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Many educators of English Language Learners, including myself, are dissatisfied with the tests various states use to determine English proficiency for English Language Learners.

I recently put this question out on social media:

What is the best research out there discussing state English tests for English Language Learners (WIDA, ELPAC, ELPA21, etc.), comparing them and exploring how valid or not valid they are?

No one had any suggestions for research but, boy, teachers had a lot to say about the tests – all negative!

I didn’t have a lot of extra time, so I took a lazy way out and asked both Google Gemini and ChatGPT the same question.  Here are their answers – note, I have not doublechecked their responses or confirmed that their citations exist.  I didn’t want to publish a super-lengthy post, so here’s a PDF summary from ChatGPT.

Here’s what Gemini said:

When it comes to the “Big Three” of English Language Proficiency (ELP) assessments—WIDA (ACCESS), ELPAC, and ELPA21—the research is a mix of high-level psychometric data (from the test makers) and critical analysis from independent sociolinguists.

The consensus in the field is that while these tests are technically “reliable” (they produce consistent scores), their “validity” (whether they actually measure a student’s ability to succeed in a classroom) is a subject of intense debate.

1. The Comparison: WIDA vs. ELPA21 vs. ELPAC

Because different states use different tests, “apples-to-apples” comparisons are rare, but the following distinctions are frequently cited in research:

2. Is the Research “Valid”? (The Great Validity Debate)

Validity in testing means: Does this test measure what it claims to measure? The Argument for Validity (The Psychometric View):

Annual technical reports (like the WIDA Annual Technical Report, 2024-2025) consistently show high internal consistency. This means the tests are very good at ranking students by their command of “Academic English.” If a student scores a 5.0, they almost certainly have more academic vocabulary than a student who scores a 2.0.

The Argument Against Validity (The Sociolinguistic View):

Independent researchers (notably Jamal Abedi and Kenji Hakuta) argue that these tests often suffer from Construct-Irrelevant Variance. In plain English:

• A Test of “Testing”: The tests often measure a student’s “test-taking skills” or “cultural background” rather than their actual language ability.

• The “Moving Goalpost”: As academic standards (like Common Core) get harder, the ELP tests get harder too. Research suggests that even some native English speakers would struggle to pass the “exit” level of these exams.

• The Literacy Trap: Critics argue that the heavy focus on reading and writing in these tests ignores the “communicative competence” (the ability to actually talk and function in class) that you see in Task-Based Learning.

3. Key Resources to Follow

If you want to read the “best” sources, look for these specific bodies of work:

• The CRESST Reports (UCLA): They specialize in the validity of ELL assessments. Look for Abedi’s work on “linguistic complexity” in testing.

• WIDA Research Publications: They are surprisingly transparent. Their 2024-2025 reports discuss how proficiency scores have declined post-pandemic and what that means for test accuracy.

• The Migration Policy Institute (MPI): Their report, “The Patchy Landscape of State EL Policies under ESSA,” is the definitive guide on how different states use these tests to trap or release students from EL services.

     

There’s been a lot of discussion recently lamenting the fact that students are reading fewer novels in class these days (see The NY Times article, Kids Rarely Read Whole Books Anymore. Even in English Class).

I talked with some of my old high school colleagues, and we all agreed that we didn’t think it would work very well in most of our classes to teach novels.

I think it would be fine in my old International Baccalaureate classes, and I believe they do that in IB English (I only taught IB Theory of Knowledge).  But my old colleagues and I can’t imagine  trying to teach a whole novel to our regular ninth-or-tenth-grade classes and ensure that they actually read it.  I would guess at least half of the class would use AI/Cliff Notes, instead.

And I don’t think this is a recent development – I believe I felt the same way twenty-three years when I first began teaching high school.

One of my colleagues suggested that it might work with with a shorter, very well-chosen one that was read in class with audio support and a lot of discussion.

But this doesn’t mean that our students don’t/didn’t or won’t read whole novels or books – independent reading was/is a mainstay of our school’s English classes, and our students read a lot of books.

And when I was teaching, many of my students also participated in self-run book discussion groups.

More power to teachers who can make it work in their classrooms, though.

