Abstract:
The Basic Elementary Skills Test (BEST) is designed to determine the abilities of Limited English Proficient children from grades K-9 in math, writing, reading, and spelling in their native language of Arabic. The Reading subtest involves reading a list of words as quickly as possible, and on the Writing subtest, children are asked to write a sentence or paragraph depending on their age. On the Math subtest, children identify numbers and work simple math problems. The Spelling test requires that a native speaker of the child's native language read a list of words which the child tries to spell correctly. Scoring is done by assigning one point for each correct item, except in the case of the Writing subtest in which points are added for correct usage or subtracted for errors from the total number of words written, giving a distinct advantage to examinees who write longer sentences.. Raw scores are converted to Approximate Grade Levels which can be used to decide if a child needs academic intervention other than LEP classes. The test is available in Cambodian, Chinese, Vietnamese, Arabic, Farsi, and Spanish.