Textual analysis identifies specific linguistic features of MCAS word problems that posed disproportionate difficulty for ELLs¶
Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study · associationalr?·q3
Currency · newest study 2008 · not yet checked against its sources · not reviewed by a person
Subclaims¶
Reading the evidence codes
q is the design tier, i the impact, n the sample, and the kind with its r
the rigour judged within that kind: what each code means.
This claim: no standardized effect is recorded in observations/ for it yet, so no benchmark reading is possible.
q3 i? Textual analyses of the DIF-flagged 2003 MCAS math word problems describe the linguistic features that made them disproportionately difficult for ELLs. → Maria Martiniello 2008
Evidence¶
Maria Martiniello 2008¶
Maria Martiniello. (2008). Language and the Performance of English-Language Learners in Math Word Problems. Harvard Educational Review. https://doi.org/10.17763/haer.78.2.70783570r1111t32
q3 · i? · associational · r?
The abstract reports that "[t]hrough textual analyses, Martiniello describes the linguistic features of some of the 2003 MCAS math word problems that posed disproportionate difficulty for ELLs." The analysis targets the subset of items previously flagged by DIF.
"Through textual analyses, Martiniello describes the linguistic features of some of the 2003 MCAS math word problems that posed disproportionate difficulty for ELLs."
Discussion¶
Learner Variables¶
- English-Learner Status — moderator: an instructional effect differs with it
Related Claims¶
- Greater linguistic complexity increases the difficulty of English-language math items for ELLs compared to non-ELLs of equivalent math proficiency — related
- Some 2003 MCAS fourth-grade math word problems exhibited differential item functioning for English-language learners versus non-ELLs — related
- Partial dependence plots showed higher word count, more dependent clauses, and higher custom magnitude raised predicted flag probability, with non-linear relationships — related
Page metadata
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
type |
claim |
id |
linguistic-features-of-dif-mcas-word-problems |
title |
Textual analysis identifies specific linguistic features of MCAS word problems that posed disproportionate difficulty for ELLs |
description |
Textual analysis identifies specific linguistic features of MCAS word problems that posed disproportionate difficulty for ELLs |
status |
review |
evidence_strength |
moderate |
newest_evidence |
2008 |
generated |
by process:wiki-ingest on 2026-10-15 |
trust |
unverified — no one has confirmed this page's content |
sources |
1 — maria-martiniello-2008 |
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