Introduction A: Answers to Basic Questions

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Helping Item Writers and Teachers to Develop Science Test Items Accessible to English Language Learners*

A Training Manual Co-developed by John E. Miles Charlene Rivera and Charles W. Stansfield

Prepared for the Delaware Department of Education by the Center for Equity and Excellence in Education Graduate School of Education and Human Development George Washington University Washington, DC

September 2000

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Forward In the summer of 1999, the authors received a grant from the Delaware Department of Education that requires, in part, the development of a training manual to help item writers and teachers phrase science test items in ways that are meaningful and understandable to English language learners. Leveling the assessment ‘playing field’ through language modification permits all Delaware science students, including English language learners, to be measured against the same high standards. The science test items referenced in the manual are part of the active standards-based science assessments administered by the Delaware State Testing Program during 2000. For this reason, the training manual is considered confidential (i.e., for item writers and teachers only) and may not be distributed publicly during 2000. In developing the manual, the authors benefited from ideas suggested by several people who participated in rewording the test items using simpler, yet equally meaningful, language. These individuals are Jim Egenreider and Ray Leonard of Fairfax County Public Schools, and Judith Gonzalez of the Center for Equity and Excellence in Education. The manuscript benefited from editing by Lynne Sacks of the Center for Equity and Excellence in Education and by Nancy Maihoff of the Delaware Department of Education. We wish to express our appreciation to these individuals for their ideas and suggestions, and to the staff of the Assessment and Accountability Office of the Delaware Department of Education for the confidence they afforded us. Without state officials’ financial support, access to secure items, and assistance in gathering data, this manual could not have been written.

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Introduction Background and understanding. The purpose of this manual is to expose item writers and teachers to the concept and practice of simplifying the language of science items in order to provide English language learners (ELLs) with equitable access to assessments. Among its primary objectives, the training manual strives to:  define the nature of Simplified English;  enumerate the difficulties faced by English language learners; and  outline a simplification process that will enable test writers to make items accessible to students with limited English proficiency. The procedures stated herein are based on authors’ experience in simplifying science items for the Delaware State Testing Program (DSTP) assessments. Pre-test and operational test items for the years 1999 and 2000 were analyzed and revised for the 8th and 11th grades. These procedures are valid for items at all grade levels and th th also have been applied to science assessments for 4 and 6 grades. Overview of the chapters. Chapter I answers some basic questions about English language simplification and its application to student assessments. Chapter II explores the need for “creative tension” between scientific and simplified writing styles. Chapters III-V outline the difficulties English language learners customarily experience when reading English texts yet applies these to science items specifically. Chapters VI-VIII deal with procedures to remove barriers in reading load, syntax and vocabulary. For ease of reference, Chapter IX summarizes and outlines Chapters VI-VIII in table form. Chapter X offers advice to item writers and teachers on ways to carry out the simplification process. Examples cited in the text are from science items submitted by DSTP. Each sample item is followed by a sequence of numbers in parentheses (8-3-35). Reading left to right, these numbers refer to the grade level (e.g., 8), test form (e.g., 3), and item number (e.g., 35) on the test forms that were reviewed. Since Simplified English depends largely on the consistent use of a small, basic vocabulary, supplemented by the essential technical vocabulary of the subject area, Appendix A contains a Word List consisting of 1,000 frequently used words likely to be known by students with limited exposure to English. Appendix B displays a number of science items not already used in the main text and the Simplified English versions; these items can be used for practice by those learning to use the recommended procedures. Finally, Appendix C offers a Checklist that can be used by test writers to insure that all of the simplification procedures for each item were followed.

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Chapter I Answers to Basic Questions This chapter addresses basic questions concerning the use of Simplified English in assessments. The content covered focuses on:    

the reasons why it is important that assessments be made accessible to English language learners; the origins and history of Simplified English; the advantages of using Simplified English to provide equal access to assessments; and the appropriate limitations of Simplified English in assessments.

Why should assessments be adapted for English language learners? Students arriving in U.S. middle or high schools with limited English proficiency tend to develop social skills in English fairly quickly. While English language learners (ELLs) are able to converse readily, many experience great difficulty in understanding academic language, particularly that used in subjects such as mathematics and science. Research has shown that for many students this kind of language proficiency may take five to seven years to develop. (Cummins, 1984, and Ramirez et al., 1991, cited in Abedi et al., 1997) Moreover, conversational ability usually far outstrips reading ability for those who are acquiring a language quickly and informally, that is, outside a formal languageclassroom setting. This is because developing speed and comprehension in reading a second language (and English is a particularly difficult language to read) takes time and consistent application, particularly when unfamiliar concepts are involved. Most standardized tests are, therefore, less a test of knowledge and reasoning ability for ELLs than they are a test of English language reading proficiency: For a non-native English speaker and for a speaker of some dialects of English, every test given in English becomes, in part, a language or literacy test. Therefore, testing individuals who have not had substantial exposure to English as it is used in tests presents special challenges. Test results may not reflect accurately the abilities and competencies being measured if test performance depends largely on test takers’ knowledge of English. Thus special attention may be needed in many aspects of test development, administration, interpretation, and decision-making. (American Educational Research Association, et al., 1985, p.73)

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Research has shown that, because of the reading problems they pose, standardized tests tend to underestimate what ELLs actually know (LaCelle-Peterson and Rivera, 1994). Therefore, the tendency has been to leave ELLs out of any standardized testing. Many feel that this practice is unfair to both students and school systems. Consequently, various accommodations have been used to enable ELLs to show what they really know and are able to do. Accommodations include additional time, glossaries and dictionaries, and spoken rather than written responses. In comparison with other accommodation strategies, the use of modified (simplified) English in the test items has been shown to be effective in enabling ELLs with some reading skills to perform more adequately on content tests (Abedi, 1999). What is “Simplified English”? In 1932, Charles Ogden developed the first “Basic English” system to provide a means of cross-cultural communication that would be easy to learn and apply. It consisted of a restricted vocabulary, based on 850 core words, and a restricted grammar system, based on standard syntax. Later, Ogden created a dictionary of 20,000 words. In it, each word was defined using the 850 core words. These included 500 nouns, 150 adjectives, and 100 verbs and other words (Thomas, et al., 1992). The concept of a simplified English system was revived in the 1970’s and 1980’s by companies such as Caterpillar Tractor and by associations such as the aerospace industry associations of Europe and America. Caterpillar developed a 900-word vocabulary for technical manuals and published A Dictionary of Caterpillar Fundamental English in 1972. The aerospace industry associations issued a guide for preparing aircraft maintenance manuals, called AECMA Simplified English in 1986. This guide contained a 1,500-word vocabulary and a set of about 40 writing rules focused on style and grammar. Others have further developed and defined “Simplified English,” concentrating on refining the core-vocabulary (each word with a single unique meaning) and creating glossaries of the technical words specific to the scientific or technical fields in question (Shubert, et al., 1995). More recently, Simplified English has received attention for its usefulness in other areas, including assessment when test-takers have limited reading proficiency in English (Abedi, 1999, etc.).

What are the advantages of Simplified English in assessments? Since Simplified English was developed for technical writers, it is evident that writing documents in Simplified English does not change content or affect the level of difficulty, but rather focuses on using clear and concise language to communicate the content. Moreover, research by the Boeing Company involving the use of Simplified English in written procedures showed that, while all readers profited from the simplification of very complex documents, it was non-native speakers who benefited

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most from simplification across the board (Shubert, 1995). In a similar study (Abedi, 1999), while all students showed improvement with more linguistically clear math questions, the performance of many ELLs improved more on Simplified English math assessments than did the performance of their English-proficient counterparts. In other words, the use of Simplified English in assessments does not necessarily mean that the content of assessments will be more elementary. Rather, it means that ELLs will receive the benefit of clearer, more comprehensible language, without disadvantaging English-proficient students. Without sacrificing the difficulty level of the content, such language modification contributes to leveling the ‘playing field’ for ELLs by decreasing the need to decode sophisticated language. Moreover, though it might not lessen the time needed for reading, it will at least contribute to a lowering of these students’ anxiety level, which rises exponentially as lack of comprehension leads to confusion, resignation and failure. What are the appropriate limitations of Simplified English items? The rendering of test items in a linguistically clearer form has its limitations. Since it does not simplify the content, it cannot compensate for a lack of content knowledge in ELL test candidates. It does not enable students to perform well on the test who lack the requisite content knowledge. Moreover, content knowledge cannot exist without some knowledge of the particular vocabulary of the academic subject (equivalent, in Simplified English, to the vocabulary used in the technical manuals written by Caterpillar and the aerospace associations). In science items, therefore, clarification and simplification of the language do not preclude the use of essential scientific terminology; such terminology must be retained as part of the assessment, consistent with curricular demands. As with content knowledge, the acquisition, or at least recognition, of scientific vocabulary is part of the learning process and, therefore, a legitimate part of any assessment. Simplified English, then, does not change either the real or the perceived difficulty of content or content-specific vocabulary. It does not compensate for the linguistic inadequacies of ELLs when they need to respond to items that involve written responses. In fact, this manual does not attempt to address the issue of written response items. Instead, what is attempted here is the clarification of the task demanded. Simplifying the language used in the stimulus can effect such clarification. It is hoped that, in applying the scoring guides, scorers will make allowances for inadequate writing skills and look principally at the content of the answers.

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Chapter II Science, Style and Simplified English This chapter presents the characteristics of various styles of written English. Discussion will center on:     

the style elements of written English; the style elements of scientific writing; the style elements of Simplified English; basic principles of writing assessments in Simplified English; and common measures of readability.

What are the elements of style? Even when asking factual questions using “plain, everyday language,” a writer has the choice of a wide variety of styles. The major elements of style are vocabulary (the range of words used), syntax (the way words are linked together to express an idea), and discourse structure (the manner in which ideas are strung together to form a coherent whole). Style also is affected by the writer’s relationship with the readership and the writer’s purpose in communicating with the particular perceived audience; these elements in turn influence the tone (the manner of expression) and register (the level of formality) used in writing. The assumption in test development is that assessment item writers—even those writing tests for children—should adopt a neutral tone and a somewhat formal register, since their relationship with test candidates is distant but friendly and their purpose is to provide candidates with an opportunity to demonstrate their knowledge without biasing the outcome or unintentionally providing assistance. One great advantage of such a tone and register, for the non-native speaker, is that colloquial language is generally avoided in assessments, except when they reflect idioms used in state standards of learning. Colloquial and idiomatic expressions are extremely difficult for language learners to decode. On the other hand, neutral, formal language—a form of speech and writing that is almost totally unfamiliar to the informal language learner exposed mostly to the language of the classroom—usually involves a fairly high level of linguistic complexity, sentence length and even vocabulary. This may be particularly true of scientific writing.

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What is the style of scientific writing? The analysis and evaluation of natural phenomena, as well as the general concepts and procedures characteristic of all scientific inquiries, are usually reported in a particular, formal style of writing. Scientific writing, intended to have an impersonal and neutral tone, is often replete with passive constructions and “if/then” hypothetical arguments. Since the intended audience is other scientists or students of science who are proficient readers in the language, there is heavy use of a wide and rapidly growing technical vocabulary as well as an almost formulaic manner of expression that extends beyond scientific concepts. Traditionally, scientific writing has attempted to convey the objectivity of scientific practice. Modern scientists, however, recognizing that it is people who conduct science, have begun to reinstate subjectivity and personality into their writing. In science items for children, item writers have several ways of naming the doers of the experiments being described (e.g., a scientist, a student), or a named person (e.g., Peter, José, Abdul). Nevertheless, the general tendency is still to use passive constructions in assessments. Obviously, theories and hypotheses are essential to scientific thinking, and science teachers want their students to learn to think (and express themselves) scientifically. However, modern standardized tests focus on scientific knowledge, understanding and applying concepts, and the ability to use and evaluate scientific data. Therefore, in tests theory normally appears in an applied form; it is exemplified, concretized, even humanized. Item writers usually abandon the hypothetical constructions and the intentional impersonality of scientific writing in creating test items for the general public. However, there are times when the abstract and hypothetical reappear in items with conditional constructions and complicated “if/then” structures. What is the style of Simplified English? In marked contrast to scientific style, the style of Simplified English is intentionally personal and direct. Verbs are active and constructed in the present tense; people do things; other things happen; there are simple statements, questions, and commands. The total length of a paragraph (or an item) is often not reduced. In fact, it may take more words to convey the same information in Simplified English. However, the discourse structure, rather than consisting of well-coordinated, complicated paragraphs, consists of strings of sentences. Complex sentences, often riddled with dependent clauses and lengthy phrases, are, once written in Simplified English, brief and syntactically straightforward. Simplified English constructions include simple and compound sentences only. The general vocabulary (excluding the technical words, of course) contains shorter as well as more familiar words, though frequency of use is more important than word length. The basic vocabulary suggested for simplifying science items consists of about 1000 words (see the Word List in Appendix A) selected from lists of common words

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likely to be recognized by students learning to read in the lower school grades, and supplemented by a few words familiar to teenage students. These are high-frequency words that young English language learners (ELLs) are likely to have met in their social and school experience. Not all words in the basic vocabulary may be used for science items, but used where possible such words identify what is likely to be known and are therefore more easily decoded by the ELL reader. Strictly speaking, Simplified English avoids synonyms, but that seems unnecessarily restrictive in cases where two or three common words—particularly verbs—convey the same meaning (e.g., “start” and “begin;” “finish” and “complete”). Of course, to speakers of Romance languages (Spanish, Portuguese, etc.), the longer English words of Latin origin are sometimes more identifiable, since they have cognates in the Romance languages— but there are problems with false cognates and there are ELLs other than Romance language speakers. It is, therefore, preferable to stick to the common English words (of whatever origin) that ELLs normally encounter in social and classroom situations. The basic vocabulary in Simplified English is supplemented by a designated technical vocabulary. It consists of the words essential to the task at hand, in this case the study of science at the middle and high school levels. ELLs would necessarily have come across these words in the classroom. Hence, it is expected that, if they know the science material outlined in the state standards and curriculum guides, they will recognize words such as “experiment,” “gravity,” “mass,” and “pollution” and have few problems decoding them. Finally, Simplified English, despite its syntactic simplicity and its select vocabulary, is recognizably English. It is a little less sophisticated than normal textbook writing, but it is never reduced to “pidgin,” a hybrid language used between foreigners, or to “caretaker” talk, the sort of language used with young children and others judged unable to understand “standard English.” Sentences, taken together or by themselves, are what a native speaker might easily say if speaking simply. How can scientific assessments be written in Simplified English? Writing in a simpler style is not an easy task, especially for technical experts in a given field. However, teachers, already accustomed to tailoring their language to particular age groups, have a tremendous advantage over other technical experts. The science assessments for 8th and 11th grade students, for example, are already intentionally written in a style accessible to adolescents. An additional effort is needed to make those assessments accessible to English language learners, who naturally think in another language, and who read English slowly and imperfectly. Two principles must be kept in mind: first, the level of reading difficulty must be adjusted for this special audience; second, the scientific nature of the assessment must be maintained. The tension between these two principles has to remain creative. Item writers must learn a simpler, more direct way of expressing ideas without sacrificing content. To do so, they must learn to use language that is brief, direct, concrete, and (for the native reader) seemingly redundant. The difficulties outlined

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and illustrated in the following chapters address the elements of language to be kept in mind when writing or rewriting items in Simplified English for students with limited English reading proficiency. Readability Scholars who have studied the development of reading in children have identified a number of scales to measure the relative difficulty of a passage. Two that are frequently used as writing tools on computer programs such as Microsoft Word and 1 WordPerfect are the Flesch Reading Ease (FRE) and the Flesch-Kincaid (FK) grade level scales (Flesch, 1948). While there are many different readability formulas, nearly all are based on word frequency or sentence length. The strongest predictor of the difficulty of a text is the difficulty of the words it contains. The difficulty of words is strongly related to their familiarity to the reader. Familiarity is strongly related to the frequency that we encounter them. Thus, word frequency essentially means word "familiarity,” since we become familiar with words we encounter more frequently. The more frequent words also tend to be shorter in English and other alphabetic languages (Coleman, 1961). Because of this, word length (counted by the number of letters or the number of syllables) can serve as a measure of word frequency. It is also true that the more frequent words are more likely to be concrete words than abstract words. For example, most nouns included in the Dale-Chall list of 3,000 words likely to be known by fourth grade students are concrete nouns. The second best predictor of text difficulty is sentence length. This is because longer sentences not only contain more information and ideas, but they also involve more complex grammatical structures. Thus, sentence length, usually measured through average number or words per sentence in a text, contributes to the difficulty a student might experience in comprehending the text. Both the Flesch Reading Ease (FRE) and Flesch-Kincaid (FK) scales use word length and sentence length to determine readability. The FRE scale produces readability scores that range from zero to 100. The higher the score, the easier the text is to comprehend. Texts with scores of 15 or lower are considered very difficult to comprehend, a score of 40 = difficult, 55 = fairly difficult, 65 = standard, 75 = fairly easy, 85 = easy, and 95 = very easy (Harrison, 1980:78). It is possible to obtain a score higher than 100, but such scores are rarely found in standard prose. In the Flesch-Kincaid scale, the score indicates the approximate US grade level of those who would understand a text with such a score. Because the FRE is a scale of at least 100 points, it is more sensitive to differences in readability than the FK. Therefore, it is 1

To obtain readability statistics using Microsoft Word 97, click on Tools, Options, Spelling and Grammar. Place a check in the Show Readability Statistics check box, and choose OK. Then, check spelling or grammar in your document by clicking Tools, Spelling and Grammar. After Word completely checks your document, it will show a dialog box with the readability statistics. It will also show the average word length, average sentence length, and percent of sentences written in passive voice.

