Word list to improve readiness
Posted on Sunday, March 23, 2008
Northwest Arkansas teachers created a targeted vocabulary list this year to help students with limited English skills score better on statemandated Benchmark exams.
The list shows specific words that students must understand to meet the state’s learning objectives. It is included in an instructional guideline created by 144 teachers in 16 districts represented by the Northwest Arkansas Education Services Cooperative. The vocabulary was identified after teachers realized that students designated as English-language learners were using words without fully understanding their meanings, said Buddy Auman, director of the cooperative.
The English-language learner term refers to students who do not speak, read or write English fluently. With an inability to apply the vocabulary, these students grew overwhelmed by questions on the Benchmarks, Auman said. “When students use a word, we assume they know what it means,” he said. “That makes it really hard for them to score well on the state Benchmark test.” The exams, required by the federal No Child Left Behind Act, track student proficiency in math and literacy. Schools must demonstrate “adequate yearly progress,” or measurable increases in scores, to avoid state interventions.
A change in state law last year required English-language learners to take the exam if they’ve been in U. S. schools for at least a year. English-language learners previously completed projects instead of taking tests to document their progress.
The change skewed scores of Northwest Arkansas districts with large enrollments of English-language learners and created unreachable expectations for students and teachers, Springdale Superintendent Jim Rollins said.
Springdale has 6, 421 Englishlanguage learners, who represent 37. 34 percent of the district’s overall enrollment. Rogers has 3, 642 such students, 27 percent of its total enrollment, and Fort Smith has 2, 798 English-language learners, 20. 36 percent of its total enrollment.
The region’s districts have addressed the change with “Benchmark boot camps” to help the students understand the tests and motivational tools, such as pep rallies and public service announcements, to relate directly to their Spanish-speaking students.
A vocabulary list is another tool to reach the specific student group, Auman said.
“As many [English-language learner ] kids as we have here in Northwest Arkansas, this part is crucial,” he said.
The cooperative’s instructional guidelines suggested classroom lesson plans to teach the objective and words that students should understand to successfully complete the Benchmark tests.
Some argue that federal accountability guidelines have put school districts in the position of “teaching the test” to students, seeking high scores rather than comprehension.
The National School Board Association has waged a campaign to lobby Congress to support amendments to No Child Left Behind, including a measure that would give states greater flexibility in the use of alternative assessments for special education and limited-English-proficient students. More than 700 school boards in 40 states have approved resolutions in support of the amendments. Rollins agreed that changes are necessary to level the playing field for districts challenged by large populations of special student groups. “Rather than recognizing that they’re doing everything they can to serve a population of very needy children, they put sanctions on them for their performance,” he said. “It doesn’t seem appropriate.” To contact this reporter: eblad@arkansasonline. com
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