Each level of Stanford ELP and Stanford SLP includes questions that cover a range of proficiency levels, from low to high, and a variety of assessment formats, multiple-choice and performance-based. All subtests are group administered, except Speaking, which is given to each student individually.
Reading
Listening
Writing
Speaking
Reading
Reading selections were written for the test by published authors of children’s and young adults’ literature. These authentic selections create a level playing field for all students, and they include a variety of topics and diverse cultural themes that will appeal to students of varying backgrounds, experiential levels, and interests.
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The Reading subtest evaluates word understanding and different varieties of text and comprehension. Questions mirror the developmental nature of good reading instruction and the kinds of materials used in exemplary programs. At each of the four levels, item types progress from sight word recognition and sentence comprehension to vocabulary acquisition and comprehension of printed discourse.
The Reading test aligns with the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) and assesses reading with three types of text:
- Literary — Material read for enjoyment
- Informational — Expository material read for information
- Functional — Materials encountered in everyday life designed to help the reader perform a task
Questions measure two modes of comprehension as well as vocabulary/idioms in context:
- Initial Understanding — Understand directly stated details or relationships
- Interpretation — Extend meaning and infer relationships among ideas
- Vocabulary/Idioms in Context — Predict meanings of unknown words or idioms
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Listening
The Listening subtest evaluates student comprehension of conversational English or Spanish, sentence level and longer discourse. The teacher reads the script or plays an audiocassette that gives a standardized presentation of directions and stimuli.
Responding to authentic task-based questions—Students read a scenario and look at a graphic that depicts the context; then they listen to a short speech and a question and choose the correct response.
Listening for specific information — Students listen to a short speech and/or a question and choose a picture or printed option that answers the question.
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Writing
The Writing Conventions subtest measures students’ achievement in applying the principles that form effective writing:
The direct writing assessment provides authentic information about students’ productive skills in English (or Spanish). It requires a written response to a picture prompt. This subtest measures objectives that cannot be assessed with multiple-choice questions, such as appropriate and precise word choice, varied sentence structure, organization of sentences, and degree of fluency.
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Speaking
The Speaking subtest elicits a variety of discourse samples with efficient individually administered teacher-scored tasks. This subtest evaluates phonemic and linguistic accuracy, informational appropriateness, and overall intelligibility in the language. Teachers can read the script themselves or play an audiocassette with a standardized recording of all stimuli and directions.
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- Read/repeat aloud—Student repeats a word, phrase, or sentence using written and spoken prompts.
- Sentence completion—Student completes the beginning of a sentence using auditory and visual prompts.
- Storytelling—Student tells a story about three sequenced pictures.
- Social interaction—Student responds to an utterance with a single sentence.
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