Are the lights coming on? How can we tell? English language learners and literacy assessment

Abstract

Abstract: This article explores definitions of reading comprehension, research on how reading comprehension is assessed, and issues in assessing the reading comprehension of English language learners (ELLs). By way of illustration, I present aspects of the literacy practices of an intermediate-grade ELL in a suburban school of the Lower Mainland of British Columbia. This learner, Aman, is evaluated as being ‘not yet within expectations’ on a reading-comprehension test given by the BC Ministry of Education. The article examines Aman's writing, showing that she has appropriated some important aspects of written language, and argues that her writing and reading comprehension must be supported so that she can achieve as fully as possible the benefits of her education. This case is representative of many ELLs’ trajectories in English literacy learning in BC schools and illustrates some of the human faces behind ELL achievement patterns.