Observations Continue!!

I have observed several times at Hurlock Elementary School in a 5th grade classroom.  I have loved every minute!!!  My mentor teacher is awesome, the kids are awesome and I love seeing how public school approaches teaching.  I have spent lots of one on one time with a particular who is struggling with decoding words and inferencing.  She has enjoyed meeting with me and getting some individualized attention.  We have done several activities together and I hope she is benefiting from it.  I do find it amazing that the class has spent so much time on math and science just to prepare for the Science MSA.  For 4 weeks now, they have not had any reading lessons.  I finally was able to see Reading lesson today!  I only have one class left and it's bittersweet!

SEA Data Table

Reading is made up of many different components and skills.  Reading is the combination of phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension all rolled together into one.  If you think about it, reading is very complex.  There are many people who struggle with one or more aspects of reading.  As a teacher, it can be frustrating not knowing why a student is struggling and then not knowing how to help them become a better reader. 

            There are many tools out there for teachers to use that can assist in diagnosing a student who may need further help with reading.  There are several formal and informal assessments that can be used to steer teachers in the right direction when it comes to helping their students.

SIT (Slossan Intelligence Test)

            The first test that I researched was called the SIT or the Slossan Intelligence Test.  This test is used to test verbal and cognitive ability in children or adults.  There are several great aspects of this test.  The one I found most fascinating is that it is available to all types of learners… even those with disabilities.  It is also a test that can be given in under 20 minutes so that the teacher and student are not bogged down with a test that takes hours to administer.  The major weakness I found that there is a lack of reliability and validity with the research that has been done on this test.  Basically they are saying that it is outdated.  In spite of that, it is still a widely used test that can be used to test verbal and cognitive ability.

SORT (Slossan Oral Reading Test)

            The second test I researched was called the SORT or the Slossan Oral Reading Test.  This test is used to evaluate word recognition, word calling, and reading level.  This assessment is given in only 3-5 minutes by a student reading lists of 20 words at time.  The student reads until he or she become frustrated and cannot read anymore of the given words.  This test can be given to any person of any age.  Teachers are able to use this assessment to place students into reading levels.  The biggest downfall to this test is that there is no evaluation of other reading skills like comprehension or vocabulary.  This test may need to be combined with another test to be able to assess a student’s overall reading ability. 

BRI (Basic Reading Inventory)

            The next test I researched was the BRI or the Basic Reading Inventory.  This is a more time consuming test than the previous tests but it also covers more aspects of reading.  This assessment can evaluate phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension all at the same time, within the same test.  It begins with a student reading from a list of given words at a certain grade level.  After so many mistakes, the child will become frustrated and then the teacher will know what grade level he or she is on when it comes to word recognition.  The next step is to read a short story and answer comprehension and vocabulary questions about it.  The teacher can also assess their fluency by seeing how many words per minute the child can read.  As you can see, this test can take up to an hour to administer and that might be too long for some children.  I also found from my Practicum student that I am tutoring that the reading level from the BRI is much higher than what it is in the classroom.  I’m not sure if that is a curriculum issue or a BRI issue.  One of the greatest strengths I found with the BRI is that teachers can track progress with their students.  Most of the other tests do not have this option.  The BRI has several different word lists and several different stories for comprehension.  From all the other assessments I researched, I believe that the BRI is probably the most through test and the one that covers the most material.  

WADT (Wepman’s Auditory Discrimination Test)

            The WADT or the Wepman’s Auditory Discrimination Test is an assessment that measures how well a person understands speech and the spoken word.  This test is appropriate for any age group but is most effective when it is administered to younger children.  This test can be used to determine if students will have a hard time with letter sounds or phonics.  It can also discover if a student has communication or speech problems.  The test can be given fairly quickly and it is inexpensive to purchase.  Teachers can use the results from this test to determine if a child might have a learning disability, might struggle with reading, or might have a hearing impairment.

Slingerland (Visual Discrimination Test)

            The final test that I researched was called the Slingerland Visual Discrimination Test.  This assessment tests specifically for dyslexia and language disabilities which are actually visual processing disorders.  In other words, this test targets students who are believed to have symptoms of dyslexia.  In addition to basically diagnosing dyslexia, it can also identify a student’s strengths and weakness in their language development or visual discrimination.  This test is available for everyone; however there are more specific tests to specific ages.  For example, administers would not give a 1^st grader the same test as a high school student when trying to diagnose dyslexia so there are several tests to choose from.  The biggest downfall for the Slingerland test is that it is expensive and teachers have to pay to take a course on how to administer the test.  This test would not be given to every student but only to those who are suspected of having a learning disability.

