Running head: STUDENT ASSESSMENT PROJECT 1

Student Assessment Project: Fourth Grade Fluency Assessment

Melody Doudna

EDU 325

Fall 2017
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Student Assessment Project: Fourth Grade Fluency Assessment

Fluency Assessments are very important in providing teachers, parents, and even students

information on where they might be academically strong or struggling. The Dynamic Indicators

of Basic Early Literacy Skills Next (DIBELS Next) assessment is particularly helpful and

accurate in identifying the current levels of student performance in this area and giving

information that can lead to the implementation of effective strategies. For these reasons, 4th

grader Bob Smith was given the DIBELS Next assessment on October 23, 2017. He is the fourth

child in a family with seven children, having three brothers and three sisters. His mother says

that he gets along well with his siblings, and has a wonderful sense of humor; he loves to tell

jokes. He especially loves his youngest sister and will take time out of his own schedule to

entertain her. The youngest five of the Smith family are home schooled each day in their urban

neighborhood by their mother, including Bob. His testing, and some tutoring when necessary, is

done through Quaker Digital Academy, a local institution. While Bob does not have an identified

disability, he does struggle sometimes with peer to peer interaction and requires some tutoring

for his math skills. However, despite this he typically receives As and Bs in most school work.

His mother expressed hope that his academic and social abilities would rise evenly to make him

better rounded.

Bob is very organized, and likes things arranged a particular way, whether in regards to

objects, events, or details of rules. He has a strong sense of justice about what is fair, and he is

learning how to balance his initial reactions of hard justice to include methods intertwined with

compassion. He is a very reasonable boy though, so if parents or tutors take the time to explain

changes in routine or rules to him, he obeys.

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Rewards for a job well done are very important for anyone, but especially for emerging

learners. Bob enjoys time spent with video and computer games, so this is an effective extrinsic

reward. He is also motivated by intrinsic rewards, such as encouragement to do his best work to

make someone proud of him. He values personal interaction, which is very helpful when testing.

However, to truly develop self-efficacy, he must discover a love for the material or knowledge

itself. Bob’s parents have set goals for him for this year to improve his reading skills,

specifically rate and fluency.

Procedures

To arrange this assessment, I reached out to a family who I had done Ministry to Moms

with, and whose children I had tutored for various subjects for other Education class

requirements to fulfill field work required for my major. Since the family has seven children,

and I was not positive who would be best tested through DIBELS Next, I explained the

assessment and asked Mrs. Smith to choose a child for me. During previous conversations with

the family and student, she expressed interest in knowing where Bob’s grades for reading

fluency are compared to the baseline goals for fourth grade. So she asked me to administer the

assessment with him. We corresponded over phone and through texting to arrange a mutually

satisfactory time in the early afternoon for me to come by their house to administer the DIBELS

Next. It was best for me to give the assessment in their house because that is the primary place

where he receives instruction.

He was done with his daily work, and we sat at the kitchen table to do the assessment.

While some of his siblings were playing in the next room connected to the kitchen, the noise in

the house was minimal, and he was used to it from his home culture, which is very laid back.

From my other experiences tutoring him in the same setting, I feel confident that by removing
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ourselves to the kitchen, we isolated the student as much as was possible and necessary to

effectively assess his skills. It was still a one-on-one setting. He maintained concentration

throughout the assessment, which I presented to him like a challenging game to get through. He

can be competitive, so I believe that integrating this into his personal approach to the assessment

was very effective.

He read the passages extremely well overall, with a slightly slower pace though. He has a

methodological way of reading where he usually makes sure that he can understand what is

being presented prior to moving on. For this reason, when he came to a word he was obviously

not as familiar with, he would sound it out and say it again smoothly in the sentence. His

retention of the passages was good overall for the amount of material read, and could repeat to

me the same details of the story he had read in a summary format. He used some filler words

such as: “uh” occasionally, but not more than is typical. He was very compliant with me during

testing, and seemed to even enjoy it.

To determine Bob’s scores and the comparison of his scores with grade level peers, I

used the official DIBELS Next scoring guide provided with the test. Through this, I was able to

score him against grade-level benchmarks as well as understand his strengths and weaknesses.

