Differential item functioning (DIF) : what functions differently for immigrant students in PISA 2009 reading items?

This analysis focuses on identifying items that present Differential Item Functioning (DIF) between native and immigrant students in the PISA 2009 reading assessment. The findings indicate that thirty-five percent of the 95 items or questions included in the analysis present DIF. This is an important finding because it can help us detect content that is treated differently between different groups of students. In particular, we found that immigrant students perform better than native ones in about half of the items with DIF and that they tend to perform better in questions that relate to situations and types of reading typically done in school settings. Policy measures aimed at ensuring educational achievement for all students can be informed by studies of this kind.