Afghan Language Aptitude Battery (ALAB)

1. Presented by: Michael Bunting Corey Miller Team Members: Susan Campbell Ryan Corbett Catherine Doughty Rachel Strong Afghan Language Aptitude Battery (ALAB)

2. Afghan Language Aptitude Battery (ALAB) DLAB in Afghanistan NATO and DLIELC Requirement Need a Defense Language Aptitude Battery (DLAB) to better predict language learning success in the Defense Language Institute English Language Center (DLIELC) Afghan program Relevance Need better preparedness for follow-on training (e.g., pilot training) and more DLIELC graduates meeting graduation requirements Solution Quick fix for immediate implementation followed by more rigorously developed test

3. Afghan Language Aptitude Battery (ALAB)Timeline

4. Afghan Language Aptitude Battery (ALAB)Content of the ALAB Non-linguistic tests assess aptitude for learning. Linguistic tests assess aptitude for language learning.

5. Afghan Language Aptitude Battery (ALAB)Content of the ALAB: Raven’s test Choose the picture that completes the large pattern.

6. Afghan Language Aptitude Battery (ALAB)Content of the ALAB: Speeded test If the two pictures, symbols, or numbers in a pair are the same, mark the equal sign, “=”. If the two pictures, symbols, or numbers in a pair are not the same, mark the not equal sign, “≠”.

7. Afghan Language Aptitude Battery (ALAB)Content of the ALAB: Figures test Discover the pattern in the FIGURE SERIES and then decide which one of the POSSIBLE ANSWERS would appear next in the series.

8. Afghan Language Aptitude Battery (ALAB)Content of the ALAB Non-linguistic tests assess aptitude for learning. Linguistic tests assess aptitude for language learning.

9. Afghan Language Aptitude Battery (ALAB)Linguistic tests • ALAB has two linguistic tests: Language Analysis and Words in Sentences. • In addition to the ALAB instructions, language and cultural concepts must be adapted and translated. • Language Analysis: Required transliteration of an artificial language from Roman to Arabic.

10. Afghan Language Aptitude Battery (ALAB)Numeral adaptation • Afghans don’t necessarily use the same numerals as Americans do. • We adapted numerals to more familiar ones to avoid distraction and confusion. • Two varieties of numerals are used in Afghanistan; based on survey results, we used the Eastern-based variety.

11. Afghan Language Aptitude Battery (ALAB)Example: Language Analysis test • Word list: zorit..............................the farmer volip.............................the worker zoritvolipupigom........The farmer pushed the worker. • Exercise:

12. Afghan Language Aptitude Battery (ALAB)Letter adaptation • Transliterate artificial language to Dari letters • Dari letters are a subset of Pashto letters, resulting in identical transliteration for Dari and Pashto. • Some transliterated words were considered offensive sounding; therefore, a different sound was substituted.

13. Afghan Language Aptitude Battery (ALAB)Example: Words in Sentences test • First sentence: • Second sentence: Task: Which word in the second sentence does the same thing as the capitalized word in the first sentence?

14. Afghan Language Aptitude Battery (ALAB)Words in Sentences challenges • Cultural transfer: • Change in name: “Bill” becomes “Mahmud” • Some items rely on linguistic features present in English but not Dari or Pashto: • Infinitive “to” meaning “to sail” • Solution: Use whole phrase “to sail”

15. Afghan Language Aptitude Battery (ALAB)Additional challenges • Attractive distractors in English, such as • “To” can be a preposition meaning towards, or part of an infinitive. • “Reserved” can be a verb or an adjective. • While there may be words in Pashto or Dari that are ambiguous (e.g., homographs), they are not the same in English!

16. Afghan Language Aptitude Battery (ALAB)Timeline

17. Afghan Language Aptitude Battery (ALAB)For more information Michael Bunting mbunting@casl.umd.edu Corey Miller cmiller@casl.umd.edu