Assessment Tools: Component 1 - Attitude Toward Reading

Allan Hendershot

RED 4312

11/06/2014

Assessment Tools: Component 1 - Attitude Toward Reading

I used the Elementary Reading Attitude Survey (ERAS) to help assess the attitude my focus student has toward reading and literature in general. The test consists of twenty questions divided into two sections. The first ten questions focus on the student’s attitude toward recreational reading. The remaining ten questions focus on the student’s attitude toward academic reading. The test is easy to administer to large groups or to individual students. Although many criteria were considered when creating this tool, the most important elements as described by McKenna & Kear (1990)are that, “It possess a meaningful, attention-getting student friendly response format; be suitable for brief group administration; and comprise separate subscales for recreational and academic reading.” (p. 2)

The format of the tool comprises a series of questions, each followed by four pictures of Garfield: one very happy, the next a little happy, the next a little upset, and the last very upset. The mood or appearance of each figure is easy to identify and distinguish. I administered the ERAS to my focus student individually. After describing the instrument, explaining the reason for giving it, and reassuring her that it was not a test, I read each question aloud twice. I was very careful to give ample time for her to select her answers.

Data Analysis

My focus student, I’ll call her Cathy, received a raw score of 32 both in recreational and academic reading. Her total raw score is 64. This puts her combined score in the 66th percentile. She is in the 62nd percentile for recreational reading and the 67th percentile for academic reading. After analyzing the results on the ERAS in detail, it appears that Cathy prefers recreational reading at school more than at home. She also has a more positive overall attitude toward academic reading over recreational reading.

It is interesting to note that she does still have a positive attitude towards academic reading despite her difficulties with reading and writing as noted below. Her score would be even higher in this regard if not for her insecurity while reading out loud in the classroom. She often falters on more complex words which require her to decode them phonetically. There may be issues outside the classroom as well. She scored a 4 when asked how she felt about receiving a book as a present but scored a 2 when asked how she feels about going to the book store.

Instructional Strategies

Although Cathy’s attitude toward reading, especially recreational reading, trends towards the positive, her overall attitude towards learning is quite negative. After several interviews with her and her mother I have discovered that her attitude toward academic activities and school in general is quite negative. For example, she made one comment while we were working on a writing assignment in class where she stated she wished she was in kindergarten again and that the work was too hard. In an interview with her mother, who is also a teacher, she stated that at her previous school her instructor called her, “A stupid little girl.” This is quite distressing to say the least and suggests that Cathy has developed an external locus of control which needs to be addressed immediately.

The first step is to encourage Cathy in a manner that shifts her beliefs and attitudes towards reading and learning towards an internal locus of control. Whenever we are working on reading I stress the importance of practice and perseverance. Whenever possible I offer specific directed praise that focuses on her accomplishments. Instead of simply saying something like, “Good job” or “Well done,” I say, “I like the way you self-corrected when reading that passage.” Or I might say, “You summarized the story well. Careful readers always pay attention to the sequence of events.”

Motivation is key when working with struggling readers. Therefor it is important to select reading material for Cathy that fits her interests and reading level. For example, she enjoys science, and ecology in particular. She participates in class discussions far more frequently when the subject matter falls within this area. For recreational reading she prefers poetry and rhyme. One of her favorite books is One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish by Dr. Seuss. Recreational reading should be challenging but not too difficult. Students who have a high success rate when reading for pleasure have a more positive attitude toward reading. According to Cunningham & Allington (2011),“The best readers in your classroom—the ones whose instructional reading levels are above the grade level they are placed in—also spend most of their time reading text that is very easy for them.” (p. 50) According to her DRA, Cathy struggles when reading at level 14 yet her comprehension is quite high. Selecting and suggesting texts for Cathy to read that fit her interests and match her cognitive level will build her confidence by ensuring a higher success rate when reading independently.

Vygotsky believed that social interactions were a key component of the learning process. This applies to reading as well. Students are often motivated to read certain texts by their peers. Students often recommend and discuss their favorite books. I observed two students in Cathy’s class who formed their own book club. Each week they select a book and read to each other and discuss what they have read. I recommend the same for Cathy. She should be paired with a student who shares her interests and is at or slightly above her current reading level. This will create opportunities for buddy reading. Cathy exhibits much insecurity when reading out loud in a classroom setting. Allowing her to read with another student in a more secure setting will help build confidence and thus improve her attitude towards academic reading.

