The BEST Plus at YMCA

Susan Arida
YMCA, International Learning Center of Greater Boston.

As an instructor-participant in the BEST Plus pilot program, I am delighted to say that the BEST Plus just may be the assessment that has been missing from my life. I know that I am not the only adult educator who has been disappointed by the absence of an assessment method that could elicit data useful to learner, instructor and administrator . . . and (at the risk of sounding awfully demanding) be efficient, effective and fun. But the work that has been done with the BEST to earn the "plus" does give one reason to hope.

At the YMCA of Greater Boston's International Learning Center, I am an instructor, counselor and coordinator in a program that serves about 250 adult learners of diverse linguistic, educational and ethnic backgrounds. Our classes, offered morning, afternoon and evening are funded in several ways including a grant from the Massachusetts Department of Education.

My experience with the BEST Plus includes on-site testing of 65 students representing proficiency levels 1-8 in July 2002. This was preceded in June by a two-day training led by the professionals from CAL who had developed the test. And then in December 2002, I was asked to score videotaped BEST Plus assessment conversations with 30 students.

Though my experience is limited to three sessions, it seems to me that the questions that make-up the BEST Plus respect and engage the learner. The prompts are modeled on conversations that might actually occur between two people from different cultures. The text, which must be followed exactly, is not stiff or condescending. The computerized program includes prompts of varying complexity, and has the ability to filter the test questions based on the answers given by the learner, so not every question associated with a particular subject needs to be asked. This eliminates embarrassment and unnecessary stress for the person being tested. This feature, while still providing data on a learner's language limitations, also gives the learner an appreciation for what he or she can do.

Some learners were reluctant to participate at first, but once the grapevine started humming, students actually began to ask to participate. They enjoyed the experience, which is in sharp contrast to the reaction most students had to the BEST without the Plus. Unlike its prototype, the BEST Plus's computer format presents colorful, contemporary and culturally diverse images and situations as lead-ins to conversations on a variety of subjects familiar in daily American life.

Nothing surprised me more, however, than my own enjoyment of the process. I expected to be bored and at the same time anxious about my ability to score consistently and accurately. But the training had provided a good base for evaluating learner responses and though the testing required a good energy level, it was not nearly as exhausting as the BEST because it was interesting to both the learner and the tester. The BEST Plus also includes a range of subjects with questions of corresponding complexity so that the test can examine a particular skill with a variety of prompts, which make the testing more interesting and therefore easier for the test administrator. Once accustomed to the scoring system, the program simplifies data input and offers a greater scoring range; it also allows simultaneous scoring of listening comprehension, language complexity, and communication. My biggest challenge was finding a space that had computer access and afforded the necessary privacy. The right space is essential for consistent scoring and to maintain a comfortable mood so that the student can maintain his or her focus.

At this point, I can only speak about the experience of testing with the BEST Plus and what I observed among students during the testing. I have no way of determining its efficacy in providing data to funding agencies, program administrators and policymakers. We did not receive any feedback on student scores so I do not know if the scores squared with the learner's class placement, nor do I know if my interpretation of the test directives was consistent with other testers. I only know that my data was submitted and received. I also had a list of perhaps 10 or 15 points that I felt needed to be addressed. For example if the test is to be consistent and administered with exact adherence to the text, then idiomatic phrases that might have regional usage should either be eliminated, or like phrases common to a variety of locales should be included. Most of my comments did not address philosophical or contextual issues, but easily adjustable details.

I am interested in participating in the pilot again. I took on the project last summer because I actually had the time to do it. Our program director, Ionela Istrate sympathized with our frustration over mandated assessments without an appropriate assessment tool, and we always like the idea of trying new materials and new strategies. We were also curious about what the "Plus" might mean. We found that it is for the BEST, a positive addition.

Susan Arida wears many hats at the YMCA, International Learning Center of Greater Boston.

Originally published in Adventures in Assessment, Volume 15 (Spring 2003),
SABES/World Education, Boston, MA, Copyright 2003.

Funding support for the publication of this document on the Web provided in part by the Ohio State Literacy Resource Center as part of the LINCS Assessment Special Collection.