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more useful in determining if an effort to simplify a text has resulted in an increase in its readability. In the subsequent chapters of this manual, the Flesch Reading Ease (FRE) and the Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level (FK) scores for each complete or almost complete item and each equivalent simplification are provided at the end of each item (for example, FRE 37.5; F-K 12.5). These numbers should be considered a relative guide, providing evidence that items are more difficult or less difficult than what might be reasonably expected of English-proficient test candidates and English language learners. The comparison of before and after scores provides evidence that simplification has in fact made items more readable and, therefore, more accessible to ELLs. The scores should not, however, be considered an absolute guide to what students of science will find accessible. Since the computer analysis of difficulty involves word and sentence length, technical vocabulary in particular items may raise the FRE and FK scores without actually making these items more difficult for students who learned such words in their science class.

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Chapter III Item Reading Load This chapter is about the problem of excessive reading load for English language learners. Among the topics covered are: • • • •

the barrier created by lengthy items; the difficulty of translating and interpreting formal and abstract language; the problem of hypothetical and conditional statements; and the hurdle imposed by a sophisticated writing style.

Length The most evident barrier for weaker readers is the length of the reading material that they must confront. A large quantity of prose, however simple the language and concepts, is daunting because there is so much text to process. For this reason, items should be concise. Questions reliant on long and involved paragraphs are typically counter-productive for all readers, include native language speakers; the burden is greater when the readers are English language learners. Unnecessary information and diffuse language should be eliminated. Consider this short-answer item about ecology: Each species in an ecosystem occupies the niche for which it is best suited. In general, no two species occupy the same niche so that different species are able to coexist peacefully in the same ecosystem. Sometimes nonnative species are introduced into an ecosystem, such as the introduction of the starling, the Japanese beetle, and the gypsy moth into Delaware. Explain how these non-native species could upset the balance and stability of Delaware’s natural ecosystems. Give specific examples of problems that may be caused by non-native species entering the ecosystem. (FRE 37.5; F-K 12.5)

In this type of science item, students receive some context for the content being tested. For example, referrals to specific scientific concepts are a way of simplifying the task for test-candidates. By using examples, attention is focused on a particular aspect of the science. The short-answer item cited above does all of these things, at some length. Next, test-candidates are asked to complete not one but two tasks: one involves explanation; the second involves the provision of specific examples. Further, it perhaps can or should be presumed that the examples provided differ from those referenced in the item. All content—the scientific background, the examples, and the 12

complex two-part request represented by the two tasks—is likely intended to guide test-takers in their answer. Even for young native readers, however, the expectations in the paragraph are subject to interpretation, risking confusion in how to approach the answer. Such confusion centers on interpretations of language, not material content. The risk of confusion is even greater among English language learners (ELLs). In a simplified format, the same item is reduced to a manageable size, and the tasks are stated clearly. Extraneous material is omitted and examples are brief. Thus, the simplified item might read as follows: Two species do not usually occupy the same niche in an ecosystem. The starling, the Japanese beetle, and the gypsy moth are species from other countries that are now present in Delaware. These non-native species can cause problems in our ecosystem. Explain how. Give examples. (FRE 52.9; F-K 8.1)

Abstraction and Chronology Length is not the only barrier to comprehension for ELLs, of course. This student population also has particular difficulty in interpreting formal and abstract language. Since the audience for the science knowledge being tested is young, science items almost always offer a context that serves to offset the formal language and abstractness of scientific concepts and problems. Often a tension exists between scientific ways of thinking and writing and the desire to provide a realistic context. As a result—and the item above is a good example of this also—English language learners are often left to grapple with over-expansive contexts that tend to camouflage the task. Most often, the contextualization is helpful; the inclusion of everyday contexts into test items helps make the science more “real” for the student readers. However, for ELLs the advantage in using a narrative format provides an advantage beyond establishing basic familiarity. Specifically, ELLs are able to process narrative much more easily than struggling to make sense of the complex explanations that often accompany expository writing. For the sake of weaker readers who may have difficulty separating essential from less relevant detail, narratives that are presented in essentially chronological order are optimal. Unfortunately, when telling a story, native speakers (and writers) happily mix up the chronology of a story—or a science item. For native speakers, such chronology shifts are self-correcting, but this is not the case for ELLs. Consider this short and, for the proficient reader, not particularly difficult example from an 8th grade science test: Tim went hiking on a hot day. Before he left, he soaked the cloth cover of his water bottle in water. What will happen as the water evaporates from the bottle cover? (FRE 77; F-K 5.2)

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In mixing tenses, a mixed chronology is effected. In the item above, the content begins in the past and moves to a past continuous; it then proceeds to a further past which is placed before another past; finally, and somewhat illogically, it shifts to a future time expressed in a future and then a present tense. Again, the source of the confusion centers on language, not content. The difficulty of the verb forms used augments ELL readers’ difficulty in identifying sequence, or chronology. This problem is easily corrected by placing all verbs in the simple present tense as follows: Tim wants to take a long walk on a hot day. He fills his water bottle with water. He wets the cloth cover of his water bottle with water. Then he takes his walk. The water in the cloth cover evaporates. What also happens? (FRE 82.1; F-K 3.6)

With all its obvious redundancy and despite its additional length, this simplified version is more comprehensible than the original version for students such as ELLs who possess limited ability to handle tense usage. In terms of increased comprehension, English language proficient students benefit also; the revised item is about two grade levels easier than the original item. Hypothesis Building context into a test item is an extremely useful tool in terms of making scientific concepts more “real” and personally affective to students. Yet a common myth in item writing is that complex language and constructions must be used to uphold the rigor of scientific thinking. Ironically, content may be lost entirely as the mission to test what students know about science becomes confused with what students know or can infer about the myriad complexities of English language usage. ELL readers often struggle to determine what is or is not essential content in their battle to decode complex language. Hypothetical situations and questions are particularly difficult for ELL readers to process since these situations customarily involve a fairly complex form of language. This is most evident in “if . . . then what . . .“ constructions, where present or past tenses in the conditional clause (“if”) are followed by future or conditional verb forms (“will [do]” or “would [do]”) in the main (“then what”) th clause. Consider this 8 grade item, which proved to be tricky for most pilot-test candidates and is potentially indecipherable for ELL readers: A student discovers that 100 grams of wax melts at 60o C. If the student tries melting 10 grams of the wax, what will she discover about the melting point? (FRE 90.0; F-K 4.3)

Besides the troublesome conditional structure, ELL readers have to try to interpret various forms of “melt,” the compound verb “tries melting,” and the vagueness of “discover about.” The conditional nature of the above item is avoided in a simplified version where the hypothetical experiment becomes “real” action and the linguistic difficulties are also largely obviated, without revealing the concept that is being assessed:

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A student heats 100 grams of wax. The wax melts at 60o C. The student heats 10 grams of the wax. What does the student find out about the melting point? (FRE 106.3; F-K 1.0)

In a few science items, the condition is expressed not as an “if” clause but as the conditional outcome of a purpose: • •

To double the speed at impact, you would have to drop the ball . . . What should the farmer do to conduct a fair test?

The effect, of course, is the same—the reader is expected to imagine that a hypothetical experiment takes place. It is important, in simplifying the item, to eliminate the hypothetical experiment and replace it with a “real” one: “The student drops the ball . . . “ and “What does the farmer do?” In most items involving hypothetical statements, however, the condition remains unspoken: there is no “if” clause or purpose phrase, simply a conditional verb. Consider the use of conditional verbs in the following: • • • • •

Explain how the student could measure the volume…. How could some fresh drinking water be made…? Which of the following experiments would best determine…? Which of the following would be a good experimental design? Explain why you would or would not find these openings….

It is significant—and for ELLs a serious problem—that most of these items call for short answer responses, not multiple choice: candidates are expected to continue the unspoken hypothesis (“If X were done”) with a series of sentences with conditional verbs: “could… would…should…might….” This kind of writing is generally out of the reach of ELLs. The solution is to make the hypothetical action real, so that the first two examples might read: • •

The student measures the volume. Explain how. The sailors make some fresh drinking water. How?

Sophisticated Style Hypothetical structures are just one example of the sophisticated language that is naturally used by well-educated native speakers. Another mark of sophistication is the ability to say the same thing in different ways so as to avoid redundancy and maintain interest. At the simplest level, it involves the use of pronouns of various kinds to avoid undue repetition. At a more complex level, it involves the use of synonyms through which the same meaning is conveyed through the use of interchangeable words and expressions. For example, in an item about brine shrimp, the terms “brine,” “salt water,” and (in scientific terminology) “saline solution” are used more or less identically. Rather than displaying elegant and stylish ways to repeat information without appearing to do so, however, science items in Simplified English intentionally will show signs of repetitiveness and redundancy. Even so, repetitive terms

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must emanate from what is considered appropriate English. That is, it is never appropriate to use some kind of pidgin or caretaker speech (i.e., the form of language often used with infants) when writing items using Simplified English. In sum, Simplified English is not intended to insult the intelligence of the ELL reader; instead, its purpose is to clarify language and make the task of reading less burdensome. By the repetition of major words and ideas, it might appear that the reading load is being increased. In fact, though there may sometimes be more words to process, the work required to process them is not increased but lightened. In many items, particularly at the 8th grade level, a certain amount of redundancy already exists. Take for example this item about the position of the sun at different times of the year as illustrated by a drawing of four flag shadows: These shadows were observed at noon on different days in Delaware. Which shadow was observed on the first day of summer? (FRE 75.3; F-K 5.4)

The repetition of the main noun “shadow” and the verb “was observed” is intended to focus the attention of test candidates on the contrast between “different days” and “the first day of summer.” The pretest results show that insufficient redundancy was built in even for the native language reader. The item would perhaps have tested better if the first sentence had read “noon on different days throughout the year” and the second sentence “at noon on the first day of summer.” Obviously, a simplified version of the item would be highly repetitive and make the inference into an expressed reality: A flag at a school in Delaware makes a shadow. The students look at the shadow each day at noon. Which shadow do the students see on the first day of summer? (FRE 90.3; F-K 3.3)

The repetition of “shadow,” “at noon,” and “the students” (the observers, evidently), together with the addition of “flag” (from the drawn options), “school” (where else in Delaware?), and “different times of the year” (for “different days”) makes the point clearer. Summary: The overall problem experienced by ELLs in decoding meaning in science items is remedied only when excessive length or complex content is replaced by language which offers added clarity. Simplification urges the elimination of extraneous material and the arrangement of content in ways that are readily comprehensible to all test takers, including ELLs. The use of context in science items is helpful, connecting students to the material being tested and improving their understanding. Similarly, narrative arranged in chronological order adds clarity to test items and is preferable to the use of formal and abstract language that tends to diffuse meaning. Further, a series of “real” actions embedded in test items improve understanding over the use of hypothetical constructions that typically are difficult for ELLs to decode. Lastly, to direct ELLs’ time and attention on the concept being assessed, all stylistic sophistications (e.g., use of synonyms) should be replaced by an intentionally repetitive and redundant style that requires less verbal knowledge, concentration and effort among students.

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Chapter IV Syntax This chapter centers on the difficulties posed by the structure of sentences. Its content focuses on the: • • • •

effect of complex sentences on comprehensibility; difficulty posed by passive constructions; confusion caused by compound verb forms; and need to limit the use of most modal verbs.

Complex Sentences While the difficulty of a text is affected by its complexity and degree of abstractness, how well readers understand a passage is determined largely by how words and ideas at the sentence level are combined. The most comprehensible utterances are short, complete, “simple” sentences, expressing one idea. However, most writers tend to expand the basic idea by adding a series of less important ideas. Young children and English language learners quickly learn that two ideas can be joined using “and,” “but,” and “or” to form what are called compound sentences. Yet methods of increasing sentence length such as the use of complex sentences impose a greater level of difficulty. English-speaking children learn to use relative clauses (e.g., clauses that include “who,” “that,” and “which”) rather late, preferring to repeat nouns or to use other kinds of pronouns to avoid repetition. English language learners have similar problems in English, even if they have mastered the equivalent structures in their own language. Essentially, for purposes of Simplified English, relative clauses and complex sentences must be avoided in favor of simple or compound sentences. In English, complex sentences are formed by the use of subordinate clauses and adverbial and adjectival phrases. In Simplified English, these complex sentences must be reduced to their constituent parts and presented, not as an integrated and interdependent whole, but as a series of simple, largely singular ideas. Moreover, simple sentences should be kept short: a maximum of 8 words for 4th grade, 8-10 words for 6th grade, 10-12 words for 8th grade, and 12-14 words for 11th grade is suggested as a reasonable limit for ELL readers at those grade levels. And, for the greatest clarity, these sentences should begin with the doer of the action (the subject) followed by the verb and the rest of the predicate, whatever it is, since phrases before the subject, however important, are a distraction and a barrier to comprehension. Consider, for example, the complexity of the sentences and the interference of initial adverbial phrases in this item about the monument called Cleopatra’s Needle: In 1880, a large stone monument called Cleopatra’s Needle was moved from Egypt to New York City. The climate in Egypt is hot and dry, and in the 3000 years that the monument remained in Egypt there was very little change in

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the writings that were carved into the surface of the monument. A short time after the monument was moved to New York City, most of the writings on the monument had weathered away. Explain why the monument weathered more quickly in New York City than it did in Egypt. (11-2-32; FRE 66; F-K 9.6)

In the first sentence, the basic idea of a monument being moved is expanded by phrases related to time (“In 1880”), to type (“large stone”), to name (“called Cleopatra’s Needle”), and to place (“from Egypt to New York City”). The second sentence uses “and” to link a simple sentence (“The climate in Egypt”) to a more complex sentence (“In the 3000 years”). This sentence not only uses three descriptive phrases, it also has two relative clauses beginning with “that”—one describing “the 3000 years” and the other describing “the writings.” Altogether, the sentence contains 36 words. While the majority of the words in the sentence are fairly simple, the sheer number of words used creates a barrier to comprehension. Another barrier to comprehension is the complex nature of word relationships within the sentence. The best way to tackle simplification of this item is to concentrate on its main point, as outlined in the last chapter. This involves the identification and removal of extraneous material. The narrative could then be placed in chronological order, using simple sentences and the repetition of important words as necessary. The result might appear as follows: People in Egypt carve (or cut) writings in a large stone monument. The monument stays in Egypt for 3,000 years. The climate in Egypt is hot and dry. The writings on the monument do not change very much. Americans bring the monument to New York City. Most of the writings on the monument disappear in a few years because of the weather. The writings disappear more quickly in New York City than in Egypt. Explain why. (FRE 74.7; F-K 5.2)

This condensed version is more comprehensible—despite the higher FRE score— due to repetition of words like “writings.” The sentences it uses are simple, direct, logical, and uncomplicated. Each sentence has a subject and predicate (a verb and a complement). In each sentence, somebody does something to someone or something else. The verbs are active: the subject does the action of the verb to the object if there is one, and the subject is stated up front, so that the reader knows who or what is the doer of the action. Passive Verbs The less direct, more impersonal, passive form of the sentence traditionally preferred in scientific writing is more problematic for ELLs. In the passive mode, the doer of the action is not mentioned; the recipient of the action (the direct or even the indirect object) is placed initially and the passive voice of the verb (a form of be and a

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past participle) is used. Scientific writing is full of the passive, and science items sometimes contain passive verbs (see below): • • • •

A sealed jar containing a nail and moist air was placed on a scale…. Two balls are dropped from the same height. Plant A was put on a scale to determine its mass and then placed on a windowsill. A sled is taken to the top of an icy hill.

