Tuesday, June 17, 2025

Presentation Panel: Proficiency Measures

Elicited Imitation Test as a Measure of Proficiency for HLs and L2s

• Melissa A. Bowles, Ph.D., NHLRC and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

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As the field of heritage language acquisition expands, there is a need for proficiency tests to compare speakers across groups and studies. Elicited imitation tasks (EITs) are efficient, cost-effective tasks with a long tradition in proficiency assessment of second language (L2) learners, first language children, and adults. However, little research has investigated their use with heritage speakers (HSs), despite their oral nature, which makes them appropriate for speakers with variable literacy skills. This study is a partial replication of Solon et al. (2022), who administered an EIT originally developed for advanced L2 learners on a group of HSs. In this study, we administered the same EIT with minor modifications to ensure their suitability for a wide range of varieties of Spanish to 70 HSs and 132 L2 learners of Spanish with different levels of proficiency and ran a Rasch analysis to evaluate the functioning of the test with the two groups. To obtain concurrent validity evidence, scores on the EIT were compared with participants’ performance in an oral narration, evaluated for complexity, accuracy, and fluency (CAF); and compared with the Versant Spanish Test, which is highly correlated with the Oral Proficiency Interview. Results of Rasch analyses showed that the EIT was effective at distinguishing different levels of ability for both groups, and analyses showed moderate to strong correlations between CAF measures and the EIT and very strong correlations between the EIT and the Versant Spanish Test. These results provide evidence that the EIT is an efficient and adequate proficiency test for HSs and L2 learners of Spanish; its use in research settings is recommended. Potential uses and extensions of the EIT for placement purposes are also discussed, as well as methods for developing similar EITs in other languages.

Proficiency Measures of Korean Language Heritage Learners

• Hi-Sun Kim, Ph.D., Harvard University

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In my presentation, I discuss the operationalization of proficiency measures for a Korean heritage-track course curriculum. The presentation explores the development and measurement of KHL learners’ proficiency in three parts: (1) pre-HL instruction, (2) during HL instruction; and (3) post-HL instruction. In light of the changing demographics of KHL learners and their wide range of proficiencies, I discuss the importance of first identifying the linguistic profile of students that would benefit from receiving HL instruction. In other words, developing the right diagnostic assessment tool to measure HL proficiency before instruction is crucial in ensuring optimal language acquisition. Second, I introduce the performance and proficiency assessments that align with the pedagogical approaches applied particularly to Korean HL instruction, which differ from those of non-HL (regular track) instruction. Last, post-HL instruction proficiency of KHL learners is examined through an analysis of a pre-test and post-test (spontaneous writing tasks) to further discuss the impact of heritage language instruction.

Measuring proficiency in heritage speakers of Brazilian Portuguese: The case of vocabulary size and oral production

• Alexandre Alves Santos, University of Massachusetts Amherst

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This study investigates the use of vocabulary size as an indicator of oral proficiency in heritage speakers of Brazilian Portuguese (BP), addressing the lack of validated assessment tools designed to this population. While heritage language (HL) proficiency is often evaluated using self-assessments or instruments designed for L2 learners, such approaches offer limited validity for HL contexts (Hulstijn, 2012; Martin et al., 2013). To provide a more reliable alternative, we administered the Teste de Verificação Lexical de Português Brasileiro (TVLPB; Sá et al., 2021)—a vocabulary levels test based on Nation’s framework—and a semi-guided oral interview aligned with ACTFL proficiency guidelines (2012) to 20 U.S.-based college students who are heritage speakers of BP. Vocabulary was assessed across five frequency bands (1K–5K), and oral performance was rated on fluency, lexical range, grammatical accuracy, and communicative competence. Results revealed a significant correlation between vocabulary size and oral proficiency (r = .59, p < .05). Participants scoring over 75% across all vocabulary bands demonstrated significantly stronger oral performance than peers with lower scores (t = 3.97, p < .05; Cohen’s d = 1.96), highlighting the discriminative power of the vocabulary test. These findings support the use of vocabulary size as a valid, indirect measure of oral proficiency for heritage speakers, offering a practical tool for research and placement and advancing assessment models that reflect HL speakers’ unique linguistic profiles.

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