Modifications for ELL and IEP Students

These strategies can be easily modified for English language learners. Again motivation is key. Recommended texts should not only fit the student’s interests, but should also connect to their cultural background in a meaningful way. In order to promote a high success rate, reading material in the student’s native tongue should also be made available in the classroom and if possible, at home. Paring ELL students with native English speakers for group or buddy reading is an effective way to model reading strategies as well. Students learn and discover new texts from each other. A recommendation of a favorite text from another student is often all that is needed to motivate a struggling reader to try something new.

Assessment Tools: Component 2

Print Concepts, Letters and Sounds, and Phonological Awareness

I used two assessment tools to measure my focus student’s current proficiency in print concepts, letters and sounds, and phonological awareness. I used the nonsense word test, and several writing samples the student had completed during class.

The nonsense word test is divided into the following five sections: short vowels, digraph blends, long vowels, other vowels, and multisyllabic words. The purpose of the test is to measures the student's proficiency when decoding phonemes and blending them together when reading. The test is administered on an individual basis. Before the test the student is instructed to read one word at a time and it is pointed out that the words are made up or nonsense words. While the student reads, the instructor places a check mark next to each word that is read correctly. As stated in Blevins, 2001, p. 291, to score the test, total the number of words the student read correctly. Analyze the mispronounced words, looking for patterns that might give you information about the student’s decoding strengths and weaknesses.

I have also obtained several samples of my focus student’s writing over the past seven weeks in an attempt to chart her progress and measure some of the strategies which have already been employed by myself, her teacher, and through RTI.

Data Analysis

When I administered the nonsense word test, Cathy struggled on almost every section. For example, on the short vowels section she pronounced the short vowel correctly but often substituted a different consonant at the end of the word. She would say pet instead of ped, or sit instead of sib. The section containing digraph blends was interesting as well. Instead of saying sheg she said sheck. She also said bruch instead of bruck. There is definitely a pattern here. Even on Section D: Other Vowels, I found mostly the same types of errors. She said park instead of parth, or spout instead of spoud. I did not have her complete the long vowels or multisyllabic sections. She was having a lot of trouble and clearly getting frustrated.

Aside from results obtained from the nonsense word test, I know that Cathy is struggling with basic phonemic awareness. According to her CT, she is now in RTI and is also being assessed for learning difficulties. I have examined several of her writing samples and have observed some common patterns. For example, she spells many common sight words correctly such as: it, is, and, but, and or. However, she misspells many others, especially pronouns. Her handwriting is often nearly illegible. She often writes letters in reverse and also frequently transposes letters. For example, she might spell boy as byo. There are seldom spaces between words and only minimal punctuation.

I have also observed Cathy reading aloud and found that she has trouble decoding words with two or more syllables, in fact she spends most of her time decoding. She also seems to have some difficulty tracking the text from left to right when reading. As a result she often falls behind during writing assignments that require her to locate specific passages in the text. This inevitably leads to frustration and a lower success rate when reading and writing academically.

Instructional Strategies

Cathy’s comprehension is much better than her reading ability. When she hears a passage she is generally able to identify the main idea and pick out important details. As stated in Dougherty Stahl (2011), “Songs, chants, and word games-sound games are ideally suited toward developing young children’s sensitivity to the sound structure of language.” I recommend numerous word play books and rhymes. Dr. Seuss is an excellent example. I would also recommend that Cathy be exposed to guided discovery activities such as Guess the Covered Word, Using Words You Know, and Making Words. I also recommend a tiered co-teaching environment. When she is not in RTI she should be placed in a small group with other struggling students with a co-teacher or reading coach. These students could then follow the same text as the rest of the class but focus more on areas where they need help. For example they could read to each other or engage in choral reading. This would reduce the cognitive load required to decode most of the text and allow them to focus on content and meaning. These activities, along with RTI, should help dramatically improve her reading, writing, and comprehension skills throughout the school year.

