Routing Update Memo

March 4, 2010

MEMORANDUM

To: Shelly Martinez, OMB; Kashka Kubzdela, NCES

From: Gail Mulligan, Jill Carlivati, Chris Chapman, NCES

Subject: Assessment Routing Pattern for the ECLS-K:2011

This memo provides a description of the assessment routing pattern for the reading assessments for the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 2010-11 (ECLS-K:2011). In the recently submitted request for clearance, we noted that final decisions on routing still need to be made pending final analysis of the field test results. Specifically, we indicated that we planned to do the following:

1. Administer the preLAS2000 language screener to children identified by the school as coming from a home where English is not the primary language (use of the preLAS2000 test will be determined after final review of field test results).

2. Administer the English Basic Reading Skills (EBRS) assessment items to all study children.

3. After the EBRS, Spanish speaking children with low EBRS scores will route into the Spanish Basic Reading Skills (SBRS) assessment. Pending final evaluation of the field test data, preLAS2000 screening scores may be used to help with this routing decision. Consideration of how to route all low EBRS children in terms of second stage reading assessments is still pending final evaluation of the field test data. Children with higher EBRS scores will route into second stage English reading assessments.

After consideration of the field test results, our desired level of burden, and strategies that would rely less on school records to determine routing through the assessment (because we know that school records can be inaccurate), we have developed an assessment plan that relies on the preLas to obtain a language measure for all children (separate from the ECLS-K:2011 reading assessment) and to determine whether children whose primary home language is not English should be administered the entire reading assessment in English, should be administered the SBRS if they speak Spanish, or should be routed out of the remaining cognitive assessments. Specifically, we plan to do the following:

1. Administer the preLAS2000 language screener to all study children.

2. Administer the English Basic Reading Skills (EBRS) assessment items to all study children.

3. After the EBRS, children who passed the preLas will continue with the reading assessment in English, regardless of home language. Spanish-speaking children who failed the preLas will route into the Spanish Basic Reading Skills (SBRS) assessment. Children whose home language is one other than English or Spanish and who fail the preLas will not be administered any of the cognitive assessments.

In this model, all children will be administered the preLas, rather than just those for whom school records indicate the home language is not English, and routing will be done based on scores on the preLas, rather than on the EBRS. This allows us to route children based on objective results on an assessment developed specifically to measure children’s basic English proficiency and one that is well-used.

The estimated burden for this model remains the same as the estimated burden described in the submitted package. We will replace the warm-up booklet that has been used in the ECLS-K assessments (and that has always been counted in the estimated burden) with the preLas items. These items are expected to be very easy for English speakers to answer, so they will move through them quickly. Previous burden estimates accounted for the preLas being administered to children whose home language was not English. We do not expect the use of the preLas rather than the EBRS for routing to affect burden, because if this has any effect on routing, it will be primarily to the assignment of children to the SBRS or the second-stage reading assessment in English, which are about the same length. The number of children routed out of the assessments completely is expected to be more or less the same regardless of the assessment used for routing.

We assume that there will be revisions to the package based on OMB feedback before a decision about clearance is made. We can revise the discussion of the assessments to reflect the final decision about the assessment routing at that same time that we make other revisions, unless OMB would like us to revise the package at this time.

Please let us know if you have any questions.

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