & Writing 5/8-5/26/2006 Number of Students Tested & Scored: 197,457 Public & Charter School 13,596 Non public Teacher Participation Item Review Rubrics Focus Group Field Test Materials Review Range Finding Fall Field Test10/10-10/20/2006

3 Update on the Administration of the 2007 NYSESLATImportant Dates Operational Test ActivityTarget Dates Turnkey Training on scoring NYSESLATFeb-Mar Schools order tests via Spectrum2/5-3/15 Speaking test booklets arrive at schools4/18-4/20 Administration of the Speaking Test4/23-5/18 Listening, Reading, and Writing test booklets arrive at schools5/2-5/4 Administration of the Listening, Reading, and Writing Tests 5/7-5/18 Materials for scorer training arrive at schools5/17-5/18 Questions and answers for scoring posted at 5/21 Help Line for Scoring available5/21-6/1

4 New Features for 2007 New item types Picture Description Speaking items, K-12 Reading Comprehension of poetry, 2-12 Topic-based Writing, 2-12 New rubrics Revised Speaking and Writing rubrics for all grade spans

5 New Item Types Formats of new Speaking item type: What is happening in the picture, and what will happen next? What are the people doing, and what might they be talking about? (... how might she be feeling? etc.) What is the person doing and why? Purpose of new Speaking item type: Elicit speech containing description, prediction, inferences

6 Sample of New Speaking Item Type What are the people doing, and what might the man be saying to the boy?

7 New Item Types Format of new Writing sets: No change in format: 3 Pre-Writing questions lead to Writing prompt Questions and prompt focus on topics from NYS content-area curricula Purpose of new Writing sets: Elicit well-developed, logically organized essays

8 Pre-Writing Students learn about both Science and the arts (literature, music, art, etc.) in school. These subjects contribute to an education in important ways. Look carefully at the pictures. Answer the questions. This will help you write an essay later.

9 Pre-Writing Questions 1. What are several reasons why it is important to study science? 2. What are several reasons why it is important to study the arts? 3. How might adults benefit from knowledge of science and the arts?

10 Writing Prompt Write an essay that explains how a person might benefit from having studied science and the arts in school. Make sure your essay is well-organized and of sufficient length. Use your ideas from the Pre-Writing questions to help you write.

11 New Rubrics K-1 Writing rubrics More explicit scoring criteria Easier-to-use bullet-point format 2-12 Writing rubrics No change in content Easier-to-use bullet-point format K-12 Speaking rubrics One version for each item type (Storytelling still has full and abbreviated) Easier-to-use bullet-point format

12 Writing Rubrics K-1 - Example Sentence Copying Score Point 2Shows control of written English conventions Contains all correct capitalization and punctuation Maintains appropriate word spacing Uses correct spelling and word order May contain slanting or a few letter reversals Score Point 1Shows some control of written English conventions Contains some correct capitalization and punctuation May demonstrate word spacing May have spelling and word order errors May contain slanting or letter reversals Score Point 0Shows no control of written English conventions Illegible No response

13 Writing Rubrics Example Pre-Writing Score Point 2Full and clear response to the question Contains two or more relevant ideas that may be displayed in phrases or a list Shows thinking about the topic Score Point 1Limited response to the question Contains at least one relevant idea that may be displayed in phrases, a list or as a word Shows minimal thinking about the topic Score Point 0Irrelevant or no response to the question Insufficient to score Incoherent Illegible Irrelevant Copy of the question Solely in a language other than English No response *Accuracy of spelling does not affect score in this section.

14 Speaking Rubric K-12 - Example Picture Description Score Point 2Relevant response that approximates native-like fluency Addresses both parts of the prompt Complex and varied structure and vocabulary No or very few minor errors that do not impede communication Demonstrates strong inference skills Well-organized, coherent, and cohesive Score Point 1Somewhat relevant response May address only one part of the prompt Somewhat varied structure and vocabulary Serious errors, but intelligible May demonstrate basic inference skills Somewhat organized and plausible Score Point 0Irrelevant or invalid response Unintelligible In a language other than English Only repeating the prompt No response

15 NYSESLAT WEBSITE For more information and updates regarding the NYSESLAT please go to: nyseslat/