Course Description:

This course discusses the reading process and the factors that influence its development, the role of assessment to inform and adapt literacy instruction, the evaluation and use of formal and informal assessment tools for individual learners and groups of students, and the interpretation and communication of assessment results. A 30-hour practicum is required.

Thursday, September 15, 2011

Assessing Fluency

This week I have been reflecting on fluency assessments. My school is about to start the fall DIBELS assessment, and for my second graders traditionally we have used the fluency portion to determine who needs extra help in reading. This has been bothering me so I chose an article from The Reading Teacher about one minute fluency measures and the mixed messages they can deliver. Even though most definitions of fluency include rate, accuracy, natural delivery, and comprehension, these one minute tests only measure rate and accuracy.
I especially appreciated that the article included suggestions for ways to use these quick fluency tests to get more balanced information. My district requires the use of DIBELS so I am hoping that the assistants who administer the test will be able to implement these ideas. One simple thing is to write down the error a child makes instead if just slashing an incorrect word. If they were able to do this, we can easily use this as another way to analyze the errors a student is making. The other suggestion was to mark the one minute point in the reading and allow the child to continue reading to the end of the passage. This way you will have not only the one minute measure as prescribed by the test, but also a measure of a longer passage to check on their endurance.
I am lucky in that my second grade team has focused on using a variety of assessment information to get the most balanced picture of each student. Now I feel hopeful that we can enhance the information DIBELS gives us as we are required to use this for our RTI decisions.
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2 comments:

  1. KK EltagondeSeptember 15, 2011 at 11:04 PM

    Trish, I wasn't able to make it to class this evening due to Open House, but I wanted to comment on your article. I stumbled upon and chose to do my assignment on the same article and found it entirely intriguing! It was refreshing to take a step back and really understand the intended use of one-minute measures -v- the misconceptions of why and how to use properly use one-minute measures in our schools. Just a little connection I made and thought I'd comment!

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  2. T. BoyerSeptember 18, 2011 at 4:53 PM

    Although DIBELS, in itself, is not the best assessment in the world, the way it has been incorrectly used in school districts across the nation will go down in educational infamy. Accurate, meaningful assessment cannot be done in a minute. If used as a starting point, it is understandable. Unfortunately, it has not been used that way. The result is an entire generation of students who believe that speed is everything, and who have been convinced that they are "at risk" when they are not. I'm sorry that your district still requires DIBELS, as most districts are beginning to shy away from it now (finally!!). Hopefully, your newfound understanding of good assessment practices can eventually help to make a positive change in how assessment is used in your school.

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