Using age norms in the Neale Analysis of Reading Ability-Revised assessments of reading ability can distort the diagnosis of reading difficulty, as evidenced in the assessment practices of the New South Wales (Australia) Department of Education. Grade-normative data (year-level norms) and abandoning the reporting of precise reading scores are…

S. Matthey shows that errors may be inherent in the misuse of age-normative data in assessing reading ability. However, Matthey ignores the policies and procedures of the New South Wales (Australia) Department of Education to guard against such misuse. (SLD)

Considers the validity of Widdowson's discourse model of communicative competence and performance as the basis for developing tests of reading. Describes basic structure of the model and attempts to add to original description in such a way that is possible to design an operational test of the model components. The purpose of the model validation…

Describes the use of the Northwest Evaluation Association's Achievement Level Test for Reading as an assessment tool in an elementary school to measure student progress in reading. Discusses interpreting scores across grade levels; computerized versions; linking test items to new curriculum; reducing reading class size; and the role of technology.…

Presents a case study of the use of computers to improve student reading scores at a rural southern junior high school. Student achievement, cost effectiveness, scheduling, curriculum, time constraints, and student needs are discussed, and results are reported that show a definite improvement in reading scores after two years. (LRW)

Compares two approaches for preparing students to take standardized reading tests. Discusses study that used a pretest-posttest design with reading-comprehension passages and questions to assess improvement. Suggests that measurable gain in short-term developmental programs may require focusing on a more modest number of teaching objectives,…

The purpose of this study was to contribute to and strengthen previous work that examined the long-lasting effects of Reading Recovery in statewide efforts aimed at bolstering early literacy achievement and reducing early learning difficulties. Specifically, the study explored the literacy achievement of Reading Recovery participants whose series…

This paper presents a secondary analysis of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) dataset. The study explores differences in the NAEP fourth, eighth, and twelfth grade reading scores by students' gender across the years 1992, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2002, and 2003. The study used the NAEP National Public School data. The statistically…

Seventy-four students read passages from an individually administered test of reading comprehension (a subtest from the "Test of Dyslexia," a test of reading and related abilities currently in development; McCallum & Bell, 2001), and then answered literal and inferential questions. Students were randomly assigned to one of two…

The purpose of this research was to examine the impact of the Maryland School Performance Assessment Program (MSPAP) and the Maryland Learning Outcomes (MLOs) in a number of areas including teacher, principal, and student beliefs, classroom practices, and student learning in reading and writing. A statewide sample of 90 elementary and middle…

This study examined the magnitude of differences in standard scores, convergent validity, and concurrent validity when an individual's performance was gauged using the revised and the normative update (Woodcock, 1998) editions of the Woodcock Reading Mastery Test in which the actual test items remained identical but norms have been updated. From…

The aim of the present study was to investigate idiom comprehension in school-age Italian children with different reading comprehension skills. According to our hypothesis, the level of a child's text comprehension skills should predict his/her ability to understand idiomatic meanings. Idiom comprehension in fact requires children to go beyond a…

In this article, I examine the assimilationist assumptions embedded in the development and implementation of the Texas Reading Proficiency Test in English (RPTE). The RPTE was designed as a developmental bridge for English language learner (ELL) students to perform on the English Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS). These assumptions…

The purpose of this study was to compare different statistical and methodological approaches to standard setting and determining cut scores using R-CBM and performance on high-stakes tests. One thousand seven hundred and sixty-six students were followed longitudinally from first through third grades using R-CBM benchmark assessment. In addition,…

This investigation examined the effects and consequences of using testing accommodations, including reading aloud test content, with a group of eighth-grade students (N = 79) on a standardized reading test. Research questions pertaining to the effects of accommodations on reading test scores and consequences of testing on teacher and student…