Abstract:
The Cambridge Step by Step Assessment to Language Dominance (SSALD) is used to determine language dominance for students in grades K-8 whose home language is Portuguese. The results of the test may be used to plan an individual educational program and to determine when students are ready to transfer from a bilingual to a monolingual English classroom. The SSALD has three parts. The Oral Language Interview examines students' receptive, expressive, and functional language skills. It is administered individually and includes elements such as following simple instructions, recalling story details, using context to derive multiple word meanings, and giving personal information. Scoring is done using a score sheet with skills listed in boxes in order of their difficulty. Boxes are shaded yellow when an examinee demonstrates mastery of a skill, and when three consecutive items have been missed, the examiner moves to the next type of question. Totaling the number of yellow blocks shows the level the student has attained. Within each grade-level cluster (K-1, 2-3, 4-8), students are then placed in Levels 1, 2, or 3. In addition, a Social/Affective /Cognitive Profile Checklist is completed twice yearly by the teacher based on her observations of the student in class. The Reading Comprehension Section should be used only for newly registered students who seem to have equal proficiency in English and Portuguese. These same newly registered students, provided that they are in grades 2-12, should also be given the Writing Sample part of the SSALD. In this section, they will write and edit a paragraph on a given topic. No information on administration time, reliability, validity, or test development is available in the SSALD handbook.