These examples do not appear difficult to the native reader of English. However, in many other languages there is little or no use of a passive construction; impersonal statements are made in other ways, sometimes analogous to the English “one” (“One hopes you understand” for “It is hoped you understand”), or they are not made at all. To help the English language learner process the information, passives should absolutely be avoided. This means replacing the impersonal expression by an agent or agents, such as “a student,” “scientists,” “Tim,” or “Beth.” For example: • •

A student put a sealed jar on a scale…. Scientists drop two balls from the same height.

Compound verbs Passive verb forms are difficult for ELLs in part because they are compound verbs, made up of at least two parts (a form of “be” and a past participle). In fact, all passive verb forms are difficult and confusing; for this reason, it is important to remove these and instead use verbs in the simple present form when writing science items for ELLs. In many cases, the intent is nearly identical. For example, “Explain what will happen” is expressed equally well by “Explain what happens,” and “Which…would be a good experimental design?” is meaningfully rendered by “Which…is a good experimental design?” In a narrative, the use of a chronological order in the sentences, aided by the occasional use of time markers (adverbs or short adverbial phrases), obviates the need for extensive use of past and future verb forms. The following item is a good example of a narrative that, though easy to a native speaker, has several disquieting verb forms (underlined), as well as a complicated way of addressing the three-fold task: A girl is sitting on a raft in the middle of a swimming pool. She dives off of the raft in the direction shown in the picture above. Explain what will happen to the raft. Draw an arrow on the raft below, indicating the direction of its motion after she dives off of it. Which principle does this illustrate? (FRE 78.7; F-K 5.2)

The main verbs here are active and already in the present (except for “will happen”), but there are also present and past participle forms. Simplified English recommends avoiding even the continuous present tense, as in “is sitting.” To simplify the item, the picture is

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explained first, then the “events” are outlined, and finally multiple tasks are delineated, first as questions, then as commands—all of it done with a certain amount of redundancy: The picture above shows a raft in the middle of a swimming pool. A girl sits on the raft. Then she dives into the water. The arrow in the picture shows the way the girl goes. What happens to the raft next? Which way does the raft go? Draw an arrow on the picture below to show the way the raft goes. This is an example of a principle of science. Write down the principle. (FRE 93.5; F-K 2.3)

Modal Verbs Reducing all verbs to the simple present form without making the language incomprehensible may appear, at times, to be an impossible task. That is the case with certain of the helping or “modal” verbs, which are frequently used with an infinitive to convey the sense of unreal or incomplete action: “may [do],” “will [make],” etc. Some modal verbs can be replaced or omitted, but there is no reasonable way to avoid the concepts conveyed by others, particularly can, must, and want to. Modal verbs are commonly used and therefore generally accessible to ELLs. Moreover, such verbs are preferable to their synonyms, “be able to,” “have to,” and “like to,” etc., since these synonyms have other meanings when not used as helping verbs. Still, other kinds of modal verbs should be avoided (will, make, go, etc.), and even “can,” “must,” and “want to” should be used only with the infinitive (“want to do”) and not with participles (e.g., “want [something] done”). Indeed, the use of all verbs followed by participles (e.g. “go swimming,” “get married”) should be avoided whenever possible, since those compound forms are extremely difficult for ELLs to process. Hypothetical realms are approached in other languages in often totally different ways. By referring to actions not yet accomplished, modal verbs impose added complexity. Summary: At a sentence level, the greatest barriers to understanding for English language learners are length and complexity. Simplification demands critical review of the syntax within a sentence. Simple sentences are substituted for complex sentences with multiple clauses. These simple sentences are direct and usually begin with the subject. Avoid lengthy phrases and the inclusion of infinitives and participles. Use active voice language to replace the passive verb form traditionally preferred in scientific writing. All compound verb forms are reduced to the simple present tense, except for a limited number of modal verbs followed by the infinitive. The syntax within each sentence is clear and concise. This permits readers to concentrate on content instead of the decryption of word relationships.

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Chapter V Vocabulary

This chapter is about the use of vocabulary. Its content focuses on: • • • •

the difference between difficult and accessible words, the overuse of abstract and compound nouns, the use of essential and non-essential technical terms, and the difficulty of synonyms and analogous terms.

Difficult Words As far as the scientific nature of the material permits, Simplified English items should contain words and groups of words that are short, simple and familiar. A word is not easy because it is short. In fact, many short words of Anglo-Saxon origin have multiple meanings (e.g., “start” meaning “begin” and “jump”), odd plurals (“goosegeese,” “woman-women”), or irregular verb forms (“hide-hid-hidden”). Yet long words are almost always difficult for weaker readers. For this reason, a vocabulary list of about 1,000 basic words was prepared and appears as Appendix A. Appendix A contains frequently encountered words that are recognizable to and read by even the youngest readers. The words on the list have specific and identifiable meanings. Whereas a few are used as different parts of speech, most fulfill only one function in a sentence. The list contains synonyms, but these are often used interchangeably. At times, scientific test items must incorporate technical words drawn from the scientific field itself. In fact, part of the definition of Simplified English requires that the basic vocabulary list be appropriately supplemented by the use of technical vocabulary. However, scientific words used in science items should be only those drawn from the curriculum; that is, only those words known and familiar to students from the science classroom experience. Although scientific words may be longer and more difficult than basic vocabulary words, exposure to the words in science courses should make the words familiar to ELLs. Still, the item writer must use good judgment about the use of scientific words in a simplified item. Simply because a word is used somewhere in the textbook or in the curricular materials does not nor should not guarantee that its meaning is known. However, English language learners are as equally responsible as monolingual students for the essential material of their science courses. The primary question in considering the replacement or definition of a particular word in an item simplification is: Should the student know this concept and be able to read this scientific word? A secondary question is: Is familiarity with this word essential to an understanding of the matter being tested or might it pose an unnecessary hurdle to understanding?

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Still, it is often the vocabulary used to build context, the peripheral vocabulary, that provides the most difficulty for ELLs. For this reason, it is important that the vocabulary be as clearly and directly related to the ELL readers’ experience as possible. It is familiarity, not length or apparent simplicity, which makes a word accessible. Low-frequency words always should be replaced with high-frequency words that ELLs commonly encounter and assimilate. Everything in an item should be direct. And, as stated, to help identify words appropriate to ELLs, the vocabulary list (Appendix A) is a highly useful tool. In the following 8th grade item, a number of potentially unclear words and phrases (underlined) should be replaced, as well as the passive voice and the problematic verb forms discussed in the previous chapter: A sealed jar containing a nail and moist air was placed on a scale at the beginning of an experiment and then 2 weeks later. During that time, rust formed on the nail. Why did the mass not increase when the rust formed? (FRE 90.0; F-K 4.3)

In the diagram accompanying the item, the nail at the beginning of the experiment is indicated as a “new, shiny nail” (not the usual English order for the adjectives, either!). This information is not specified in the stimulus; it may well be implied there, but for weaker readers it should be made explicit. The item might thus be simplified as follows: A student places a shiny, new nail in a jar. The air in the jar is moist. The student closes the jar tightly. The student places the jar on a scale and finds the mass. The nail is rusty after two weeks. The student places the jar on the scale again. The mass is the same. The nail gets rusty but the mass does not increase. Explain why. (FRE 94.7; F-K 1.9)

While potentially difficult words remain (“moist,” “scale,” “mass,” “rusty,” “increase”), these are terms commonly emphasized in science classes. Yet the additional item contains another potential problem, one that pertains not to vocabulary but rather to syntax: a negative question. Experience shows that ELLs have difficulty processing and therefore answering negative questions. In most cases, as in the simplified version here, the same meaning can be conveyed by a negative statement, which apparently causes no trouble for comprehension, followed by a direct question (“Why?”) or a direct command (“Explain why.”). Abstract Nouns Abstract nouns, while highly preferred and utilized in the English language, create yet another obstacle for ELLs. Although abstract nouns are a part of normal conversation as well as scientific writing, ELLs are easily confused by the overuse of abstract nouns. Test items are often reliant on formal writing, and the use of abstract

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nouns is very common in formal writing. Consider, for example, the underlined nouns in the following: • • •

Which of the following provides the best explanation for this change [of color]? What is a reasonable explanation for the plateau in the graph? Which is the most likely explanation of the source of this oxygen increase?

The use of the noun “explanation” is advantageous in that it allows for there to be gradations in the way something is explained. However, “best” (bullet one) and “most likely” (bullet three) can be used also with the verb “explains,” while asking students to choose a “reasonable explanation” (bullet two) is a circuitous way of asking them which option explains a phenomenon best, or, simpler yet, is a means of asking “Why?” In all three cases—and in most cases of nominalization—a verb is preferred to the noun: • • •

Which of the following explains this change best? OR perhaps better still: Why does their color change? What best explains the flat part of the graph? Which of the following most likely explains where this extra oxygen comes from? OR better still: Where does this extra oxygen come from?

Another common problem relates to the American English fondness for noun clusters, that is, groups of words where nouns are used as adjectives describing other nouns. Given that most other languages (German excepted) avoid this kind of clustering, English language learners of all ages find its use particularly confusing. (For example, what does “Mammoth Neighborhood Garage Sale” mean? Is a mammoth selling neighborhood garages, or a mammoth neighborhood selling garages, or …?) Even if all the elements are familiar, noun clusters, even those involving just two nouns, can be extremely disconcerting. Whereas “aluminum foil” and “vegetable oil” should be familiar from everyday use, ELLs may have problems with some of the following: “sampling procedures,” “oxygen increase,” “moth wing color,” “plant species,” “road cut,” and perhaps the most challenging example, “standard lab pellet food diet.” Most of these noun clusters can be made comprehensible by dividing the clusters as follows: “increase in oxygen,” “color of moths’ wings,” “species of plants,” and so on. Here it is useful to work backwards: The use of prepositions is almost always the manner in which other languages combine nouns to make specific meanings. Therefore, it is the most useful way to pull apart noun clusters for English language learners. Even the cluster “a standard lab pellet food diet” can be disassembled into “a diet of the standard pellets used for food in laboratories.” However, in this case, the term “lab pellets” alone probably suffices since science students no doubt have encountered the word in the care taking of lab animals in the

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laboratory section of their classrooms. In other cases, clusters almost always need to be separated out or replaced.

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Technical Terms Whether ELLs are likely to understand a word or phrase is central consideration to determine the replacement of vocabulary. Especial care must be given to determine whether each and every abstract or technical term written into a science item is or is not part of the curricular material being tested. In cases where the term is intrinsic to the item’s meaning and its replacement may compromise the sense or validity of the item, the most sensible solution is to “gloss” the term. Glossing the term involves providing a meaning of the term or expression in simple language alongside of it rather than replace it with a weak synonym from the Word List. The gloss provides a way for readers to understand, at least temporarily, a term that might otherwise confound them. In glossing terms, it is recommended that, rather than draw attention to the explanation by using “i.e.” or “that is,” the gloss be placed in parentheses. The relative amount to which substitution and glossing appear in a particular item is, of course, a matter of judgment. Consider, for example, an item about the “experimental variable” (should it be kept because it is probably known, or glossed?) in an “investigation” (replaced by “experiment” as elsewhere in the item) in which biology students “raise” (replaced by “keep”) brine shrimp in various concentrations of saline solution: Biology students performed an experiment raising brine shrimp in 500-ml glass beakers at 30°C for 14 days. Each beaker contained 50 brine shrimp and a solution of either fresh water, 5% saline solution, or 10% saline solution. Which is an experimental variable in this investigation? (FRE 64.9; F-K 6.9).

It would seem fair to expect ELLs in science classes to have acquired terms like “saline solution,” “saline concentration” and even “experimental variable.” It is less likely that they would know “brine.” Without compromising the item, therefore, the term “brine” could be glossed in the stimulus, e.g., “brine shrimp (small shrimp that live in salt water).” The simplified item might then read: Some students do an experiment with brine shrimp (small shrimp that live in salt water). They keep the brine shrimp in 500-ml glass beakers at 30°C for 14 days. Each beaker has 50 brine shrimp. One beaker has fresh water. One beaker has a 5% saline solution. One beaker has a 10% saline solution. What is the experimental variable in this experiment? (FRE 78.9; F-K 4.1)

Synonyms and Analogous Terms In advanced English, writers intentionally avoid the repetition of words. In the original example above, the term “investigation” was used in the last sentence to avoid the repetition of the word “experiment” after the term “experimental variable.” Yet Simplified English requires that standard and technical words be intentionally repeated rather than replaced with

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synonyms or other analogous terms. ELL readers have greater difficulty making the leaps of association that native readers make, and the use of synonyms and analogous terms often is distracting. When writing for ELLs, gratuitous stylistic variation unfairly complicates items by using more or less equivalent words. The following example, which contains a graph, illustrates how alternative wording may pose real obstacles to comprehension:

According to these data, which factor can cause the greatest reduction in fetal growth? Smoking Exercise Weight Diet (FRE 59.7; F-K 8.4)

The graph is entitled “Habits of Mothers During Pregnancy.” Candidates are expected to understand that these “habits” are the “factors” affecting “size of fetus” (called “fetal growth” in the stem), and recognize that the word “Diet” in option D actually refers to the “Calories of food daily” specified in the graph (which is not quite a “habit” like smoking, of course). In addition, for ELLs, there is the logic problem posed by the term “greatest reduction”—how can getting smaller be bigger? Since in the interest of fairness to other students those simplifying the item cannot alter the graph, the best approach would probably be to repeat the elements of the graph in the stem, rather than introduce synonyms for these elements. A Simplified English version of the graph item might appear as follows: Look at the data in the graph. Pregnant women have different habits. These habits can make the size of a fetus bigger or smaller. Which habit can make the size of a fetus smallest? (FRE 81.3; F-K 4.0)

Moreover, it would seem advisable in a simplification for option D to repeat the term “Calories of food daily” of the graph rather than introduce the new abstract term “Diet,” or, if changing the option so radically seems unfair to English proficient 26

candidates, to use “Calories of food daily” as a gloss. This would ensure that weaker readers do not struggle with two sets of scientific terminology in either stimulus or option. Summary: For English language learners who are attempting to read words in a test item, the greatest barrier to comprehension is the use of a varied vocabulary. Synonyms and technical expressions obfuscate meaning for ELLs. Ideally, science items developed for ELLs rely on basic vocabulary words such as those compiled in Appendix A, and scientific words commonly understood in science classrooms and used in science textbooks. Where appropriate, other technical vocabulary should be replaced by simpler words or briefly explained (“glossed”). Excessive use of abstract nouns and compound nouns also must be avoided. Similarly, the use of synonyms and analogous terms common to advanced English must be strictly limited. Word substitution in advanced English is inappropriate for English language learners, among whom word variation imposes yet another obstacle to comprehension. For this reason, where graphs are used for purposes of question illustration, item writers should replicate the vocabulary of the graph instead of inserting more difficult synonyms. The goal is to ensure that science test items test students’ knowledge of science, not language, and that test items are therefore written clearly and directly to promote equal access to the test for all students.