            After conducting all the previous research, I have come to one conclusion.  I now realize that there is not just one test that can be used to assess a student’s reading ability.  Just like reading itself is complex, so is the assessment of reading.  The SIT can assess a student’s verbal and cognitive abilities.  The SORT can evaluate a student’s word recognition and reading level.  The BRI can assess fluency and comprehension and the WADT can determine how well a child can understand spoken words.  Finally, the Slingerland test can identify specific learning disabilities like dyslexia.

Teachers need to be willing to use all the necessary means to help a child learn to read.  These tests all have strengths and weaknesses but they can assess best when combined with one another.  Using a combination of these assessments and classroom tools, teachers can meet the needs of all learners.

	Purpose	Strengths	Weaknesses	Appropriateness
SIT (Slosson Intelligence Test)	*measures intelligence *measures verbal and cognitive ability	*suitable for any type of learner *can help screen for a learning disability *test can be administered in 10-20 minutes	*can be used for screening but not diagnosis disability *research shows there is not much validity or reliability *outdated	*for infants-adult *appropriate for those with special needs
SORT (Slosson Oral Reading Test)	*measures the level of oral word recognition, word calling and reading level	*quick screening to determine a student’s reading level *test only takes about 5 minutes *can determine if further diagnosis is needed	*doesn’t assess all aspects of reading like comprehension	*for ages preschool-adult *appropriate for all students to be placed in a reading level
BRI (Basic Reading Inventory)	*measures a student’s ability in word recognition, fluency and comprehension	*affordable *can help teachers see where a student is struggling *assesses reading level *can track progress *tests all aspects of reading	*may not meet the same reading level as all curriculums *can be time consuming	*for all ages and ability levels
WADT (Wepman’s Auditory Discrimination Test)	*measures how well a person understands speech and the spoken word	*fast and inexpensive *can assess for communication problems, phonics problems and speech issues	*cannot track progress	*for ages preschool-adult *most effective the earlier a problem is detected
Slingerland (Visual Discrimination Test)	*tests specifically for dyslexia and language disability which is a visual processing disorder	*can a diagnose dyslexia *identifies strengths and weaknesses in language learners	*only targets a specific disability *expensive *educators must take a course in order to administer the test	*for all ages *there are different tests for different age/ability groups

References

Alic, M. (2014). Auditory Discrimination Test. Retrieved on March 15, 2014 from

www.childrenshealth.lovetoknow.com/medical-test-diagnostics/auditory-discrimination-test

Johns, J. (2012). Basic Reading Inventory (11^th ed.). Dubuque, IA: Kendall Hunt Publishing

            Company.

McKechnie, J., & Bradley, E. (2001). Test Review: Slosson Intelligence Test Revised (SIT-R).

            Retrieved on March 15, 2014 from http://aac.net.edu/newsnotes/y01win.html

Slingerland Institute for Literacy. (2014). Retrieved on March 15, 2014 from

            www.slingerland.org/educators/dyslexia.html

Slosson Oral Reading Test. (2013). Retrieved on March 15, 2014 from

            www.cps.nova.edu/cpphelp/SORT/html

Critique of Instructional Materials

Instructional materials are essential to an effective reading program.  The given curriculum is not always enough to reach all readers.  The teacher may need to use other materials in order to meet the needs of every student.  There are several, inexpensive ways teachers can use reading instructional materials in the classroom. 

Internet Games

            There is a plethora of internet sources that teachers have right at their fingertips.  These online games can be a fun, interactive way for students to practice reading skills.  Sometimes the students don’t even realize that they are practicing their reading skills because they are enjoying the activities.  The greatest strength for this material is that children seem to respond best to technology, so it’s great whenever you can use it in the classroom.  The only weakness is that not all schools have computers in the classroom or they may not have internet access.  In spite of that, online games can be used by all age groups and skill levels.

            The student I am tutoring, Kayla, seems to struggle with her inferencing skills.  Basically she is struggling with using her prior knowledge to understand what is happening in a story.  I found one website that will help her with this skill.  This website is free to use however, you can purchase upgrades for a minimal amount of money.  The website is full of inference riddles.  All Kayla has to do is go to the website www.philtulga.com/riddles.html and play the riddle game.  The game begins with one clue about a person, place, or thing. Each round Kayla receives another clue until she is able to guess who or what is being talked about.  The goal is to figure it out with only the first couple of clues.  Kayla had fun and enjoyed practicing her inferencing skills.

