Context:

This Reading Assessment was completed in the Fall of 2007 under the advisement of Ellen Pesko for Language Arts Instruction in the Elementary School (RE 4030). The assessment was completed on one student, whose pseudonym in this paper is "S.M." S.M. is a sixth grader who is placed in a lower reading level class. The assessment was designed to level his reading, and resulted having him on about a third grade independent reading level.

Impact:

When teachers are able to level their student's reading with tests like these, they will then know which materials to provide the student with that will provide the highest amount of achievement. A student like S.M. needs to be reading texts that are way below his own grade level, in order for him to experience success. Students who are reading on the appropriate level will then be able to move up the reading levels with structured support of the teacher.

Alignment:

Standard 1: Elementary teachers have a broad knowledge and understanding of the major concepts in English Language Arts and Literacy.

Indicator 1: Teachers know the developmental stages of language acquisition.

I have met this objective by reading with the child and marking the appropriate mistakes. A teacher must be able to know and understand when a student has used the English language inappropriately, and be able to score students accordingly. More specifically, this project has shown me how students progress in their literacy in developmental stages. Students in lower developmental stages will have lower language skills, and therefore a lower independent reading level. As I have leveled this student, I worked with his personal developmental stage and learned where his language skills are in relation to where they should have been.

Standard 7: Elementary teachers use developmentally appropriate strategies to design and deliver instruction in all areas of the elementary curriculum.

Indicator 7: Teachers develop and use a variety of formal and alternative assessment strategies as an integral part of instruction and learning appropriate for assessing individual, peer, team, and collaborative skills.

This assessment serves as a tool to understand the level of reading a student is presently at. It is not intended to be taken for a grade, and therefore should be used formatively as a reflection of growth. Teachers can pre evaluate students will this type of assessment, and then repeat it after a series of reading comprehension and/or fluency lessons.

Standard 16: Elementary teachers develop as leaders in their schools and communities by staying informed about educational policy issues and supporting professional development. Elementary teachers participate in co-curricular activities, provide leadership in student and curriculum involvement, and connect these activities to the development of citizenship ideals in their students.

Indicator 4: Teachers participate in the selection of textbooks and resource materials that augment the elementary curriculum such as atlases, maps, children’s literature, and software.

Along with this evaluation, I have provided a list of text that would support S.M.'s learning at both his instruction and independent reading levels. I have provided a wide selection of text, varying from picture books, novels, information texts to nonfiction selections.