Reading assessments

Independent reading level

A reading level in which a student can read and comprehend independently. A text is on a student's independent reading level if they are able to read it with at least 95% accuracy.

Instructional reading level

A reading level that is challenging for the student but manageable with teacher support. A text is on a student's instructional reading level if they are able to read it with 90%-94% accuracy.

Frustrational reading level

A reading level that is difficult for the student and requires extensive teacher support to ensure student comprehension. A text is on a student's frustrational reading level if they are able to read it with below 90% accuracy.

What are some interventions and support for students with dyslexia?

• Multisensory approaches (use of manipulatives, physical gestures, touch-and-read)

• Explicit phonics instruction

• Assistive technology such as audiobooks

What are some interventions and support for students with ADHD?

• Chunking reading assignments

• Using visual cues such as a Pay Attention To list

• Incorporating interactive activities

What are some interventions and support for phonemic awareness?

• Provide explicit phonemic awareness instruction, including rhyming activities and sound manipulation exercises, such as noting how changing the shape of the mouth changes the sound of a word

What are some interventions and support for phonics?

• Use systematic and explicit phonics instruction, incorporating visual aids and hands-on activities

What are some interventions and support for fluency?

• Break down text into smaller sections

• Use audiobooks

• Provide opportunities for repeated reading

What are some interventions and support for vocabulary?

• Incorporate vocabulary-building activities such as root words

• Use visual aids

• Provide contextualized word usage

What are some interventions and support for comprehension?

• Teach explicit comprehension strategies

• Use graphic organizers

• Encourage discussion and questioning

Phonemic awareness

Recognizing and manipulating individual sounds and words

Phonics

Associating sounds with letters and recognizing letter patterns

Fluency

Reading with accuracy, speed, and expression

Informal assessment

More flexible and can be adjusted to fit the situation and the particular needs of the student being tested

Common ways a teacher will informally assess students in a reading classroom include:

• class or small group discussions

• oral retellings

• listening to students who have volunteered to read aloud or share a response

Formal assessment

usually involve the use of a standardized rubric or scoring guide based on several criteria rather than on a single numerical score

Common formal assessments in a reading class include:

• reading-error analyses

• phonics surveys

• spelling surveys

• oral reading fluency measures

Entry-level assessment (pre-assessment)

This type of assessment occurs at the beginning of instruction. It is used to determine students' current skill levels and allows the teacher to plan instruction accordingly.

Diagnostic assessment

This assessment is used to "diagnose" a specific difficulty a student is having

Ongoing curriculum based assessments

This type of assessment is used to track student progress throughout instruction. It can be used to identify a lack of progress that would lead to a change in the instruction plan or demonstrate that the current plan is working

Formative assessment

This type of assessment occurs during instruction. It is used to guide instruction meaning it's administered to assess students' progress toward meeting a learning objective so teachers can adjust instruction if needed.

Summative assessment

This type of assessment occurs at the end of instruction. It is used to determine whether or not the student has met the instructional goals.

A fair assessment consists of what?

Valid, clear, free of bias, and reliable

Validity

Assessments should measure what they intend to measure. Students should be assessed on what they have been taught. Students should also be assessed at the same level at which they were taught.

Reliability

Assessments should produce consistent results that can be replicated. When given a reliable test, students should produce the same score when given the same test in similar conditions.

Clarity of language

The language used should be at an appropriate vocabulary level for students, and slang terms should be avoided.

Freedom of bias

Test items should not offend or penalize students due to their background or culture. Considering student diversity is essential when considering potential bias in an assessment. Teachers cannot assume students have the background knowledge needed to fully understand questions they may encounter.

Code-based instruction

believes that students need to learn phonics and phonemic concepts in order to decode words.

Meaning based instruction

utilizes whole-language theory and argues that readers need context to decode words; breaking terms down into individual phonemes or syllables detracts from learning the word naturally.

code-based assessment strategies

• high-frequency sight word lists

• word pattern surveys

• pseudoword assessments

• phonics inventories

• writing samples

• spelling inventories

• syllabication surveys

Meaning based assessment strategies

• Frequent reading, teacher modeling, and group reading

• oral retellings

• written responses

• text-based questioning

Stakeholders

administrators, colleagues, community members, family members, and of course the students themselves.

Congruent assessment

an assessment that tests the learning outcomes described in the learning objectives

Appropriate level

leveled to where the content was taught when considering depth and difficulty

Phonics / Graphophonemic Principle

using the relationship between symbols (letters and words) and sounds of a language to read and write

Phonemic Awareness / Sound Awareness

the ability to hear, identify, and re-create individual sounds in spoken words