Assessments Given

The test I used to assess Bob and score his progress in reading fluency among other

children the same age and grade was the DIBELS Next. This Curriculum Based Measure (CBM)

is used nationally to help guide teacher intervention within the Response to Intervention (RTI)

framework. The higher tiers (2&3) in the RTI program focus more intensely on implementing

individualized and small group interventions for students whose grades place them below grade

level for their average performance. In this way, the DIBELS Next assessment gives the teachers
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and school psychologists an effective tool to gauge which of these tiers he or she would best be

taught at in future instruction.

The DIBELS Next test for fourth grade is broken down into two separate sections. The

first of these is the DIBELS Oral Reading Fluency (DORF), which contains three different

reading and retell probes that the child must accomplish. Each of these probes are 1 minute in

length. This means that the child has one minute to read as much of the passage presented as he

or she can, and then an additional minute to retell all of the details remembered from the story. In

these probes, the child is assessed based on Words Correct, Errors in reading, Retell (quantity)

and Retell Quality. These brief assessments that focus on critical reading skills have been shown

to predict future reading growth and development (Martin, Elfrith, & Feng, 2014). The second

part of the fourth grade DIBELS Next assessment is the Daze assessment. In Daze, the child is

given a passage to read with certain locations throughout the text where the child must choose

from three words to continue reading the sentence while retaining the comprehensive integrity of

the meaning of the passage as a whole. His correct words are counted, the incorrect subtracted,

and the result is his adjusted score for Daze, which will be graphed against his peers. The Daze

probe is important for gaging the child’s comprehension skills of the passage at the same time

that he is reading –an important skill. Knowledge of vocabulary and the ability to correctly

match words with their meanings has long been identified as an optimal predictor of reading

comprehension (Lane & Allen, 2010). By undertaking to assess Bob’s reading scores, the

assessor and teacher were able to better understand his grade level ability and began thinking

about ways to guide his future instruction to make it the most effective.

Results & Analysis

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The results of the DIBELs Next assessment showed a variety of response levels. For the

Daze adjusted score, the benchmark goal was 15, and the student scored 14, which is just below

Benchmark and shows a need for maintained Core Support, but not intensified strategic support.

In the DORF, the Retell Quality benchmark for at benchmark or above is 2+, and the

student scored 4, placing him above benchmark and showing a need for Core Support. The

Retell score itself was 49, with the benchmark goal at 27-35, so the child again scored above

benchmark and shows need for just core support. Words Correct benchmark goal is set at 90

WCPM, and the child scored 38 WCPM, placing his work at a much lower rate and well below

benchmark. He will likely need intensive support to raise this rate. The child’s Accuracy is at

95%, which is the borderline score for below and at benchmark. This means that the student will

need some strategic supports to raise his academics in this area into an area where more standard

core support is needed.

Graph 1. Bob’s performance on DIBELS Next compared to benchmark averages per assessment.
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During the assessment, it was observed that the student read the requested

passages carefully and slowly. He demonstrated readiness to complete the reading, and

interest in the retell activity. However, he would basically retell all that he had read, and

then would want to stop without making any personal connections unless asked to share

more. Additionally, it was noted that the student was very strong in his accuracy skills and

rarely misread a word. If he misread a word, he would usually self-correct automatically.

He took his time decoding words that he did not know and would try out each unfamiliar

word in the Daze exercise to discover the best fit. His methodical approach to each of the

DIBELs Next assessment activities lowered his overall words read per minute rate, but also

greatly reduced the errors. His overall willing and cheerful attitude was a trademark of his

laid back approach to reading. He obviously felt that it was worth taking his time for, and

his high retell quality shows that his retention and overall comprehension of the

assessment material was high as well.

Areas Targeted for Improvement

Words Correct and Fluency

As shown from the scoring analysis, Bob’s grades in the Words Correct area are well

below benchmark. He needs intensive support to improve in this area and will likely need to

learn several strategies to improve this area of reading fluency.

The Kagan approach is a learner-centered strategy that focuses on learning literacy

fluency in groups. Bilden and Tavil (2015) have conducted research reflecting how cooperative

language learning has a positive and motivational effect on learners’ language learning process.