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Chapter VI: Simplification of Item Reading Load This chapter centers on how to reduce the reading load for English language learners. Its content offers advice on: • • • •

language simplification, how to reduce information to the essential, how to avoid vagueness and abstraction, and how to develop chronological paragraphs in the present tense.

The actual process used to simplify the language of an item has to be somewhat idiosyncratic since each person has his or her own way of processing information, reformulating material mentally, and then writing and editing it. The basic advice is the following: decide on the essential information; decide on the simplest and fairest way to present the essential information to young English language learners; write; and revise until satisfied. While it is true that writing is highly individualistic, there are common guidelines that are helpful to observe during the creative process. For example, some formulators of Simplified English manuals (such as the creator of Basic English, Charles Ogden) have reviewed and assembled “best practices” and derived rules from these. In the next three chapters, the intent is to set out in a logical fashion, not rules as such, but approaches to surmounting the language difficulties outlined in the first three chapters. In the final chapter, these approaches are summarized for item writers to use as a guide while working on simplifying items, culminating in a series of “In place of . . . [this],” “Use . . . “ [that]” statements. Because the only guideline governing the development of an item as a whole is the appropriate sequencing of information, the chapter on reading load at the item level is necessarily the shortest. Everything else in item construction, including the elimination of hypothetical and conditional statements and the use of stylistic sophistication, is best addressed at the levels of syntax and vocabulary. 1. Reduce to Essential Information In order to keep reading load to a minimum, candidates should read test items that include only that information which is necessary to understand and interpret a task. Irrelevant details, facts that are potentially distracting, and observations that are outside of the task should be omitted. This does not include the brief information given in order to lend context to a task and which, if successful, make the test item both “real” and comprehensible to students. Nevertheless, such information should be both believable and brief.

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A number of long items have been referred to in previous discussions. Of the examples provided, the lengthiest test item has one hundred words and several drawings. It is quite complex. The item tests knowledge about the property of surface tension that permits water to support objects such as water striders. In it, model water striders made of pipe cleaners and aluminum foil are used. A character named Mary Anne “made sure [the water-striders]…would remain on top of the surface of the water.” The other water striders sank in vegetable oil and alcohol. The contrived situation—presumably caused by an unwillingness to expose insects to alcohol and oil, even to show up the unique properties of water—is simply too great for ELL readers to process. If such an item advanced beyond the pretest stage, ELLs would require a simplified version as follows: “Mary Anne places a water strider (an insect) on the surface of some water….” Even with this simplified language, however, the item will be discouragingly long because the context sets up a dual task: the identification of the unique property of water in comparison to other liquids and an explanation of how this property works. Approach: In overlong and complicated items, reduce the amount of information to that which is essential. 2. Avoid Vagueness and Abstraction Most test items are based on realistic examples and offer context. This permits test takers to understand the examples and apply their knowledge practically. Concrete settings are particularly important for ELLs who have little command of the linguistic tools necessary to deal with vague and meaningless abstractions. The following item, in spite of its diagram showing (by line links) the relationship between carnivores, herbivores, plants, and decomposers, is expressed too abstractly for ELL readers: Carnivores

Herbivores

Decomposers

Plants The diagram shows the transfer of energy in an ecosystem. At each level in the system, some energy is lost and is no longer part of the system. What is the additional source of energy that makes up for the loss of energy and keeps the ecosystem running? (8-2-41; FRE 61.9; F-K 8.6)

It is important to produce a simplification that does not make the item excessively long and apparently more complex. Still, in short sentences free from idioms (like 29

“make up for”), the abstract terms “transfer of energy” and “source of energy” can be rendered by verbs (a more concrete and energetic form of language) and the idiomatic compound verb “keeps . . . running” can be replaced by the simple verb “continue.” The result is language that is admittedly lengthier but, given the essential technical vocabulary, much more straightforward and comprehensible: Look at the drawing of the levels of an ecosystem. Energy goes from one level of the ecosystem to the next level. Some energy disappears at each level. The lost energy is not a part of the system any more. The ecosystem must have more energy to continue. Where does the extra energy come from? (FRE 65.2; F-K 6.4)

Approach: In items with abstractions and vague or complex ideas, use language that is concrete, clear and direct. 3. Use Present Tense Sequences When native speakers tell a story—and when science teachers write test items— both groups tend to intermix description and event, background and explanation, speculation and condition. Item writers often develop story-like contexts for test items. To avoid the abstract and vague and add context, item writers do not always relate everything in sequential order, often writing of what might happen or has yet to happen. In a parallel to storytellers, who use verb tenses as a device to make their stories interesting, item writers also move back and forth in time. But English language learners cannot discriminate among English tenses. For this reason, items that contain various tenses must be rewritten to contain only one tense—the simple present. Recall the example involving Tim. Tim had soaked his water bottle cover before leaving to go hiking. This example shows clearly how three short sentences can contain four or five verb forms that reference different time frames. Yet because multiple verb forms are little known by ELLs, this is apt to cause confusion. And such examples are not rare; in fact, such examples are easy to find among 8th grade items. Take this apparently easy item, for example: Scientists have found plants at the bottom of the ocean that have no chloroplasts. What function will these plants not be able to perform? (8-234; FRE 81.9; F-K 4.8)

In this case, unlike the item about Tim’s bottle where the actions to the bottle preceded the hike and the subsequent evaporation of the water in the bottle cover, the tenses have little real significance. The order of the original item can be kept, while the past, present and future verbs can all be easily reduced to the simple present: Scientists find some plants at the bottom of the ocean. These plants do not have any chloroplasts. So, the plants cannot do one function. What function? (FRE 89.6; F-K 2.4)

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Where there is a real chronological order of events, as in the example involving Tim, there must often be a reordering of the sentences and sometimes the assistance of an adverb of time to elucidate things. In other cases, such as this last item, the change to the present is all that is necessary as far as the tense problem is concerned. Approach: In items containing a mixture of tenses, use sentences with a verb in the simple present tense and place the sentences in chronological order.

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Chapter VII: Simplification of Syntax This chapter is about making sentences easier to decipher. Its focus will center on: • • • • •

how to create short sentences, how to eradicate subordinate clauses, how to eliminate compound verb structures, including passives, how to limit and correctly place phrases, and how to avoid negative questions.

1. Make Sentences Short Items generally consist of short paragraphs in which a number of sentences of different lengths are used. The syntax of the individual sentences is a major factor in the difficulty level of a written text. Those who are simplifying science items need to pay particular attention to keeping sentences short, simple and direct. To do so, they need to focus on the various elements that form the structure of sentences. Educated native speakers often complicate sentences without considering how that complexity affects the level of comprehensibility. The aim of this chapter is to highlight the elements that cause the most problems in syntax and to provide approaches to simplification to render items more accessible to English language learners. Long sentences, however they are constructed, create a barrier to understanding. The difficulty level rises when the various clauses of a long sentence are joined together through subordination instead of through the use of common coordinating conjunctions (“and,” “but,” “or”). It rises farther if the clauses are complicated by the use of lengthy phrases (word groupings without subjects and finite verbs) attached in various ways. The following example is an excerpt of a longer item. While simple vocabulary is used, the length and intricacy of the sentence structure may be complex for ELLs: If black male rabbits, each carrying a gene for black fur and a gene for white fur, breed with white female rabbits, what percentage of their offspring would you expect to have white fur? (FRE 65.3; F-K 12.6)

The item actually starts with two short simple sentences before this long sentence and ends with a short, comprehensible compound sentence with two commands, none of which needs serious rewriting. The biggest problem in the long sentence is the (scientific) condition: “If.” This is perhaps most easily

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replaced by giving the breeding referred to some kind of context, e.g., “in an experiment,” and by breaking the long sentence into short ones. The simplified version of the entire item might then be: A species of rabbit has either black or white fur. Black fur is dominant over white fur. In an experiment, black male rabbits breed with white female rabbits. All the black male rabbits in the experiment carry a gene for black fur and a gene for white fur. What percentage of the offspring of these rabbits has white fur? Explain why. Show your work in the squares. (FRE 87.0; F-K 3.3)

Instead of decoding one sentence with 34 words, an “if” clause, an adjectival phrase, and a complicated, personalized question, the reader has only to deal with three shorter sentences. While one sentence is somewhat lengthy at 17 words, deliberate redundancy is built into it. Moreover, the shorter sentences are all “simple,” i.e., have one clause each. Approach: To avoid lengthy and complicated sentences, use a series of short and grammatically simple sentences. On average, each sentence should strive toward a maximum word count of about 10-12 words for 8th grade and, allowing for greater maturity if not necessarily greater linguistic knowledge, 12-14 words for 12th grade. 2. Eradicate Subordinate Clauses It is useful to remember that there are two steps toward eradicating subordinate clauses. First, identify the various subordinate clause types that cause problems. Second, apply standard replacements. These are profiled in a. -d. below. a. Noun Clauses. Clauses that take the place of a noun in a sentence are defined as noun clauses. Commonly, noun clauses replace the noun complement or object of a verb, as in the underlined portion of the following sentence: “A student wishes to find out whether a nearby stream is polluted.” This noun clause delineates the question that the student wants to find the answer to: Is this stream polluted? Because noun clauses represent questions, many begin with a question word; e.g. “Use the chart above to describe what the weather was like….” The direct question is: “What was the weather like?” Numerous tasks in short-answer items are expressed similarly, using noun clauses beginning with question words after verbs like “describe” and “explain.” Other noun clauses, those representing statements rather than indirect questions, begin with the word “that” and follow verbs such as “think” and “believe” as in the following example: “Bill believes that guinea pigs will gain weight ….” Sometimes a noun or short noun phrase can be used effectively to replace a noun clause, e.g., “Use the chart above and describe the weather.” More often, however, it is necessary to divide a longer sentence into two separate sentences. In that case, if the noun clause represents a statement, the statement can be divided and made directly: “Bill has an idea. Guinea pigs

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gain weight ….” If there is an indirect question, that question can be divided and asked directly, e.g., “A student has a question: Is this stream polluted?” As for the short-answer tasks beginning with “describe how” and “explain why,” the best approach is to make a statement and follow it by a short command. Instead of “Explain how two reactive elements can form an edible compound,“ a more comprehensible substitute is: “Two reactive elements can form an edible compound. Explain how.” b. Relative Clauses. Clauses that are relative occupy the place of an adjective (often being called “adjectival clauses”) and describe or limit a noun. Since relative pronouns such as “that,” “who” and “which” introduce relative clauses, it is easy to spot relative clauses. Since relative clauses impose a structure that is problematic for English language learners (as was explained earlier), such clauses should be avoided or replaced. In most cases it is necessary to convert the clause into a separate sentence and to repeat the noun to which the relative pronoun refers. For example, the single sentence “Bob has a five-pound ball that takes 10 seconds to roll down a 20-meter ramp” is easily divided into two sentences: “Bob has a 5-pound ball. The ball rolls down a 20-meter ramp in 10 seconds.” Sometimes, however, the information in the relative clause can be conveyed by an adjective or a short adjectival phrase in the main part of the sentence. For example, “The woods contained trees whose bark was mostly black” may be rendered as, “The woods have trees with mostly black bark.” c. Adverbial Clauses. Clauses that take the place of adverbs in a sentence are known as adverbial clauses. Such clauses give information on when, where, how and why something happens, and are introduced by conjunctions such as “when,” “where,” “as,” “because,” and “so that.” Occasionally these clauses refer back to information that has been given already, or may even repeat it. For example, in the item about the rusty nail, the question is: “Why did the mass not increase when the rust formed?” Since the underlined adverbial clause merely repeats what has been stated about the period of rust formation, it could be replaced by “then.” A simplification of this part of the item might then read: “The mass does not increase then. Why?” Most adverbial clauses do, however, provide essential new information, so they should be made into separate sentences. In the example involving Tim’s water bottle, for instance, the question contains new information (that the water in the cover evaporates) in an adverbial clause: “What will happen as the water evaporates from the bottle cover?” In a simplification, the adverbial clause minus the conjunction “as” becomes a separate sentence, preceding the question and setting the stage for it: “The water evaporates from the cover of the bottle. What also happens?” The idea of simultaneity conveyed by “as” is partially rendered by “also” but if it were considered important to reinforce the idea, then a short adverbial phrase could conclude the item: “What happens at the same time?”

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d. Conditional Constructions. Grammatically speaking, conditional constructions are only one other kind of adverbial clause, introduced by the conjunction “if.” Yet conditional constructions are important to discuss because such clauses complicate the verb forms of the main clause in a special way. Conditional construction may cause complication without actually being present in words, but simply by being implied or “understood.” The complication of the verb is, in the use of the future tense in open conditions (dependent on events that have yet to occur) and of the conditional forms “would” and “would have” as well as “could” and “should” in closed conditions (dependent on events of the past). The open condition is the classic way of posing a mathematical question. In expressing a mathematical concept, the “if” clause is the variable in the problem, and the “then what” (main) clause centers on the outcome. This is evident in the pseudo-mathematical item about the melting point of wax discussed earlier: A student discovers that 100 grams of wax melts at 60ºC. If the student tries melting 10 grams of the wax, what will she discover about the melting point? (FRE 90.0; F-K 4.3)

The condition in the present tense (“If . . . tries melting”) leads to a potential result in the future tense (“will . . . discover”). Such conditional constructions can be simplified by using present tense verbs in separate sentences. o

A student heats 100 grams of wax. The wax melts at 60 C. The student heats 10 grams of the wax. What does the student find out about the melting point? (FRE 106.3; F-K 1.0)

In the science items studied, however, the classic open condition is rare. Conditional verbs appear most often with an understood closed condition: A student observed the following characteristics in a sample of cells: cell membrane, cell wall, and chloroplasts. How would these cells be classified? (FRE 63.0; F-K 6.4)

The conditional verb in the question results from the assumption that observation leads to classification. The conditional implies a silent closed condition, namely “If the student classified the cells.” A similar kind of understood condition exists in items that ask what should be done as, for example, in the following item about a seesaw that tests the understanding of levers: Tom weighs 60 kg and sits 2 m from the center of a seesaw. Gloria, who weighs 40 kg, sits across from Tom. In order to balance the seesaw, about where should Gloria sit? (FRE 90.8; F-K 3.4)

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The initial adverbial phrase of purpose (“In order to balance the seesaw”) has the same force as a conditional clause such as, “If they wanted to balance the seesaw,” and the conditional verb follows from that. In cases like this, the conditional form of the verb can be simplified to a simple present and the event or idea on which the condition is predicated can be made into a statement in a preceding sentence: Tom weighs 60 kg and sits 2 m from the center of a seesaw. Gloria weighs 40 kg and sits across from Tom. Tom and Gloria want to balance the seesaw. About where must Gloria sit?

Approach: Subordinate clauses (noun, relative, adverbial and conditional clauses) can be made into separate sentences with simple present tense verbs or, when providing less important information, into short adjectival or adverbial phrases. 3. Eliminate Compound Verb Structures The English language makes some subtle differentiations concerning when and how something happens by manipulating the verb forms. For example, compare the following past tense forms of the verb “open”: Michael opened the door. Michael has opened the door. Michael used to open the door. Michael was opening the door.

