Effects of Removing the Time Limit on First and Second Language Intelligence Test Performance

Canadian post-secondary students with a moderate level of second language competence in English or French took the Wonderlic Personnel Test with the standard 12-min time limit or with no time limit. Participants who took the timed test in their second language scored lower than those who took it in their mother tongue, but the disadvantage was greater for limited French-proficient (LFP) students than for limited English-proficient (LEP) students. Scores increased with no time limit and the gain was greater on the French test for LFP students than for mother tongue students. On the English test, the gain was similar for LEP students and mother tongue students. It is concluded that the time accommodation can be applied to clients who are taking an intelligence test in their second language. Maximum performance psychological tests enjoy widespread use in North America, particularly for educational and employment decisions. Ever since they were administered en masse to U.S. army recruits and immigrants in the early 1900s, the testing of minorities, particularly limited-English proficient (LEP) clients, has been controversial (Samelson, 1977). The issue is test fairness or "intercept bias": the possibility that the minority group scores lower than the majority on the test but not on the criterion (Anastasi & Urbina, 1997). LEP clients may be disadvantaged on a standardized intelligence test given in English, but they may be just as capable in school or on the job as native English speakers (Cummins, 1987). In the U.S., 15 to 20% of students speak a language other than English at home (Geisenger & Carlson, 1992). In Canada, the corresponding percentage is 32 (23% speaking the second official language, French) (Statistics Canada, 1996). Although it may (Angus, 2000) or may not (Lam, 1993; Rivera, Vincent, Hafner & LaCelle-Peterson, 1997) be appropriate to administer achievement tests to LEP clients in the majority language, doing so with tests of general cognitive functioning (intelligence) is questionable. Test scores of LEP clients will vary with their English skills, and are likely to underestimate their ability to learn, which should remain relatively constant (Angus, 2000). Indeed, even bilingual children perform more poorly than monolinguals on standardized tests (Valdes & Figueroa, 1994). To alleviate this problem, students could be assessed with a nonverbal test of intelligence, with a test in their own language, or with a modified test in the majority language. Although nonverbal tests have been defended (e.g., Bracken & McCallum, 2001), they may not measure the same cognitive functions as verbal intelligence tests (Angus, 2000; Anastasi & Urbina, 1997), and they are less successful than verbal tests at predicting educational performance (Angus, 2000; Geisenger & Carlson, 1992; Gregory, 2000). Such problems can be avoided by administering the test in the client’s own language, but there can be problems in translation, with no guarantee that the second-language version measures the same construct as the original (Wonderlic, 1992). Moreover, few tests have been translated from English (Geisenger & Carlson, 1992). The third solution is to modify the original test or test conditions to minimize the disadvantage to the LEP client. For example, grammar may be simplified, a glossary of terms may be provided, or time constraints may be relaxed (Azar, 1999; Rivera et al., 1997). In a survey of statewide assessment programs, it was found that 52% of states permitted amendments for LEP students, and the most popular one (81%) was giving extra time. As with test translation, there is no guarantee that such changes will preserve test validity, but an accommodation can be said to work if it provides a "differential advantage" to the LEP client (Azar, 1999). This means that the gain that accrues from the accommodation must be greater for LEP than for English mother tongue clients. It has been found that SAT scores increase for LEP clients who have extra time, but it is not clear if the gain is greater than for other regular students (Azar, 1999). More research is needed on the effect of test modifications (Rivera et al., 1997). The purpose of the present study is to investigate the effect of removing the time limit for students taking a Page 1 of 6 1 Mullane and McKelvie: Effects of Removing the Time Limit on First and Second Language I Published by ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst, 2000 standardized intelligence test in their second language. To evaluate whether the accommodation worked, the results were compared with those obtained by students who took the test in their mother tongue. In our study, participants completed the 50-item spiral-omnibus Wonderlic Personnel Test (WPT) with the standard time limit or with unlimited time. The WPT is widely employed in personnel selection, and can be used in educational settings (Wonderlic, 1992). Although Murphy (1984) doubts the manual’s claim that it measures the "ability to learn," he states that it is a useful predictor of job performance. Furthermore, it can be classified as a test of general intelligence, because the items are based on the Otis Self-administering Tests of Mental Ability, and cover numerical reasoning, verbal reasoning, synonyms-antonyms, nonverbal reasoning, information, and attention to detail (McKelvie, 1992). Moreover, its loadings on Aptitude G of the General Aptitude Test Battery exceed .56, and its scores correlate moderately to very highly (up to .90; Dodrill, 1981; Dodrill & Warner, 1988) with the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale in general and psychiatric groups. Wonderlic (1992) also states that the test correlates reasonably (from .30 to .45) with academic achievement, so that it can be used as a selection and counseling tool in postsecondary education. Correlations at the university level are lower than those at high school (McKelvie, 1989, 1992), but this may be due to restriction of range. Under standard instructions, the WPT is administered with a 12-min time limit, which makes it a highly-speeded test (Davou & McKelvie, 1984). Belcher (1992) states that this may be unfair for the increasing number of LEP clients. When answering an item, they may have to translate it into their mother tongue to fully understand its meaning. By spending more time than the native English speaker on item comprehension, they will not be able to complete as many items in the restricted time allowed. Although they may answer correctly on the items that they attempt, their obtained score will underestimate their true score. Indeed, the Wonderlic (1992) manual reports that Hispanic Americans scored about six points lower than white Americans on the English WPT. It is also notable that one study has shown that the time accommodation worked on the WPT for students with weak study habits (Davou & McKelvie, 1984). In the standard timed condition, scores were lower for students with weak than with strong study habits. However, the gain with unlimited time was greater for the weak than the strong studiers. The WPT has also been translated into French for Canadian use, particularly in Québec, where the majority mother tongue is French. Here, English speakers are the minority. On the other hand, in the Québec academic setting where testing took place, the language of instruction is English and students are enrolled from all parts of Canada (as well as the U.S. and overseas). Here, French speakers are the minority. Thus, we had the opportunity to examine the effect of removing the time limit not only for LEP (French mother tongue) clients taking the test in English, but also for LFP (limited-French proficient, English mother tongue) clients taking the test in French. It was hypothesized that, although all participants would benefit from the relaxed time constraint, the gain would be greater for people taking the test in their second language. That is, the gain should be greater on the English WPT for French (LEP) compared to English mother tongue students, and on the French WPT for English (LFP) compared to French mother tongue students.