ABSTRACT
Recent research and policy changes highlight the need to examine the cultural and linguistic dimensions of assessment, particularly as part of a system for identifying students with disabilities. A considerable body of evidence substantiates that students of color, students living in poverty, and English language learners are disproportionately represented in special education (Artiles, Rueda, Salazar, & Higareda, 2005; Donovan & Cross, 2002). In addition, intervention research suggests that appropriate instruction can reduce the need for special education by accelerating students’ literacy development (Scanlon, Vellutino, Small, Fanuele, & Sweeney, 2005; Blachman et al., 2004; Taylor, Short, Shearer, & Frye, 2007). Changes in legal policies at state and national levels around special education identifi cation procedures have forced far greater attention on the instructional context and on the appropriateness and quality of intervention services. This has led the education community to confront more directly the culturally situated nature of assessment tools and practices and the close link between assessment, instruction, and educational goals when evaluating students’ abilities.
