The Effect of Language Background on “Foreign” Language Test Performance: The Case of Chinese, Italian, and Modern Greek

This article considers the validity of applying common assessment instruments and scales to assess the language skills of Australian school‐age language learners from different LI backgrounds. I used data gathered from standardized national tests of reading and listening proficiency in 3 heritage languages: Italian, Greek, and Chinese. The tests, known as the Australian Language Certificates (ALC), are administered annually to a large population of language learners at Year 8 or Year 9. I applied Mann Whitney and Mantel‐Haeszel procedures to data from the 1993 administration to investigate score differences and differential item functioning (DIF) between those with and without a home background in each of the 3 target languages. Content analyses of DIF items attempted to identify possible sources of group difference. Findings reveal a strong relationship between home exposure to the language and level of performance on the listening and, to a lesser extent, the reading component of the tests. There is also evidence of differential item functioning, although this effect is stronger for Chinese and Italian than for Greek. The content analysis suggests that the DIF effect may be due to “true” differences in language ability, rather than to test bias. Nevertheless, the use of common instruments and reporting procedures for L1 and L2 learners may be inappropriate and demotivating and, in the later years of schooling, could lead to serious misuse of test scores.