(simple past tense) (past perfect tense) (habitual past tense) (past progressive tense)

Each verb form has its own special meaning. There also are other past verb forms as well as future and present forms that are used for various shades of meaning. The complexity imposed by various tenses and forms—made worse for English language learners by the changes in the forms of the so-called “irregular” verbs (e.g., go/went/gone; give/gave/given) —are quite difficult for young ELL readers to understand and interpret. a. Tenses. In Simplified English, therefore, it is recommended that all verbs be reduced to their simple present form, e.g., “Michael opens the door.” The change is straightforward enough in most cases: “Scientists have found plants…“ (8-2-34) becomes “Scientists find plants….” “Joe was testing the strength of electromagnets” becomes “Joe tests….” “What will happen…?” becomes “What happens…?” The reduction of all verbs to the present tense may seem artificial to the native speaker; however, the present tense narrative is still grammatically acceptable English—the present is frequently used to talk about the past—and much more comprehensible to ELL readers. b. Modal verbs. In the pursuit of clarity it also is helpful to avoid the use of ”helping” verbs (modal verbs) with infinitives as much as possible. Exceptions to this rule are the modal verbs “can,” “must,” and “want to,” which are frequently used in speech and therefore cause little problem. Even so, the use

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of common equivalents to these three, such as “are able to,” “have to,” and “wish to,” is discouraged since they lead to some confusion, particularly when compound tenses or conditionals are involved. Thus the sentence “You would have to drop the ball . . .“ should be changed to “You must drop the ball.” Another problematic compound form is the use of a helping verb with a participle, either past or present. In the item about the melting point of wax discussed earlier, for example, not only is there the problem of an open condition followed by a future verb with the modal verb “will,” but also a difficult compound verb “tries melting.” The verb “tries” implies that this was an experiment, rather than a fruitless effort, but it is an unnecessary subtlety. Hence the suggested revision would use two different verbs, both in the simple present tense: “The student heats …the wax. The wax melts….” A similar verbal difficulty is present in the item about evaporation from Tim’s water bottle in the expression, “Tim went hiking.” This can be made comprehensible by sticking to a simple present and replacing the possibly difficult word “hiking” with a short phrase: “Tim takes a long walk.” c. Participial Phrases. Participles also can impose problems. Commonly used to introduce phrases and thus expand sentences, these verb forms seem to cause confusion for some ELL readers who do not always recognize the referent (the subject that is doing the action). In an item about cloning, for example, there is a long adverbial phrase that describes how cloning was carried out: Scientists recently cloned a sheep by replacing the DNA from a fertilized egg with the DNA from one of the sheep’s body cells. (FRE 54.8; F-K 11.3)

The underlined phrase that begins “by replacing” can obviously be made into a separate sentence (still quite long), with the subject of “replacing” (scientists, not sheep) now being made very clear: “Some scientists clone a sheep. The scientists replace the DNA ….” Participles are especially problematic when they are grammatically misrelated or unrelated. Although this should not happen, it sometimes does when one is trying to express something succinctly. In the following example, the participle “Ignoring” is left without a referent: Two balls are dropped from the same height. Ball A weighs twice as much as Ball B. Ignoring any effects of air resistance, which statement best describes what will happen? (FRE 84.5; F-K 5.2)

It is not Ball A nor Ball B nor even the statement that must do the ignoring, but the test candidate! Even if it were grammatically correct, this kind of sentence is difficult: separated from the simple sentences that precede it, it is rated as high as FRE 50.5 and F-K 9.4. It is far better to convey subsidiary

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instructions in the form of a simple command placed in a separate sentence after the main task has been made clear: A student drops two balls from the same height. Ball A weighs two times as much as Ball B. What happens? Do not think about the effects of air resistance. (FRE 98.0; F-K 2.1)

d. Passive Voice. Formal written English is used in science test items. Yet formal written English commonly includes compound verb forms. Compound verb forms are perhaps the most troublesome area for English language learners face when reading and responding to science test items. The passive avoids naming the doer of an action and concentrates instead on the recipient—on what is done rather than on who does it. This is, of course, ideal for the scientific discourse where facts and concepts, as opposed to people, are considered important. Although there is an attempt in many science items to provide a context where there are doers of experiments (Tim, Betsy, Abdul, “a student,” or “scientists”), the habit of the passive voice persists: • • • • •

A sealed jar was placed… The container…was filled with ice… These shadows were observed… A mountain was cut away… Two balls are dropped…, etc.

The passive presents no difficulty to native English speakers even when, contrary to logic, it is the indirect object of the action verb that becomes the subject of the passive verb form, rather than the direct object or recipient: “A student is given a small beaker …“, as opposed to the more strictly logical “A small beaker is given to a student….“ In Simplified English, however, the recommendation is to avoid the passive altogether, because it is perceived as difficult. Rather than the passive word order (subject-recipient plus the verb “be” plus the past participle of the action verb), items should have the active word order of subject-doer plus the [present tense of the] action verb plus the direct object-recipient and indirect object if one exists. In some cases, the doer is mentioned elsewhere in the item; in most, it is necessary to endow the item with a credible agent: • • • • • •

[A student] placed a sealed jar . . . [Amy] fills the container . . . with ice . . . [Students] observe these shadows . . . [Road-builders] cut away a mountain . . . [Scientists] drop two balls . . . [A teacher] gives a small beaker to a student…, etc.

The change from passive to active voice is relatively easy to accomplish, even in cases where it seems to introduce an apparently unneeded element into the

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item. Moreover, the passive is easily recognized by item writers—or rather, to use Simplified English, item writers can easily see the passive! Approach: Compound verbs and participles, as well as passive structures, can be replaced by active verbs in the simple present tense in independent sentences. 4. Limit Phrases Like clauses, phrases are groups of words that function much like adjectives and adverbs. Unlike adjectives or adverbs, however, phrases contain no finite verb (or conjugated verb with a subject). Phrases affect the meaning of most sentences, adding essential information and enhancing the interest of sentences. Phrases should not be eliminated or avoided: indeed it was suggested earlier that some clauses could be replaced by phrases. Rather, phrases should be limited in length, reduced to a simpler form if possible, and inserted judiciously in the sentence. Only where this is impossible and where it is justified by content should phrases be converted into separate sentences. a. Adjectival phrases. These phrases are attached by prepositions to noun subjects and objects, and thus function as adjectives. If they are short and simple like this underlined phrase, they should remain intact: “A ship in the middle of the ocean runs out of fresh drinking water.” If they are long and introduce several ideas, adjectival phrases (sometimes called prepositional phrases) should be divided up. Consider the underlined phrase in the following item: This graph shows the change in population of deer on an island over time. What is a reasonable explanation for the plateau in the graph? (FRE 68.9; F-K 6.7)

When we applied the Microsoft Word grammar checker to this item, the following comment about the first sentence was returned: “Long sequences of prepositional phrases can be confusing.” This is true. The information contained in such sequences can be made more comprehensible by dividing the information into two sentences and using the vocabulary of the graph instead of more difficult synonyms. The phrases in the second sentence can be treated the same way. A suggested simplified version with some extremely short sentences, would thus be: Some deer live on an island. The number of deer changes over the years. The graph shows the changes. There is a flat line in the graph. What best explains this? (FRE 99.6; F-K 0.9)

Other adjectival phrases begin with a participle referring back to the noun preceding it. Consider the following examples in which the adjectival phrase (often involving a participle) are underlined:

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• •

A ball dropped from a window hits the sidewalk… The farmer…using…one plot divided into three equal-sized sections. Students studying a moth population in the woods in Delaware found… If black male rabbits, each carrying a gene for black fur and a gene for white fur, breed with…





In all these cases, the phrase adds essential information about the preceding noun but interrupts the basic subject-verb-object structure of the sentence and thus impedes understanding among ELL readers. The remedy is again to separate off the phrase into a new sentence, often but not always making it an introduction to the main sentence: • • •



A student drops a ball from a window. The ball hits the sidewalk… The farmer divides one field into three parts of equal size. Some students study a population of moths in the woods in Delaware. The students find… All the male rabbits have a gene for black fur and a gene for white fur. The male rabbits breed…

b. Adverbial phrases. These phrases provide information about when, where, how, and why things in the sentence happen. Adverbial phrases are essential and normally can be left unchanged if they are short and straightforward. For example, the underlined phrase in the following sentence would remain unchanged, though the verb tense would become present and the relative clause would be divided into a new sentence: “Scientists have found plants at the bottom of the sea that have no chloroplasts. Adverbial phrases can sometimes even be simplified to adverbs: the phrase underlined in “the student could measure the volume of the rock with most accuracy” could be rendered “most accurately” or even “best.” Nevertheless, in Simplified English, the common practice is to separate long adverbial phrases off into separate sentences, just like adverbial clauses. Often, the verb for the new sentence is provided by the adverbial phrase itself. As was seen above during the discussion of compound verb forms, phrases often contain a participle. In the item about cloning sheep mentioned earlier, in which scientists cloned sheep “by replacing the DNA . . . “, the long adverbial phrase becomes a second sentence explaining how they did the cloning: “The scientists replaced the DNA ….” The same approach can be used with the following example: The container below was filled with ice, then sealed and weighed. The ice was melted by slowly warming the container and the contents…. (FRE 77.5; F-K 5.3)

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The difference here is that the sentence order must be changed since the warming preceded the melting of the ice and the passive verbs must be made active: A student fills a container with ice. She closes the container tightly and weighs it. She warms the container and the ice slowly. The ice melts…. (FRE 83.3; F-K 3.3)

Finally, some adverbial phrases are placed first in a sentence to provide either a link with what went before or an emphasis on the when, why, or how of the action. Whereas short adverbs such as “then” or “so” do not bother ELL readers in an initial position, longer adverbial phrases do cause difficulties and, therefore, have to be moved. The second sentence of this item about seasonal color change in plumage shows adverbial phrases (underlined) that have been placed in initial position for both linkage and stress: The ptarmigan is a seed-eating Arctic bird that changes the color of its feathers with the change in seasons. In the summer it is a brownish color, and in the winter it is white. Which of the following provides the best explanation for this change? (FRE 73.2; F-K 6.8)

The second sentence can be simplified by dividing it into two separate sentences, replacing the first “it” by the noun “ptarmigan,” and—most important here—moving the adverbial phrases of time from the beginning to the end of the sentence: “The ptarmigan is brown in the summer. It is white in the winter.” Sometimes, of course, it is preferable to move longer initial adverbial phrases into separate sentences. This is particularly the case with phrases of purpose and reason. In the item about balancing the seesaw discussed earlier, the initial phrase “In order to balance the seesaw . . . ” is changed into a sentence: “They want to balance the seesaw.” The same approach is used in simplifying the item about electromagnets: Joe was testing the strength of electromagnets. To make the electromagnet stronger, he changed the number of wraps of wire around a steel bolt,…. (FRE 67.8; F-K 6.8)

The adverbial phrase of purpose (underlined) is separated from the main clause, and becomes a new sentence: Joe tests the strength of an electromagnet. Joe wants to make the electromagnet stronger. He changes the number of turns around a steel bolt…. (FRE 71.2; F-K 5.2)

Approach: Lengthy phrases, particularly those at the beginning of a sentence, should be converted into separate sentences or replaced by shorter phrases.

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5. Avoid Negative Questions. The negative is a single word in English, but it affects the meaning of an entire sentence. Therefore, it is discussed here. In addressing the simplification of English for English language learners, it is essential to recognize that different languages handle negation differently. In English (except in dialectal forms) a double negative means a positive: just as “it is not unusual” means “it is [quite] usual,” so (literally) “she never helped nobody” means “she always helped somebody.” In some other languages—and in dialectal forms of English—once a sentence is negative, then it is always negative. Moreover, in English, a negative question asking for a yes-no answer usually obtains the same response as a positive question; e.g., to “Aren’t you coming tonight?” the response is “Yes” (meaning “I am coming”) or “No” (meaning “I am not coming”). In some other languages, a negative question asks for agreement only: “Yes” means agreement: “That’s right. I am not coming,” and in contrast “No,” means disagreement: “You’re wrong. I am coming.” In the science items studied there are no items using double negatives or asking negative yes-no questions, but there are some items asking for information using negative information questions. Whereas these might not pose quite the same degree of difficulty for English language learners, the very presence of a negative may cause unnecessary comprehension problems. Perhaps it is because the question form is already demanding—there is inversion, and the verb “do” is used with the infinitive of the action verb but separated from it. What is certain is that ELL readers frequently overlook the negative “not” or “no” even when it is italicized, as it is in the question “What function will these plants not be able to perform?” In many tests such a negative would be capitalized (“NOT be able”) rather than italicized, but the recommendation, when writing items for ELL readers, is to avoid negative questions altogether. In the case of a multiple-choice question such as the one about plants found at the bottom of the ocean, in which three distracters are true, one way of avoiding the negative question is to reformulate it as an open-ended statement: “These plants can do all of these functions EXCEPT….” (Notice that it is advisable to capitalize the important word “except.”) Short-answer questions obviously do not lend themselves to that solution. The negative question can be avoided by the use of a negative statement followed, in another sentence, by a positive question. At the end of the rusty nail item, the negative question is asked: “Why did the mass not increase when the rust formed?” Here, to avoid the negative question in a simplified version, the statement should be short and negative, and the question just one word (the interrogative adverb): “The mass did not increase. Why?” One might be tempted to repeat the negative (as in “Why not?”), but it is unnecessary and it might add further confusion. The use of the negative statement and the positive question or command (e.g., “Explain why”) is adequate in most circumstances. Even the

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multiple-choice question about plants from the ocean bottom might be reformulated as follows: “These plants cannot do one of these functions. Which one?” However, some information questions are both positive and negative in form. Complex “why or why not” questions appear in the item below: Most stomata and guard cells in plants are on the underside of the leaf. Explain why you would or would not find these openings on the underside of a lily pad that lies on the surface of a pond. (FRE 78.6; F-K 7.1)

The question is indirect (“Explain why . . . “) but the need to separate the task with its double question from the rest of the lengthy sentence still exists. One possible simplification of this item might read as follows: Most stomata and guard cells in plants are on the underside of the leaf. Lily pads lie on the surface of water. Are there stomata and guard cells on the underside of a lily pad? Explain why or why not? (FRE 84.6; F-

K 3.9) Approach: Because negative questions create confusion for some ELLs, replace such questions. Instead, use negative statements followed by positive questions or commands.

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Chapter VIII: Simplification of Vocabulary This chapter is about reducing the difficulty of all but the essential scientific vocabulary. Its focus centers on: • • • • • •

replacing difficult words, avoiding idioms and colloquial expressions, using technical vocabulary sparingly, limiting the use of abstract nouns, separating compound nouns and noun clusters, and reducing the use of synonyms and pronouns.

1. Replace Difficult Words In the absence of comprehension at the word level, comprehension cannot exist. That is why Simplified English calls for the use of a strictly limited vocabulary of frequently used (and, therefore, familiar) words, together with the essential technical vocabulary of the particular field. The art of simplification depends on the appropriate use of basic and technical vocabularies. Broadly stated, Simplified English requires item writers to use and select words that all students should know and recognize. The basic Word List in Appendix A offers a guide to the common words which English language learners generally know and with which they are largely comfortable. In many cases, their reading vocabulary will exceed the scope of the list, but in fairly idiosyncratic ways—that is, not all ELL readers will command the same set of additional words. Hence, it is recommended that when writing for ELLs even fairly common words (common enough that they seem to be appropriate for 8th and 11th grade students) should be replaced by words from the list. Short, seemingly easy words like “hiking” and “soak” should be replaced by “long walk” and “place in water.” Common verbs like “seal,” “reach,” and “observe” should become “close tightly,” “arrive at,” and “look at” respectively. And the list could go on. It is remarkable that a large percentage of the words needing simple substitutes from the vocabulary list are verbs, many of them favorites in scientific writing: “discover,” “determine,” “conduct,” etc. Approach: Words unlikely to be known (i.e., words outside the limited Vocabulary List provided) should be replaced by more accessible synonyms from the Vocabulary List.

