Fact check
“Nearly half of the native English speakers failed the AZELLA test when it was administered in 2020.”
Reasoning
The provided excerpt from the ProPublica article reports that when the AZELLA test was belatedly given to native English speakers, "nearly half failed." This aligns precisely with the claim that nearly half of native English speakers failed the test in 2020.
On confidence: The claim is directly supported by a reputable source (ProPublica) that explicitly states that nearly half of native English speakers failed the AZELLA test when it was administered.
Important context
The statement refers to a specific administration of the AZELLA test to native speakers, noting the unexpected failure rate, which highlights issues with the test's design or implementation.
Evidence
Supporting (1)
- Tier 1 — Primary sourceArizona Made It Easier for Students to Pass AZELLA English Test — ProPublica
Dugan said. “When we walked in, it was a new test and they had never tested the native speakers, so now they had to.” When that version was belatedly administered to native English speakers, nearly half failed, said Adela Santa Cruz, who…
Limitations
The evidence is limited to a single news article excerpt; no additional data (e.g., official test statistics) are provided to corroborate the exact failure rate or confirm the year 2020 specifically.
- Last verified:
- Sep 27, 2026, 4:30 AM CDT
- Pipeline:
- 2.1.0
- Claim type:
- Factual
Where this claim appeared
Arizona Lowered the Bar for Its English Fluency Test. Experts Say It Will Harm Students in the Long Run.ProPublica · Rafael Carranza