Modifications for ELL and IEP Students

ELL students need special consideration when teaching Print Concepts, Letters and Sounds, and Phonological Awareness. For example, English and Spanish share many cognates such as family and familia, or center and centro. This can be used as a scaffold to bridge the gap between one language and another. This basic word recognition can also reduce the cognitive load. I recommend word sort games. This strategy involves paired flashcards of cognates. Students can then pair up. One student has the English version and the other student has the Spanish or other language version. They then match the cards and discuss the meaning. ELL students also run into similar issues with what are sometimes called false cognates, or two words that sound similar but have completely different meanings. For example, chore in English refers to a job or duty you do at home whereas chor in Hindi refers to a burglar. Read aloud and think aloud activities can be very useful for ELL students. Have them raise their hand when they think the hear cognates. One can also pre-teach difficult vocabulary before the activity.

Component 3 – Word Knowledge: Reading and Writing

The primary tool I chose for this component was the DRA or Developmental Reading Assessment. The DRA is administered on an individual basis by a teacher or reading coach, generally twice a year. The first assessment is given in September. It is then given again in May in order to track progress. All students between 1st and 3rd grade are assessed using a DRA. Some instructors, including my collaborating teacher, give the DRA again midyear to determine if their selected strategies are working. Because the purpose of the assessment is to determine what the student is able to read on their own, no assistance or verbal cues should be given.

The purpose of the DRA is to determine a student’s instructional reading level, to monitor their progress over time, and to help develop strategies for instruction. The DRA is administered in much the same way as a running record. The student reads a selected text and the teacher. While the student reads the text out loud the teacher records errors and miscues. The instructor also observes the student’s behavior while reading to assess their frustration level and fluency. When the student is finished the teacher asks questions to determine their comprehension level.

Data Analysis

In this case I did not administer the DRA as I am not qualified, but I was given the results. I have, however, observed Cathy reading out loud a number of times in class. The DRA was administered at the beginning of the school year. The text selected by the teacher was at level 12. Cathy received a 7 out of 16 for oral reading fluency, and 19 out of 28 for comprehension. The text was 137 words. She made more than 11 miscues with less than 92% accuracy.

The same patters observed in Cathy’s running record bear out here as well. The most common errors were substitutions. For example, one sentence reads, “Papa was too busy to read to Robert.” Cathy read, Pip was told buzz to read to Robert. In another example the original sentence reads, “Robert felt left out.” Cathy read Robert feet left out. These appear to be visual miscues. The words she substituted appear somewhat similar to the original text but do not make sense in context. She is not deriving meaning from the text.

Cathy’s fluency level may be below grade level but her comprehension is much higher. Part of the assessment requires the student to retell the story in their own words. The teacher highlights each part they were able to retell and notes whether or not they were in sequence. Initially her retelling was minimal but after 2 coaching cues where she was asked to, “Tell me more.” She was able to recall 5 of the 8 story elements. She is also making text-to-self connections as well. For example when asked, “What does the story make you think of?” She replied that it reminded her of when her brother was born. They did not play at first and only played on the bed.

For fluency on the DRA 2 continuum she scored a 7. For comprehension she received a score of 18. The scanned results are included on the next page of this document. I find it noteworthy that she scored a 3 under comprehension for previewing, retelling sequencing of events, retelling teacher support, reflection, and making connections. She is obviously comprehending and thinking about what she is reading and is in many ways an independent reader at this level despite her difficulties with fluency.

Instructional Strategies

Cathy’s teacher recommended the following general strategies for Cathy after assessing the results of the DRA: Support one-to-one matching as a means to self-monitor, model and teach how to use known words as a means to self-monitor, model and support confirming and discounting word choice using meaning, language, and visual information, and demonstrate and teach how to read for meaning, self-correcting when a word doesn’t look right.

To specifically address these issues I suggest that Cathy use a personal word bank. She can keep a box filled with flashcards. When she comes across an unfamiliar word have her write it down on one of the cards. Later Cathy can dictate a sentence using the new word while the teacher writes it down on one of the flash cards. The new word can also be underlined or highlighted as well. To add context she can draw a picture on the back of the card.