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2. Avoid Idioms and Colloquial Expressions In the search for simplicity, however, care must be taken not to introduce colloquial or idiomatic expressions which, though often made up of frequently used words, sometimes signify things very different from their original meaning. Thus, “coexist successfully” means “get along together,” but for ELL readers it would be better to use an expression that is less colloquial, such as “live together well.” The formal nature of assessments means that the items themselves contain few idioms. Those that occur should be replaced lest they not be understood or, worse, be taken literally. Language learners tend to take English expressions very literally. Thus the sentence, “A ship…runs out of fresh water,” might conjure up a strange picture indeed. It would be advisable here to use explicit language such as “The sailors on a ship…have no more fresh water to drink.” The formal nature of science assessment means that the number of such idioms used in the science items studied is, in fact, strictly limited, while colloquial expressions are almost completely absent. Those that occur should be replaced lest they are misunderstood or, worse, taken literally. Generally, the use of idioms derives from the desire to avoid more complex terminology. For example, as was noted earlier, the terms “makes up for” and “keeps…running” in the following question probably replace more difficult expressions like “compensates for” and “perpetuates” respectively. What is the additional source of energy that makes up for the loss of energy and keeps the ecosystem running? (FRE 55.4; F-K 10.5)

These idiomatic expressions are intended perhaps to lighten the effect of the surrounding abstract terminology. However, such expressions are likely to create difficulty for ELL readers. Instead, added clarity requires the use of more neutral verbs (“must have more . . . to continue”): The lost energy is not a part of the system any more. The ecosystem must have more energy to continue. Where does the extra energy come from? (FRE 69.2; F-K 5.8)

Approach: Idiomatic expressions and colloquialisms are distracting and potentially incomprehensible to English language learners; in simplified items literal, neutral terminology is preferable.

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3. Use Technical Vocabulary Sparingly At the other end of the vocabulary spectrum is the scientific jargon that often appears in items and should be avoided. This is not the use of scientific words to designate specific concepts or actions for which science students are responsible. Rather, it is the indiscriminate use of tag phrases, such as “specific examples” and “according to these data,” of favorite verbs, such as “determine” and “investigate,” and of special nouns, such as “process.” Happily, these are not widespread in the science items studied, but jargon is a factor. The proper use of scientific terminology is, of course, perfectly allowable in Simplified English items. A distinction must be made even here, however, between those words that are essential for testing the material in the curriculum, and those that are present and make items merely sound scientific. For each item, a determination has to be made as to the essential nature of the technical words and whether, if they must be used, they will be comprehensible to ELL readers who have studied the material. Words that are determined to be necessary, but not part of the material being tested, should be explained in a gloss within parentheses. Thus an essential word like “offspring” in an item might be glossed as follows: “…offspring (the young or the children)….” An excellent example of the glossing of an essential scientific term is found in a later version of a pre-test item that had disappointing statistics, the item about stomata, guard cells and lily pads. The earlier version began: “Most stomata and guard cells in plants are on the underside of the leaf.” The revised version (not a simplified version, but a test item from a later series) reads this way, with the key term actually being glossed in parentheses: “Most stomata (openings to the atmosphere) and guard cells in plants are on the underside of the leaf.” Non-scientific terms or words that are expected to pose an unnecessary barrier to understanding should be replaced with simpler terms, preferably words from the Basic Vocabulary. Consider this item, for example: Overpopulation can lead to the elimination of a species. What causes this to occur? A. Competition is eliminated. B. Vital resources are depleted. C. The population ages. D. The ecosystem becomes independent. (FRE 11.7; F-K 12.8)

Here, there are several difficult words that are necessary to retain because they reflect the scientific basis of the material: overpopulation, species, competition, resources, population, ecosystem, and independent. Other difficult words— infrequent in the vocabulary of the ELL—are dispensable: elimination, causes, occur, vital, and the use of “age” as a verb. Thus, a somewhat simplified version of the item, though one that is still rated quite difficult by the Flesch and Flesch-

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Kincaid scales due to the retention of what is considered necessary technical vocabulary, could read: Sometimes a species can disappear because of overpopulation. What makes this happen? A. Something removes competition. B. The population uses up important resources. C. The population gets old. D. The ecosystem becomes independent. (FRE 18.1; F-K 11.9)

Approach: While essential scientific terminology is retained, unnecessary technical terms are briefly described or replaced by less difficult vocabulary. 4. Limit Abstract Nouns In English, nouns are the preferred part of speech, and in formal writing (in science and business particularly) there is an abundance of abstract nouns. Although the scientific items studied usually contain a concrete context such as an experiment, a tendency toward the overuse of abstract nouns remains. This is th th more evident in the items written for the 11 grade than those for the 8 grade, which might well be expected. However, in Simplified English, the use of abstract nouns should be minimized even if, given the scientific technical terminology, it is impossible to avoid entirely. There is usually a fairly simple “fix” for unnecessary abstract nouns: substitution. Other parts of speech readily render the same meaning. For example, a phrase containing an adjective and a concrete noun may be used to replace an abstract noun. Consider these examples, where the abstract noun that requires replacement is underlined: • • •

Explain how the student could measure with the most accuracy. Plant A . . . received water on a regular basis. Which of the following is the best experimental design to test the validity of this idea?

The intent in each of these item excerpts is probably to give some weight to this element of the sentence. In the first two cases, the phrase with the abstract noun is easily replaced by an adverb: “most accurately” and “regularly.” In the last, the abstract noun “validity” should be replaced, while the other abstract nouns “experimental design” (an essential scientific concept ostensibly known by students of science at this level) and “idea” (already a simplification of the more scientific “hypothesis”) remain: •

Which experimental design tests this idea best?

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Approach: Abstract nouns should be used sparingly in simplified items. Except in cases where abstract nouns are scientific terms essential for an item, such nouns should be replaced by other parts of speech. 5. Break Up Compound Nouns In English, one or more nouns are frequently used in place of adjectives or adjectival phrases to modify the meaning of a significant noun. This is true for both concrete and abstract nouns, for objects and concepts. Many of the compound nouns (or noun clusters as they are sometimes called) in science items, are common, everyday expressions: “color change,” “ocean water,” and “steel bolt.” Others are familiar terms of scientific origin, such as “air resistance” and “plant species.” Still others are uniquely scientific in nature: “experimental design,” “carrying capacity,” and “cell division,” for example. The problem with these noun clusters for English language learners is, as was emphasized earlier, that most languages do not make compound nouns in this way, i.e., add other limiting nouns before the principal noun. Rather, they tend to use adjectival forms of the limiting word or adjectival phrases where the limiting noun is attached to the main noun by a preposition or other word. In simplification, it is best to follow this pattern. For example, “20-acre plots” could be rendered as “plots of 10 acres each,” and a “20-meter ramp” could be a “ramp 20 meters long.” Similarly, “a sheep’s body cells”—which is complicated even more by the mysterious English apostrophe—might be “cells from the body of a sheep.” The pattern for simplification is to segment compounds into their constituent parts, unless they are sure to be known by ELLs. These known compounds include common expressions likely to have been assimilated in daily life, such as “aluminum foil.” They also include terms that are part of the essential scientific vocabulary students are expected to know as specified by the curriculum guidelines. Presumably, “triple beam balance” and “sampling procedures” would be among the scientific compounds accessible to ELL science students at 8th and 11th grades respectively, whereas “moth wing color” and “seed-eating Arctic bird” may need to be reorganized in order to be immediately meaningful. Approach: Unless compound nouns are extremely common expressions or terms that would be known by English language learners through their study of science, they should be simplified into their constituent parts or otherwise explained. 6. Reduce Synonym and Pronoun Use The fewer different words in an item that an ELL reader needs to process, the better it is for comprehension. Therefore, it is preferable in Simplified English to repeat expressions even when in more sophisticated English one might use synonyms or pronouns. Consider the following item:

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A student heated a liter of oil and it began to boil to [sic] 120°C. Later the student boiled two liters of the same liquid. At what temperature did the two liters of oil begin to boil? (FRE 81.1; F-K 4.8)

The “same liquid” in the second sentence, and “it” in the first, are the oil referred to in the first and third sentences. The synonym and pronoun have been used for variety. However, ELL readers would find the item—which does not appear difficult to understand—even more accessible if there were less variety and more redundancy. A simplification follows: A student heats a liter of oil. The oil starts to boil at 120°C. Later the student heats two liters of the oil. At what temperature do the two liters of oil start to boil? (FRE 89.1; F-K 3.2)

The same kind of consistency—or redundancy—in the use of terms is important between the stem and the options of an item, as well as within the stem and options. In the item about cloning the sheep, mentioned in the last chapter, this is not the case. The stem asks: “Which of these is not true of cloned offspring?” while the options each mention “Cloned organisms.” To the stronger reader, these are one and the same, but the substitution is potentially distracting, if not outright confusing. And if consistency is important here, it is even more so when there is a graph as well as stem and options. The disjunctions among the graphical representation of “Habits of Mothers during Pregnancy” and the terminology used to develop its stem and options were discussed earlier. To simplify the item, it is necessary to restore consistency by ensuring that the terms used in the graph and the terms used in the stem and options are identical. Thus “size of the fetus” would be used in the stem instead of “fetal growth” and “calories of food daily” in the last option in place of the equivalent term “diet.” Finally, the use of pronouns for variety in an item is also subject to caution. In a series of short sentences where the subject remains the same, it is often possible in a simplified item to use a subject pronoun without confusion. Thus in a series, “A student . . .He . . . He . . . “ is comprehensible even to less capable readers. However, if there is a change of subject or if the referent for a pronoun is not absolutely clear (i.e., when there are other nouns it might refer to), to ensure item clarity it becomes imperative to repeat a noun even if it seems redundant. In the item about the ptarmigan discussed in an earlier chapter pertaining to initial adverbial phrases, the original item uses the pronoun “it” ambiguously, both in the stem and in some of the options: The ptarmigan is a seed-eating Arctic bird that changes the color of its feathers with the change in seasons. In the summer it is a brownish color, and in the winter it is white. Which of the following provides the best explanation for this change?

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A. The color change helps it find food more easily, etc. (FRE 76; F-K 6.1)

What do “brownish” and “white” refer to? The ptarmigan or the color of feathers or the change in seasons? And in the item option A, what does the color change help? In a simplification, “it” has to be replaced so that there is a reduced chance of causing confusion: The ptarmigan is a bird in the Arctic. It eats seeds. Its feathers change their color with the seasons. The ptarmigan is brownish in the summer. It is white in the winter. What best explains this color change? A. The ptarmigan finds food more easily, etc.

(FRE 83.8; F-K 3.2) Approach: Since ease of comprehension and not sophisticated style is the goal in Simplified English, repetition of words is preferable to the use of equivalent terms and potentially confusing pronouns.

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Chapter IX: Summary of Procedures for Language Simplification In this chapter you will find a summary in schematic form of the procedures recommended in the previous chapters for simplifying science items for English language learners: • • •

procedures to reduce reading load, procedures to simplify complex syntax, and procedures to limit the difficulty of vocabulary.

1. Reading Load:

Use . . .

Instead of . . . • • •

long, complex items VI-1 vague ideas and abstraction VI-2 mixed-tense paragraphs VI-3

• • •

essential information concrete, straightforward terms chronological sequence in present tense

2. Syntax:

Use . . .

Instead of . . . •

long, complicated sentences VII-1





subordinate clauses • noun clauses VII-2a • relative clauses VII-2b • adverbial clauses VII-2c • conditional structures VII-2d compound verb structures • past tenses VII-3a • modal verbs VII-3b • participial phrases VII-3c • passive voice VII-3d multiple lengthy phrases • adjectival VII-4a • adverbial VII-4b • initial VII-4c







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short, grammatically simple sentences separate, short sentences

active, simple present verbs • simple present tense • only can, must, want to • separate sentences • active voice separate sentences or short non-initial phrases



negative questions

VII-5



negative statements with • positive questions • positive commands

3. Vocabulary:

Use . . .

Instead of . . . • •

difficult vocabulary VIII-1 idiomatic and colloquial expressions VIII-2 unnecessary scientific vocabulary VIII-3

• •

Word List literal and neutral terms

• •



abstract nouns





compound nouns (noun clusters) VIII-5





sophisticated variety of words • synonyms and equivalent expressions • pronouns VIII-6



Word List Hard words followed by “glosses” (definitions in parentheses) concrete vocabulary • nouns • verbs • adverbs, etc. main noun with • prepositions + describing nouns • adjectival form of nouns redundancy • repetition of same word



VIII-4

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repetition of same noun

Chapter X: Advice on Language Simplification For an individual working on simplifying items, it is a good idea to start out with the state standards or a curriculum guide (particularly if one is not teaching that material currently). In this way, one will know the teaching and learning requirements and therefore what is reasonable to expect of grade-level students. It also is helpful to have the grading guidelines together with the items in their generic form. After a careful reading of an item and the relevant materials, the essential elements of the task may be focused on, and the fundamental science vocabulary to be retained identified. It may be helpful at this point to underline the main points and to circle the essential science words. If the item is somewhat long and complicated, the issues dealt with in Chapters III and VI apply and decisions must be made about how to rework the paragraph. As part of item writing, it may be useful to identify the elements likely to require simplification (i.e., relative clauses, passive voice, et cetera). Element identification is illustrated in the “Advice” area of Appendix B. Once any basic decisions concerning the item have been made, one can proceed to a quick study of the syntax of the stem, as well as begin to explore the possible options. If the sentences are complex, how are these best divided? What clauses and phrases need to be separated, and in what order should the phrases appear? What are the verbs that need to be made simple present? What are the passive verbs that must be made active? The summary of procedures (Chapter IX) should be most useful at this point, since it enumerates the major syntactic barriers to understanding and refers the reader back to the relevant sections of the chapters on procedures. Highlighting or circling the problems, drawing arrows, or listing what needs to be addressed may be advantageous at this point. Then the item can be studied at the word level. Since the essential technical words have already been identified, it is necessary now to eliminate vocabulary that may cause problems for understanding. A line can be drawn through difficult words and simple replacement words—decided on after consulting the Word List in Appendix A— can be written over them. Unnecessary synonyms can be marked and the standard term put in their place. Scientific terms that must be retained but are not part of the curriculum being assessed can be identified and replacement terms or “glosses” (definitions in parentheses) prepared. Again, the summary of procedures is a useful tool, along with the curriculum guide and the Word List. Finally, there is the writing and revising process. Each sentence should be written and rewritten as the item progresses. Improvements in expression of the ideas will become apparent as one works at the simplification process, and again when one reads over the finished item. Obviously, the more experience one has, the quicker the process is and the fewer times one has to revise. But even the experienced 53

“simplifier” can profit by returning to an item hours or days after first simplifying it, and checking it for sense and readability; the result will be a more polished item. The Checklist in Appendix C is provided as an aid to be used at the rereading and polishing stage. Still more helpful is the constructive criticism of another writer experienced in the simplification procedures. This leads to another way of tackling the job of simplification: the team approach, which may be accomplished by email or even by passing revisions back and forth between members. However, the most effective and least time-consuming method, particularly when people have some experience and a good knowledge of the procedures outlined in earlier chapters, may well be for two editors and two science teachers, whose skills and knowledge complement each other, to work together to simplify the items. This is similar to the method used in the preparation of the items reproduced in Appendix B. Each person has a hard copy of the items to be revised, the summary of procedures for simplification, the Word List, the Checklist (Appendix C), and if possible the grading guides and the state standards. One member (the “scribe”) has a computer linked to a projection unit so that everyone can see the development of the simplified items, and the team works together to revise the items sequentially. Each person reads the same original item, makes rapid notes and marks up the copy before him/her. When everyone is ready to proceed, there is a quick discussion of the purpose of the item and any problems foreseen. Then one person takes the lead in suggesting the first revision, with others offering recommendations or alternatives. The “scribe” types in the revisions as they are proposed and accepted by the group, and the simplified item begins to take shape on the screen. Initially this may appear chaotic, but if everyone is willing to cooperate in listening to the others and in making suggestions, a rhythm is quickly established. The simplified item continues to develop on the screen, and any questions or hesitations about the item can be noted in another document for further discussion or for submission to the authors of the original item. When everyone is satisfied that the item has been simplified in a manner that is complete and fair (the checklist may also be useful here), then the team moves on to the next item. In cases where there is disagreement, it is advisable to note the issue and to move on; the team can return to the item in question later, or the issue can be discussed with the test-makers and resolved by the responsible editor. When the session is over, and preferably after the lapse of a little time, the editors (together or apart) review the simplified items to check on spelling, grammar, etc., and to insure that all necessary simplifications have been made. The most frequently encountered problems are inconsistency in the use of terms and failure to use the simplest vocabulary, but occasionally some potential difficulty has been overlooked. When the editors have completed their review—calling on the expertise of the science teachers if they have content questions—the simplified set of items is finished.