     

Eight years ago I began this regular feature where I share a few posts and resources from around the Web related to ESL/EFL or to language in general that have caught my attention.

You might also be interested in all my Best lists on teaching ELLs.

Also, check out A Collection Of My Best Resources On Teaching English Language Learners.

In addition, look for our latest book on teaching ELLs, The ELL Teacher’s Toolbox 2.0.

Here are this week’s choices:

Upgrading or correcting? is from The TEFL Zone. I’m adding it to The Best Resources On ESL/EFL/ELL Error Correction.

How to Use Shadowing to Boost Student Fluency is from The Barefoot TEFL Teacher. I’m adding it to The Best Sites To Practice Speaking English.

Choral repetition: pros and cons and implications for teaching is from The Language Gym.

When Listening Feels Like a Blur: How to Train Learners to Hear Word Boundaries is from The Language Gym.

Teaching Listening Strategies – When It Actually Works is from The Language Gym.

What Research Says About Why Students Struggle with Listening is from The Language Gym.

Classroom layout is a big piece of making #MLs (& all Ss) feel welcomed at school. What are your favorite details to set up? https://t.co/IycnnvhUi8

— The Visual Non-Glossary (@VNGvisuals) August 19, 2025

“preregistered moderation analyses indicated that heterogeneous groups benefited students with higher English language skills, homogeneous groups benefited students with lower skills…teachers provided more specialized strategies for ELs in homogeneous groups” journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.3…

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— Paul Bruno (@paul-bruno.com) August 23, 2025 at 5:06 AM

This video shares a nice feature at ReadWorks:

 

ELL students could watch this video and then talk/write about what they saw:

 

New: USE FRONTLOADING TO HELP MULTILINGUALS POWER UP.
#edusky #langsky @larryferlazzo.bsky.social @solutiontree.bsky.social

“Frontloading supports the co-development of content literacy & language literacy, and when done together, learning accelerates for both”

www.middleweb.com/52555/use-fr…

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— MiddleWeb (@middleweb.bsky.social) August 31, 2025 at 11:54 AM

Shout out to teachers using these resources to do a #BoostingAchievement of #SLIFE study. —> https://t.co/vpVRSlS3rB 🤩 Don’t have the book? I’ve laid out this book study so you can engage by reading the posts. #Newcomers #ELLs #ESL pic.twitter.com/vFfJ5M4xG1

— Dr. Carol Salva (@DrCarolSalva) August 31, 2025

I’m adding this post to The Best Resources For Learning About The Ins & Outs Of Reclassifying ELLs:

A new bill aims to automatically reclassify students as “fluent and English-proficient” when they score 4 on the proficiency exam.

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— EdSource (@edsource.org) March 17, 2026 at 7:53 AM

Great. It's not like life isn't challenging enough now for ELLs and their families – now Republicans, if they aren't already, are going to start attacking them all for being "undocumented."

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— Larry Ferlazzo (@larryferlazzo.bsky.social) March 18, 2026 at 1:18 PM

     

Where In The World.. operates like most Geoguesr-type games – you answer the question by clicking on where you think is the correct geographic location, and it will tell you how close you to actual correct answer.

The difference here, though, is that the questions ask you about the location of historical events.

I’m adding this info to The Best Online Geography Games.

     

Multilingual By Design is a grants competition (the deadline is in two weeks) where teams of ELL-serving nonprofits and AI experts will receive grants of $350,000 each to create tools to support K-8 ELLs.

They plan to give three-to-five of those kinds of grants.

Nonprofits can apply separately, AI developers can apply separately, or they can apply as a team.  If they apply separately, the idea is that winning groups will be matched up.  Hopefully, “shotgun marriages” won’t result.

Support for ELLs is one of the few education areas where I think AI has a lot of potential, so it will be interesting to see what happens with this.

I was disappointed, though, that their “suggested reading” section contained so little of what ELL educators have written about AI.  Hopefully, those groups that are applying are much better versed on the very vibrant discourse and experimentation that has been taking place the past three years.

THE BEST POSTS ABOUT USING ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE WITH ELLS could be one place to begin.