I am becoming a trainer for the State of Kentucky in BEST Plus and BEST
Literacy.  Our program also has CASAS.  What is the advantage of one
over the other?????  Well, BEST Plus is simple and quick and really
focused on the oral fluency of an ELL student.  CASAS can be short if
you give a "locater", but it really focuses on the reading and writing
area of an ELL students.  The BEST Literacy can do this as well, but it
is very narrowly focused with only allowing for the basic skills to be
tested.  Also, an ELL student could basically test out of BEST Literacy,
but still need services in ESL.  Depending on the needs of your program,
there are benefits of all of these tests.  For larger programs, you may
want to focus on the CASAS.  For smaller programs who serve very limited
ELL students, the BEST Plus is simple and quick and accurate as far as
the oral skills.  You can look at the use of BEST Plus and BEST Literacy
on the CAL website.

 

 

Kay Peralta

Community Education Director

Center for Lifelong Learning

332 Champion Way

Georgetown, KY  40324

502-570-8984

kay.peralta at scott.kyschools.us

http://tinyurl.com/2lfnhw

 

The Scott County Center for Lifelong Learning is committed to providing
educational opportunities for individuals and families to achieve
success and build a strong community.

 

________________________________

From: assessment-bounces at nifl.gov [mailto:assessment-bounces at nifl.gov]
On Behalf Of Rodrick Beiler, Ingrid
Sent: Wednesday, May 14, 2008 12:24 PM
To: assessment at nifl.gov
Subject: [Assessment 1311] CASAS vs. BEST

 

Hi everyone 

I serve as the coordinator for an adult ESOL program in Montgomery
County, MD. We offer classes mostly at the beginner level, with some
classes at literacy and intermediate levels as well. I am fairly new to
this field and am trying to determine the comparative usefulness of
CASAS and BEST for assessment of our program. Can anyone comment on
how/why their organizations might have chosen one over the other?

In case it is helpful for understanding my organization's needs, here is
some more background information: 
- We serve about 275-300 learners per semester. 
- Many of our learners have a very low educational level. 
- Pre- and post-tests are administered by our instructors during the
first and last classes of the semester. 
- Placement tests are administered by coordinators at each of our sites
in one-on-one interviews. 
- We provide 36-48 instructional hours per semester. (I wonder if this
precludes our using the BEST.) 
- Most of our funding comes from two sources (government and a private
funder). 
- The cost of standardized assessments is an important factor to us. 

Your advice is much appreciated. 

Thanks, 
Ingrid Rodrick Beiler 

Ingrid Rodrick Beiler 
ESOL Coordinator 
Linkages to Learning 
51 Monroe Street, Suite 1700 
Rockville, MD 20850 
Phone: (240) 777-1110 
Fax: (240) 777-1111 
ingrid.rodrickbeiler at montgomerycountymd.gov 

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