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The advantage of this team approach is the creative energy generated between the members and the continued opportunity to capitalize on each person’s knowledge and strengths. Obviously, each person must be cooperative, constructive and committed to the task: that is, to provide English language learners with the best possible opportunity of demonstrating what they have learned by eliminating as many barriers to comprehension as possible. It has been encouraging to see the enthusiasm of the science teachers involved in simplification teams and their willingness to take what they have learned back to the classroom teaching and testing environment. It is hoped that this manual and the procedures it suggests for the simplification of the language in science items will encourage widespread acknowledgment that English language learners can indeed demonstrate what they know and are able to do when language obstacles are removed.

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References Abedi, J. (1999). Examining the Effectiveness of Accommodation on Math Performance of English Language Learners. Los Angeles, California: UCLA Center for the Study of Evaluation/National Center for Research on Evaluation, Standards, and Student Testing. _________ (1999). “CRESST Report Points to Test Accommodations for English Language Learning Students.” Newsletter of the National Center for Research on Evaluation, Standards, and Student Testing, Special Spring Issue. _________, et al (1997). Impact of Selected Background Variables on Students’ NAEP Math Performance. (Draft Report) Los Angeles, California: UCLA Center for the Study of Evaluation/National Center for Research on Evaluation, Standards, and Student Testing. American Educational Research Association, American Psychological Association, National Council on Measurement in Education. (1999). Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing. Washington, D.C.: American Psychological Association. Coleman, E.B. (1966). Developing a technology of written instruction: Some determiners of complexity of prose. Symposium on Verbal Learning Research and the Technology of Written Instruction. Rand McNally. Chall, J.S. & Dale, E. (1995). Manual for the new Dale-Chall readability formula. Cambridge, MA: Brookline Books. Flesch, R.F. (1948). A new readability yardstick. Journal of Applied Psychology, 32, 221-33. Harrison, C. (1980). Readability in the classroom. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. LaCelle-Peterson, M. and Rivera, C. (1994). “Is it real for all kids? A framework for equitable assessment and policies for English language learners.” Harvard Educational Review 64:1, 55-75. Rinsky, L. (1997). Teaching word recognition skills. 6th Edition. Scottsdale, Arizona: Gorsuch Scarisbrick, Publishers. Shubert, J. K., et al. (1995). “The Comprehensibility of Simplified English in Procedures.” Technical Writing and Communication, 25:4, 347-369. Thomas, M., et al. (1992). “Learning to Use Simplified English: A Preliminary Study.” Technical Communication 39:1, 67-73.

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Appendix A Word List The following list contains approximately one thousand words that are familiar to students who are learning English as a second language and attending regular classes. Most of these students have a vastly larger speaking vocabulary but most of the words below are recognizable to those who are inexperienced at reading English. The list has been compared with a number of word lists used by elementary school educators, particularly the Dolch Basic Sight Word List and the Harris-Jacobson Core Words for the early grades, which are reproduced in numerous textbooks on teaching reading (such as Lee Ann Rinsky, Teaching Word Recognition Skills, 6th Edition,1997). However, it markedly differs from other known word lists in at least two ways: first, a different age group was used, and second, the words presented here are specifically useful for testing purposes. Not included in this list are the most common “helping words”—definite and indefinite articles (the, a/an, some), demonstrative adjectives (this, that, these, those), possessive adjectives (his, her, their, etc.), personal pronouns (he, she, they, etc.), and numerals, both cardinal and ordinal (e.g., three, third). It is assumed that ELL readers will know these. In addition, it should be noted that, whereas many words in English can function as several parts of speech, words are identified in the Word List with the part(s) of speech most frequently used and therefore most recommended for use in Simplified English. The symbols used for the parts of speech are as follows: adjective--a noun--n verb--v other parts of speech--r Finally, it should be remembered that this list, which should be used to construct each item, does not contain the necessary technical or scientific vocabulary associated with the curricular material being tested. That must be used at the discretion of the item writer or language simplifier. *Put in columns, 4 columns to a page. A about (r) above (r) absent (a) accident (n) action (n) add (v) adult (n) affect (v) afraid (a)

after(r) afternoon (n) again(r) against(r) age (n) ago(r) agree (v) air (n) alike(r) alive (a) all(r) almost(r)

alone(r) along(r) aloud(r) already(r) also(r) always(r) among(r) and(r) animal (n) another (a) answer (n) any (a)

58

anything (n) apple (n) area (n) arm (n) around(r) arrive (v) arrow (n) as(r) ask (v) attend (v) attention (n) avoid (v)

away(r) B baby (n) back (n)/(r) backward(s)(r) bad (a) bag (n) bake (v) ball (n) balloon (n) banana (n) band (n) bang (n)/ (v) bank (n) bare (a) bark (n) basket (n) bat (n) bath (n) be (v) bean (n) bear (n) because(r) become (v) bed (n) bee (n) before(r) behave (v) behind(r) bell (n) below(r) belt (n) best (a) better (a)/(r) between(r) bicycle (n) big (a) bird (n) bite (v) black (a) blind (a) block (n) blood (n) blow (v) blue (a) board (n) boat (n) body (n) boil (v) book (n) born (a) borrow (v) both (a) bottle (n) bottom (n)

chicken (n) child/children (n) chin (n) chip (n) chocolate (n) choice (n) choose (v) circle (n) city (n) class/classroom (n) clean (a)/ (v) clear (a) clever (a) climate (n) clock (n) close (v) cloth (n) clothes (n) cloud (n) coast (n) coat (n) coin (n) cold (a) color (n) come (v) compare (v) computer (n) condition (n) conduct (v) cone (n) connect (v) contain (v) container (n) contest (n) continue (v) cool (a) copy (v) cord (n) corn (n) corner (n) cork (n) correct (a)/v cost (n)/ (v) country (n) cover (v) crack (n) crayon (n) create (v) cross (n) crowd (n) crust (n) cry (v) cup (n) curve (n) cut (n)/ (v)

box (n) boy (n) brain (n) brake (n) break (v) brick (n) bright (a) bring (v) brown (a) brush (n)/ (v) bubble (n) bucket (n) build (v) building (n) bulb (n) burn (v) bus (n) bush (n) busy (a) but(r) butter (n) butterfly (n) buy (v) by(r) C cage (n) cake (n) call (v) camera (n) can/can't (v) cancer (n) candle (n) candy (n) car (n) card (n) cardboard (n) care (n) careful (a) carrot (n) cart (n) carry (v) case (n) cat (n) catch (v) caterpillar (n) cave (n) cent (n) center (n) certain (a) chain (n) chair (n) chalk (n) chance (n) change (v) check (n)/ (v)

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D damage (n) dangerous (a) dark (a) date (n) day (n) dead (a) deaf (a) death (n) decide (v) deep (a) defend (v) degree (n) describe (v) desert (n) desk (n) destroy (v) detail (n) develop (v) die (v) difference (n) different (a) difficult (a) dig (v) dime (n) direction (n) discover (v) discuss (v) disease (n) distance (n) divide (v) do/doesn’t/don’t (v) doctor (n) dog (n) dollar (n) door (n) down(r) draw (v) drawer (n) drink (v) drip (v) drive (v) driver (n) drop (v) drug (n) drum (n) dry (a) duck (n) during(r) dust (n) each (a) E ear (n) early (a) earn (v)

earth (n) earthquake (n) east (n) eastern (a) easy (a) eat (v) edge (n) effect (n) effort (n) egg (n) either(r) elastic (a) elbow (n) electric/electrical (a) electricity (n) elephant (n) else(r) empty (a) end (n) engine (n) enjoy (v) enough (a) enter (v) equal (a)/ (v) equipment (n) escape (v) especially(r) even(r) evening (n) event (n) ever(r) every (a) evidence (n) exact (a) example (n) excellent (a) except(r) exercise (n) expect (v) expert (n) explain (v) explode (v) explore (v) extra(r) eye (n) F face (n) fact (n) factory (n) fail (v) fall (n)/ (v) family (n) fan (n) far(r) farm/farmer (n)

full (a) fun (n) fur (n) future (n)

farther(r) fast(r) fat (n)/(a) favorite (a) feather (n) feel (v) feeling (n) female (a) fever (n) few (a) field (n) fight (v) figure (n) fill (v) film (n) finally(r) find (v) finger (n) finish (v) fire (n)/ (v) firm (n) first (a)/(r) fish (n) fix (v) flag (n) flame (n) flashlight (n) flat (a) flea (n) flesh (n) float (v) flood (n) floor (n) flower (n) fly (v) fog (n) follow (v) food (n) foot/feet (n) for(r) force (n) forehead (n) forest (n) forget (v) fork (n) form (n) forward(r) free (a) freeze (v) friend (n) frog (n) from(r) front (n) frost (n) fruit (n) fuel (n)

G gallon (n) game (n) garage (n) garbage (n) garden (n) gas (n) general (a) get (v) girl (n) give/gave (v) glass (n) glue (n) go (v) goal (n) gold (n) good (a) grade (a) grape (n) grass (n) gray (a) grease (n) great (a) green (a) ground (n) group (n) grow (v) guess (v) gun (n) H habit (n) hail (n) hair (n) half (n) hand (n) handle (v) hang (v) happen (v) happy (a) hard (a) harm (v) hat (n) hatch (v) have/has (v) head (n) health/healthy (n)/(a) hear (v) hearing (n) heart (n) heat (n)/ (v)

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heavy (a) height (n) help (v) here(r) hide (v) high (a) hill (n) hit (v) hold (v) hole (n) hollow (a) home (n) hook (n) hop (v) hope (v) horse (n) hospital (n) hot (a) hour (n) house (n) how(r) however(r) human (a) hungry (a) hunt (v) hurry(r) hurt (v) I ice (n) idea (n) if(r) ill (a) imagine (v) important (a) in(r) inch (n) include (v) increase (v) information (n) ink (n) insect (n) inside(r) instead(r) interesting (a) into(r) invent (v) invite (v) involve (v) iron (n) island (n) item (n)

J jacket (n)

jar (n) jaw (n) jelly (n) jet (n) job (n) join (v) judge (n) juice (n) jump (v) jungle (n) just(r) K keep (v) key (n) kick (v) kill (v) kind (n) kitchen (n) knee (n) knife (n) knot (n) know (v) L lake (n) lamp (n) land (n) large (a) last (a) late (a) later(r) law (n) leader (n) leaf (n) learn (v) least (a) leather (n) leave (v) left (a) leg (n) length (n) lens (n) less(r) lesson (n) let (v) letter (n) level (n) lie (v) life (n) light (a)/ (n) like (v)/(r) line (n) lip (n) list (n) listen (v)

moon (n) more (a)/(r) morning (n) most (a)/(r) moth (n) motion (n) motor (n) mountain (n) mouse/mice (n) move (v) movie (n) much (a)/(r) mud (n) music (n) must (v)

little (a) live (v) living (n) long (a) look (v) lose (v) lot (n) loud (a) low (a) M machine (n) magazine (n) magnet (n) mail (n)/ (v) make (v) male (a) man/men (n) many (a) map (v) marble (n) mark (n)/ (v) market (n) marry (v) match (n) mate (n)/ (v) material (n) matter (n) maybe(r) meal (n) mean (v) measure (v) meat (n) medical (a) meet (v) member (n) memory (n) mend (v) mention (v) metal (a)/ (n) meter (n) middle (n) mile (n) milk (n) million (n) mind (n) minute (n) mirror (n) miss (v) mistake (n) mix (v) model (n) moment (n) money (n) monkey (n) month (n)

N nail (n) name (n)/ (v) narrow (a) nature (n) near(r) necessary (a) neck (n) need (v) neighbor (n) neither(r) nerve (n) nest (n) never(r) new (a) newspaper (n) next (a) nickel (n) night (n) no(r) nobody (n) noise (n) none(r) noon (n) normal (a) north (a) nose (n) not(r) note (v) nothing (n) notice (v) now(r) nowhere(r) number (n) nut (n) O ocean (n) o’clock(r) of(r)

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off(r) office (n) often(r) oil (n) old (a) on(r) only(r) open (a)/ (v) or(r) orange (a)/ (n) order (n) ordinary (a) other (a) ounce (n) out(r) outside(r) oven (n) over(r) P page (n) pain (n) paint (n)/ (v) pan (n) paper (n) parent (n) park (n) part (n) party (n) pass (v) path (n) pay (v) pea (n) peanut (n) pen (n) pencil (n) penny (n) people (n) percent (n) perhaps(r) person (n) pet (n) phone (n) photo (n) picture (n) piece (n) pig (n) pile (n) pin (n) pint (n) pipe (n) place (n) plan (n) plane (n) planet (n) plant (n)

plate (n) play (v) please(r) plenty (n) plus(r) point (n) pole (n) poison (n) pond (n) poor (a) position (n) possible (a) pot (n) potato (n) pound (n) power (n) prepare v present (a) pretend (v) price (n) probably(r) problem (n) produce (v) program (n) project (n) property (n) prove (v) pull (v) pump (n) purple (a) push (v) put (v)

really(r) reason (n) receive (v) record (n)/ (v) red (a) reduce (v) region (n) remember (v) report (n) represent (v) research (n) rest (n) result (n) rice (n) rich (a) ride (v) right (a) ripe (a) rise (v) river (n) road (n) rock (n) rocket (n) room (n) root (n) rope (n) round (n) rough (a) rub (v) rubber (n) run (v) rusty (a)

Q quality (n) quart (n) quarter (n) question (n) quickly(r) quiet (a) quite(r)

S sack (n) salt (n) same (a) sample (n) sand (n) save (v) saw (n) say (v) scale (n) school (n) science (n) scientist (n) scissors (n) sea (n) season (n) seat (n) see (v) seed (n) seem (v) sell (v) send (v) sense (n)

R rabbit (n) race (n) radio (n) rail (n) railroad (n) rain (n) rainbow (n) rat (n) rather(r) raw (a) read (v) ready (a) real (a)

separate (a) serious (a) set (n) sex (n) sexual (a) shadow (n) shake (v) shape (n) share (n)/ (v) sharp (a) shiny (a) ship (n) shirt (n) shoe (n) shop (n) shore (n) short (a) shout (v) show (v) side (n) sign (n) silent (a) silver (n) similar (a) simple (a) since(r) sing (v) sink (v) sit (v) size (n) skin (n) sky (n) sled (n) sleep (v) slide (v) slow (a) small (a) smell (n)/(v) smooth (a) so(r) soil (n) solid (a) some (a) soon(r) sort (n) sound (n) south (n) space (n) speak (v) special (a) speed (n) spend (v) spoon (n) sport (n) spot (n) spring (n)

