Assessments of oral reading are widely used for screening, progress monitoring, and comprehensive evaluations. Despite the utility and technical adequacy of these tools, there are subgroups of students for whom measures of oral reading may be inappropriate. The first section of this article focuses on how tests of oral reading may underestimate…

This article asserts that a carefully administered informal reading inventory (IRI) provides important information on low-achieving readers that is "not" provided by an end-of-grade standardized reading test. Using case studies of students' IRI performance, we address the concept of instructional level and the necessity of teaching low…

The growing number of children in primary schools in Germany who have German as their second language (L2) has raised questions about the fairness of performance assessment. Fair tests are a prerequisite for distinguishing between L2 learning delay and a specific learning disability. We evaluated five commonly used reading and spelling tests for…

The authors report findings from an evaluation of the reading competence of students in selected elementary schools in Trinidad and Tobago. The work was conducted in eight schools and involved the testing of 450 students in standards (grades) 1 and 5 for competence in comprehension, oral reading, and word recognition. Methods and results relating…

Most standardized reading assessments used with deaf and hard-of-hearing (d/Dhh) students do not accommodate their frequent lack of spoken language fluency. Such tests are rarely normed on d/Dhh individuals and do not adjust for potentially biased test items. Yet, accurate and valid measures of reading skills are essential for making appropriate…

In 2013, the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO), working collaboratively with state education agencies, released a set of criteria for states to use to evaluate and procure high-quality assessments. The English Language Arts (ELA)/Literacy section of the document included nine content-specific criteria to evaluate the alignment of…

It is well known that children who read more tend to achieve higher scores in academic reading tests. Much less is known, however, about the link between reading different types of text and young people's reading performance. We investigate this issue using the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2009 database, exploring the…

Future Forward is an early primary literacy program that pairs one-on-one tutoring with family engagement. Future Forward's approach is informed by both systems theory and a school-family-community partnership model. Future Forward understands that schools are not solely responsible for developing student literacy. Instead of viewing families and…

The Early Intervention Reading Software Program (EISP) encourages literacy growth and achievement in students in grades K-3. The program addresses early reading through the use of computer-based literacy software which provides individualized instruction designed to supplement students' classroom learning. During the 2017-2018 school year, these…

Fifty-three percent of Grade 4 learners cannot read for meaning in low- and middle-income countries despite an investment of between 33-49% of education expenditure on primary education. Teaching children to read in the early grades is fundamental to building resilient education systems, as the ability to read early in life is a great predictor…

In the United States, educational thought leaders have called for higher expectations (Gordon Commission, 2010), more rigorous college and career readiness standards for K-12 education (National Governors Association Center for Best Practices & Council of Chief State School Officers, 2010), and new constructs such as 21st century skills…

PIRLS (Progress in International Reading Literacy Study) is the fourth assessment in the current trend series, following PIRLS 2001, 2006, and 2011. There were 61 participants in PIRLS 2016, including 50 countries and 11 benchmarking entities (e.g., regions of countries as well as additional grades or language groups from the participating…

Historically, political debates have broken out over how to teach reading in primary schools and infant classrooms. These debates and "reading wars" have often resulted from public concerns and media reportage of a fall in reading standards. They also reflect the importance placed on learning to read by parents, teachers, employers, and…

Third grade is a critical checkpoint in a child's educational journey. By the end of third grade, children need literacy skills that prepare them for increasing curriculum demands in fourth grade and beyond. Students who are not reading on grade level by this point are significantly more likely to drop out of high school or fail to graduate on…

This document contains summary information for the Iowa Department of Education's review of PreK-6th grade reading assessments for the purposes of Universal Screening and Progress Monitoring. It is intended to provide general information to help inform decisions about selecting assessments for use as a part of Iowa's Response to Intervention…