Targeted Skill Reading Worksheets

            Sometimes the word “worksheet” gets a bad rap.  However, there are some worksheets that can target specific skills.  Teachers can look on the internet for worksheets to help students with a certain skill they may need help with.  The cost of these worksheets is nothing except buying paper and ink for a printer.  Teachers can also purchase books at a teacher supply store that may have a collection of worksheets that target a certain skill.  There are worksheets available for all instructional levels and can be used in any subject of learning.  The benefit of giving worksheets is that the teacher is able to individualize for each student and it is a cost effective way to meet lots of needs at one time.  One major downfall of using worksheets is that some teachers become dependent on worksheets to do all the teaching.  Worksheets should only be used as a review or as a way to focus on a targeted skill. 

            The student I am tutoring, Kayla, and I are working on inferencing skills.  I found several targeted skills worksheets to help with inferencing skills.  There are lots of websites out there focuses on this topic but I found one in particular that I thought was very helpful.  The website I found was www.k12reader.com/subject/inference.   The particular worksheet I found was working on using our visual inferencing.  Kayla had to look at a picture of a snow and ice covered tree and answer questions about the picture.  The questions asked about what season was depicted in the picture, what animals might live in the picture and what time of day the picture was taken.  She didn’t have the stress of having to read a story but was able to concentrate on the simple picture to answer questions.  This helped her to see that we use inferencing skills all the time and not even realize it.  We talked about how these are the types of questions we should ask ourselves while we are reading.  I felt like this targeted skill worksheet was an effective way to practice how to inference.  

Graphic Organizers

            Graphic organizers are used every day in classrooms across the country.  They can be used to introduce a lesson, during a lesson, and to evaluate after a lesson. Graphic organizers are used as a visual representative of a certain aspect of a story.  They can also be used to reinforce vocabulary terms.  Teachers can get graphic organizers off the internet for free or there are books full of organizers for a small cost that teachers can copy for the class.  These can be found for a variety of ages and instructional levels. 

I think the strengths outweigh the weakness when using graphic organizers.  The only weakness I can think of is the fact that most organizers require writing skills.  This could be a problem for very young students or students with certain learning disabilities.  The greatest strength is the fact that the graphic organizer helps students to “see” what they are learning so it is really beneficial to visual learners.  They also teach organization skills to students which is something they will need throughout life.  Teachers should take advantage of graphic organizers during reading instruction.

Word Wall

            A word wall is a great asset to have in any classroom.  They can be used in a K4 room and can also be used in a high school classroom.  The purpose of a word wall is to allow vocabulary words to be visible in the classroom at all times.  This is virtually a free instructional resource.  The only cost might be the purchase of either index cards or sentence strips to write the words on.  Most teachers designate a certain wall or area of the classroom to display the words.  Because this is such an effective method, the only weakness I can think of is that there may not be enough space for a word wall in a small classroom.  There are many benefits to having a word wall in the classroom.  They are the fact that the students will always have new words in front of them; the students will have a reference when they are doing writing activities; and students will be able to practice writing the words daily. 

KWL Chart

            A KWL chart is a reading instructional tool that teachers can use during whole group or small group instruction and can be used for any age group.  The cost of a chart is minimal.  I made my own chart with cardstock and laminated it.  You can also purchase KWL charts from a teacher supply store.  The only other cost would be supplying post-it notes but they are fairly inexpensive. 

The KWL chart is used as a pre-assessment and as a post-assessment activity.  The chart can be displayed in the classroom for everyone to see.  The K stands for “what I KNOW,” the W stands for “what I WANT to know,” and the L stands for “what I LEARNED.”  When a new topic or reading story is being introduced, the teacher can give each student a few post-it notes.  The student is supposed to write something that they know about the topic on the note.  They can then share their idea with the class and post it on the chart.  This is done for each section of the KWL chart.  This could take a day, several days or even weeks.  The greatest strength of a KWL chart is that it is an interactive, easy way to assess the whole class without giving a test.  One weakness of the KWL chart is that some students may be nervous to write and then share what they wrote on the post-it note.  However, an effective teacher can help those students to overcome their fear and feel confident when sharing their ideas with the class.

I actually use the KWL chart in my own 2^nd grade classroom all the time.  In my reading class, we were going to start a story about the Underground Railroad.  I wasn't sure if this was something my students knew about.  So instead of telling them some background information, I pulled out my KWL chart to assess their prior knowledge.  It turns out my hunch was right… they knew nothing about the Underground Railroad.  We then concentrated on the things they wanted to learn about the Underground Railroad, or the “W” part of the KWL chart.  As we read the story, we discovered some of our questions were answered and we moved our new knowledge to the “L” section of the chart.  It was a very effective way to help the students connect with the story they were reading.

            Teachers have access to thousands of reading instructional tools.  Some are expensive and some don’t have any cost at all.  There are some that are useful for younger students and some that are beneficial for all age groups.  I have talked about several materials that have very minimal cost and can be used for any instructional age group.  When teachers are willing to be a little creative, they can find some great material that can be used in the classroom.