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square (n) stage (n) stand (v) star (n) stay (v) steel (n) step (n) stick (n) still(r) stir (v) stop (v) store (n) storm (n) story (n) straight (a) stream (n) street (n) strength (n) strong (a) student (n) study (v) style (n) subtract (v) such (a) sugar (n) summer (n) sun (n) sure (a) surprise (v)/(n) swim (v) system (n) T table (n) take (v) talk (v) tall (a) taste (n)/ (v) tea (n) teach (v) telescope (n) television (n) tell (v) test (n) than(r) thank (v) theater (n) then(r) there(r) thing (n) think (v) third (a) thousand (n) through(r) throw (v) tie (v)

time (n) tin (n) to(r) toe (n) together(r) tongue (n) too(r) tool (n) tooth/teeth (n) top (n) total (n) touch (n)/ (v) toward(r) town (n) toy (n) track (n) traffic (n) train (n) tree (n) true (a) try (v) tube (n) turn (v) U under(r) understand (v) unit (n) until(r) up(r) upside down(r) use (v) useful (a) usually(r) V valley (n) vegetable (n) very(r) video (n) view (n) visit (v) voice (n) W wait (v) walk (v) wake (v) wall (n) want (v) warm (a) wash (v) waste (n)/ (v) watch (v) water (n) wave (n)/ (v)

wax (n) way (n) weak (a) wear (v) weather (n) week (n) weigh (v) well(r) west (n) wet (a) what(r) wheel (n) when(r) where(r) which(r) while(r) white (a) who(r) whole (a) wide (a) wild (a) win (v) wind (n) window (n) wing (n) winter (n) wire (n) with(r) without(r) woman (n) wood (s) (n) word (n) work (v) world (n) worm (n) worse (a)/(r) write (v) wrong (a) X x-ray (n)/ (v) Y yard (n) year (n) yellow (a) yes(r) yet(r) young (a) Z zero (n) zoo (n)

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APPENDIX B Practice Items for Simplification The 20 items that follow were written for the spring 2000 administration of the science assessments for 8th and 11th grades in Delaware. They are presented here to provide practice in language simplification. The original version of the items for 8th and 11th grades is provided in Sections 1A and 1B respectively. A specimen simplified form is located later, in Sections 2A and 2B, rather than directly below the original. To help in the process, the first five items in Sections 1A and 1B are followed by notes entitled Advice. These notes identify the most important elements needing attention in simplifying that particular item and refer to the chapter, section and subsection (if applicable) of the manual dealing with those problems. Thus, the need to make passive verbs active would appear within Advice as: Passive voice, VII. 3d—referring to the chapter on syntax, the section on eliminating compound verb structures and the subsection on changing passive verbs to active. The next five items are not accompanied by advisory notes. For help in simplifying the items, it is suggested that those practicing simplification should refer to the summary of procedures, Chapter IX. However, the same kind of notes will be found in Sections 2A and 2B after each simplified item as Rationale. As in the manual itself, the emphasis is on the stem of the items; options are only included here when they should form an important part of the simplification exercise. It should be remembered, when comparing one’s own efforts with the simplified English versions here, that there is more than one “right” answer for an item simplification. The intent is to provide in Section 2 what seems to constitute a “best attempt” at a simplified English version. It may be possible to argue for different words or different syntax, but these simplifications are intended to illustrate a strict adherence to the procedures recommended in the manual.

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Section 1A: Original Items—8th Grade 1. Sexual reproduction produces which of the following kinds of offspring? A. Offspring that receive traits of both parents equally B. Offspring that receive more of the mother’s traits than the

father’s C. Offspring that receive more of the father’s traits than the

mother’s D. Offspring that receive the traits of only one parent (8-3; FRE 44.4; F-K 9.5) [Advice: Relative clauses—VII, 2a; Difficult vocabulary—VIII, 1] 2. The container below was filled with ice, then sealed and weighed. The ice was melted by slowly warming the container and the contents. The container was then weighed again. Will the weight have changed? Explain why. [With visual] (8-5; FRE 84.3; F-K 3.2) [Advice: Passive voice—VII, 3d; Past tenses—VII, 3a; Difficult vocabulary—VIII, 1] 3. Why does a person feel hotter wearing a black cotton shirt while standing in the sun than wearing a white cotton shirt while standing in the sun? Explain your answer in terms of heat and light. (8-18; FRE 80.5; F-K 6.5) [Advice: Long sentences—VII, 1; Participial phrases—VII, 3c; Abstract nouns—VIII, 4] 4. What was the reason that horseshoe crabs were found farther up the Delaware Bay than usual during the drought of 1999? A. B. C. D.

Salt water went further up the bay. More rocks were exposed for laying eggs. Fewer pollutants were washed into the bay. Calm waters resulted from lower water levels. (8-28; FRE 69.1; F-K 6.0)

[Advice: Long, complicated sentence—VII,1; Passive voice—VII, 3d; Past tenses—VII, 3a; Difficult vocabulary—VIII, 1] 5. Explain how spraying pesticides onto farmland could negatively affect an area’s drinking water supply. (8-37; FRE 23.4; F-K 12.0)

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[Advice: Noun clause—VII, 2a; Conditional structure—VII, 3d; Difficult vocabulary—VIII, 1; Compound noun—VIII, 5] 6. A female cat had her tail cut off in an accident. She mated with a male cat that had its tail. A few months later, she had eight kittens. How many kittens probably had tails? (8-39; FRE 89.1; F-K 2.9) 7. Which of the following explains why Earth has four seasons? A. B. C. D.

Clouds block the heat from the Sun. Earth changes its distance from the Sun. Earth is tilted on its axis. The Moon blocks portions of the light from the Sun. (8-41; FRE 95.0; F-K 1.9)

8. Explain at least two things you would expect to happen to the food chain above if all the mice were suddenly removed from the ecosystem. [With visual] (8-50; FRE 63.0; F-K 10.6) 9. Assume that the fox is the only predator of a rodent that lives on an isolated island. If all the foxes were trapped and removed from the island, how would the rodent population respond? A. B. C. D.

It would continue to increase. It would increase and then stabilize. It would increase, decrease, and then stabilize. It would be preyed upon by a newly adapted predator. (8-53; FRE 66.7; F-K 6.5--stem only, FRE 62.6; F-K 8.7)

10. Which of these shows the correct sequence in which the Sun’s energy is transformed into electricity? [With visual] A. Sun, Coal, Trees, Power Plant, etc. (8-59; FRE 53.1; F-K 9.8) Section 1B: Original Items—11th Grade 1. The circles in the diagram represent the atoms of a substance in the solid state. In your response booklet, draw the atoms of this substance when it is in the liquid and gaseous states. [With visual] (11-5; FRE 67.6; F-K 8.0) [Advice: Adverbial clause—VII, 2c; Adverbial phrases—VII, 4b; Initial phrase—VII, 4c] 2. During an ice storm, an 8000-lb delivery truck traveling at 20 mph collides with the bumper of a 4000-lb car sitting stationary at a

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stoplight. After the collision, the truck continues to move at 10mph and the car is propelled forward into the intersection. What can you conclude about the speed of the car after the collision, assuming minimal frictional losses? A. The speed of the car is approximately 10 mph. B. The speed of the car is approximately 20 mph, etc. [With visual] (11-11; FRE 49.8; F-K 10.3) [Advice: Long, complex item—VI, 2; Participial phrases—VII, 3c; Adverbial phrases—VII, 4b; Initial phrases—VII, 4c; Difficult vocabulary—VIII, 1, etc.] 3. How do seasonal changes in surface temperature of lake and pond water result in cycling of material between top and bottom layers of water to feed plankton? (11-12; FRE 38.4; F-K 12.0) [Advice: Long, complicated sentence—VII,1; Participial phrases— VII, 3c: Adverbial phrases—VII, 4b; Compound nouns—VIII, 5] 4. Consider a distance versus time graph showing the motion of a cyclist taking a pleasure ride on a highway. Describe how the motion from 1 to 6 seconds differs from the motion from 6 to 8 seconds. Explain how this change could have occurred. [With graph] (11-18; FRE 72.7; F-K 6.7) [Advice: Conditional structure—VII, 2d; Noun clauses—VII, 2a; Participial phrases—VII, 3c; Compound nouns—VIII, 5] 5. A refrigerator is loaded onto the middle of the bed of a truck as shown. The driver slams on the brakes to avoid hitting a car in front of the truck. Will the refrigerator slide into the cab of the truck, slide into the tailgate, or not move at all? Explain your answer. [With visual] (11-29; FRE 78.4; F-K 5.6) [Advice: Mixed-tense paragraph—VI, 4; Passive voice—VII, 3d; Participial phrases—VII, 3c; Adverbial phrases—VII, 4b; Idiomatic and colloquial expressions—VIII, 2] 6. The graph below shows the temperature recorded when a sample of water was heated from -10°C to 110°C. The water received the same amount of heat every minute. During the time on the graph represented by the line from point D to point E, the water was — A. freezing B. melting C. condensing D. boiling [With graph] (11-33 FRE 56.2; F-K 9.1)

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7. A solution was made by dissolving 25 grams of potassium nitrate in 100 ML of water at 30 degrees Celsius. How would you accurately describe the solution? A. Saturated, etc. [With graph]

(11-22; FRE 45.8; F-K 10.2)

8. Fish are “cold-blooded” organisms. A ten-degree Celsius rise in the water temperature will increase the activity of fish, so that they swim more, eat more, and use up more dissolved oxygen. Use your knowledge of cellular respiration to explain why a rise in temperature will cause an increase in the activity of fish. (11-43; FRE 53.2; F-K 10.2) 9. Overpopulation can lead to the elimination of species. What causes this to occur? A. B. C. D.

Competition is eliminated. Vital resources are depleted. The population ages. The ecosystem becomes independent. (11-58; FRE 11.1; F-K 12.0)

10. In your response booklet, using your knowledge of cell biology, classify these cells into two groups based on obvious similarities; give each group a name; and explain the reasons for your classifications. [With visual and table] (11-50; FRE 53.2; F-K 8.4) Section 2A: Simplified Items—8th Grade 1. The offspring from sexual reproduction have traits of — A. B. C. D.

both parents equally the mother more than the father the father more than the mother only one parent (FRE 0; F-K 0)

2. A student fills a container with ice cubes. The student closes the container tightly and weighs it. Next the student warms the container slowly. The ice in the container melts. The student weighs the container again. Does the weight change? Explain why. (FRE 77.8; F-K 3.8) 3. You want to carry a load in a wheelbarrow. You want to lift the handles easily. Where do you place the load in the wheelbarrow?

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Explain why you place the load there. Be sure to discuss forces in your answer. (FRE 93.2; F-K 2.2) 4. There is a very little rain in Delaware in 1999. Scientists find horseshoe crabs farther up the Delaware Bay than usual during this dry time. What is the most likely reason? A. Salt water is farther up the bay. B. More rocks for laying eggs on are out of the water. C. Fewer pollutants go into the bay. D. Lower levels of water make the water calmer. (FRE 72.3; F-K 5.3) 5. Some farmers put pesticides on their farmland. The use of pesticides can harm the supply of drinking water in an area. Explain how. (FRE 73.9; F-K 4.8) 6. An accident cuts off the tail of a female cat. The female cat then mates with a male cat. The male cat has a tail. The female cat has eight kittens a few months after. How many kittens probably have tails? (FRE 91.2; F-K 2.5) [Rationale: Past tenses—VII, 3a; Passive voice—VII, 3d; Modal verb—VI, 3b; Relative clause—VII—2b; Initial phrase—VII, 4c] 7. Why does Earth have four seasons? A. The clouds stop the heat from the Sun. B. The distance of Earth from the Sun changes. C. The axis of Earth is tilted. D. The Moon stops some of the heat from the Sun. (FRE 100; F-K 0.7) [Rationale: Noun clause—VII, 2a; Difficult vocabulary—VIII, 1] 8. This picture shows a food chain in an ecosystem. Then all the mice disappear from the ecosystem. Explain what happens next in the food chain. Explain at least two things. (FRE 80.7; F-K 3.8) [Rationale: Long sentence—VII,1; Noun clause—VII, 2a; Relative clause—VII, 2b; Conditional structure—VII, 2d] 9. Foxes and rodents live on an island far away from other land. The fox is the only predator of the rodent. Then all the foxes disappear from the island. What happens to the population of rodents?

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A. B. C. D.

It increases more and more. It increases and then stays the same. It increases, then decreases, and then stays the same. It becomes the prey of a new predator. (FRE 76.2; F-K 4.6)

[Rationale: Noun clause—VII, 2a; Conditional structures—VII, 2d; Passive voice—VII, 3d; Difficult vocabulary—VIII, 1] 10. The energy of the Sun changes into electricity. What is the correct order of the change? A. Sun, Coal, Trees, Power Plant, etc.

(FRE 61.2; F-K 6.7)

[Rationale: Relative clause—VII, 2b; Passive voice—VII, 3d; Unnecessary scientific vocabulary—VIII, 3] th Section 2: Simplified Items—11 Grade

1. The circles in the picture show the atoms of a substance as a solid. Draw the atoms of the substance as a liquid and as a gas. Use your response booklet for your answer. (FRE 83.3; F-K 4.4) 2. An 8000-lb truck moves at 20 mph during an ice storm. A 4000-lb car is stopped at a red light. The truck hits the back of the car. The truck continues to move forward at 10 mph after the accident. The truck also pushes the car forward. What is the speed of the car? (Assume very little loss due to friction.) A. About 10 mph B. About 20 mph, etc. (FRE 83.5; F-K 3.8) 3. Material to feed plankton moves in cycles between the top and bottom layers of lakes and ponds. Seasonal changes in the surface temperature of the water cause this. How? (FRE 65.7; F-K 6.4) 4. A person rides a bicycle on the road for fun. The graph shows the distance and the time of the bicycle ride. The motion from 1 to 6 seconds is different from the motion from 6 to 8 seconds. Describe how the motion is different. Explain how this change can happen. (FRE 82.0; F-K 4.3) 5. A man puts a refrigerator in the back of his truck and drives away. The driver stops the truck suddenly. Does the refrigerator slide forward, or slide backward, or not move at all? Explain your answer. (FRE 75.5; F-K 4.9)

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6. A scientist heats water from -10°C to 110°C. The water gets the same amount of heat every minute. The graph shows the changes in the temperature of the water over time. Between point D and point E on the graph, the water — A. B. C. D.

freezes melts condenses boils (FRE 70.0; F-K 6.2)

[Rationale: Mixed-tense paragraph—VI, 4; Adverbial clause—VII, 2c; Passive voice—VII, 3d; Initial phrase—VII, 4c] 7. A student dissolves 25 grams of KNO3 in 100 mL of water at 30°C. Which word describes the solution best? A. Saturated, etc. (FRE 71.5; F-K 5.9) [Rationale: Mixed-tense paragraph—VI, 4; Passive voice—VII, 3d; Participial phrase—VII, 3c; Unnecessary scientific vocabulary—VIII, 3, inconsistent with graph] 8. Fish are “cold-blooded” organisms. A 10°C rise in the temperature of the water increases the activity of fish. The fish swim more, eat more, and use up more dissolved oxygen. Explain why. (Use your knowledge of cellular respiration in your answer.) (FRE 63.3; F-K 6.5) [Rationale: Mixed-tense paragraph—VI, 4; Long, complicated sentences—VII, 1; Noun clause—VII, 2a; Adverbial clause—VII, 2c; Abstract nouns—VII, 4] 9. Overpopulation can lead to the elimination (end) of a species. What makes this happen? A. B. C. D.

There is no more competition. Important resources are used up. The population gets older. The ecosystem becomes independent.

(FRE 42.7; F-K 8.6)

[Rationale: Difficult vocabulary—VIII, 1; Abstract nouns—VIII, 4; Passive voice—VII, 3d] 10. Look at the cells in the picture above. Some cells look a lot like other cells. Use your knowledge of cell biology and classify the cells into

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two groups. Give each group a name. Explain the reasons for your classifications. Use the table in the response booklet for your answer. (FRE 79.9; F-K 4.1) [Rationale: Long, complicated sentence—VII, 1; Initial phrases—VII, 4c; Participial phrase—VII, 3c; Abstract nouns—VIII, 4]

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Appendix C Checklist

In this item I have replaced . . . • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

long, complex information vagueness & abstraction mixed-tense paragraphs long, complicated sentences subordinate clauses compound verb structures past tenses modal verbs participial phrases passive voice multiple, long phrases initial phrases negative questions difficult vocabulary idiomatic expressions unnecessary scientific words abstract nouns compound nouns unnecessary synonyms pronouns

• • • •

simple short straightforward fair to all candidates

This item is now . . .

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