It creates an entire environment of peer-driven desire to succeed. In this strategy, a “round table”

discussion is set up, where students are asked to discuss, argue, and help each other through a
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variety of literary tasks. Words Correct is just one of the areas that these strategies could be used

in, as the round table is a comprehensive approach to fluency. This could be very beneficial for

Bob, as he is competitive in sports, and the idea of making literacy instruction into a game is a

very ingenious idea to draw his interest. The Kagan skills are also instrumental in improving

social skills at the same time that the academic skills are being pursued. Since this was also a

goal of the parents, the group learning style of this strategy makes this a very viable option

(Bilden & Tavil, 2015). Although Bob is homeschooled, he is surrounded by his siblings and

homeschooling friends who could participate in this round table discussion with him.

Reading texts aloud to students is a strategy has also been shown to increase word

recognition, which is tied closely to the Words Correct area and overall Fluency. It provides

children with one of the best demonstrations of phrased, fluent reading (Fountas & Pinnell,

1996). In the simple strategy of reading a text aloud to students, the teacher must still take care

when choosing the text. Teachers should choose a text for Read-Alouds that is appropriate as a

scaffolding tool to help bridge the gap between what the students already know and what they

are struggling with. Children’s books are often designed with universal ideas that can be

simplified for understanding by the teacher conducting the Read Aloud, while not losing any of

the valuable vocabulary within context as a teaching opportunity. By selecting many examples of

culturally diverse books, all children will have an opportunity to find and make connections to

their own life experiences, other books they have read, and universal concepts (Barton & Booth,

1990). Children can listen on a higher language level than they can read, so reading aloud makes

complex ideas more accessible and exposes children to vocabulary and language patterns that are

not part of everyday speech (Fountas & Pinnell, 1996). Constant exposure to these new
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vocabulary words in the exciting strategy of Read Alouds will improve word recognition and aid

in the child’s Literacy and Word Choice development.

Accuracy and Vocabulary

Bob’s Accuracy scores were below benchmark as well, demonstrating a need for more

support in this area. Accuracy is closely linked with a developing vocabulary. As Lane and Allen

(2010) note, a child’s working vocabulary must develop past simply filling a word bank inside

the child’s head, but must be deepened by asking how well they know those words. Once their

understanding of their own vocabulary increases, then they will be more accurate in their word

selection and comprehension.

To help Bob in this area where he is struggling, it would be beneficial to teach him

several strategies. Many researchers, including Lane and Allen (2010), maintain that it is crucial

to teach children a sophisticated vocabulary. Familiar words are taught through interaction with

a child’s daily life, but these new words will increase vocabulary breadth. Vocabulary depth is

also increased, because each of the new words can be linked to words they are already familiar

with in a scaffolded learning approach. Constant repetition and exposure to unfamiliar words is

often the most proven way for young students to learn a more sophisticated vocabulary. A

strategy that illustrates this principle is the Adept Diction wordplay strategy (Lane & Allen,

2010). This strategy promotes curiosity and interest in a vocabulary rich environment. In this

strategy, the teacher models using sophisticated vocabulary, and the students discover the

meaning through the context in which the unfamiliar word is placed (Lane & Allen, 2010).

Another vocabulary strategy that will improve Bob’s Accuracy scores could be by using

the Morphemic Analysis strategy (Diamond & Gutlohn, 2006). This is the process of deriving a

word's meaning by analyzing its meaningful parts, or morphemes. Breaking down a given word
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into the root words, prefixes, and suffixes is very helpful in widening a vocabulary. This enables

a student to begin to infer meaning from unknown words once a part of the word is recognizable

as a known root, prefix, or suffix. Bob will encounter many words in the English language that

follow from the same Latin roots or have similar prefixes or suffixes, and if he is given the tools

to deconstruct and decode the meaning of the words, he will have made an important step in

improving his Accuracy.

Conclusion

By collecting and analyzing all of the DIBELS Next assessment information, we can now

use the data to best inform Bob’s future instruction. This assessment was able to provide good

indicators of Bob’s strengths and weaknesses. The CBMs that Bob completed helped to

demonstrate that he is a good reader, with high ratings in Retell, Retell Quality, and average in

the Daze. However, he would benefit from direct instruction in tools and strategies which he can

use to become a more fluent reader. Bob showed that he was particularly struggling from Words

Correct and Fluency as well as in Words Correct and Accuracy development. To help him boost

his achievement and self efficacy, there are several strategies highlighted here that his parents

could use in his future literacy instruction. As with all effective strategies, the hope is that he

could use them consistently in a modeled format to be able to then add them to his toolbox.

One aspect of this project that I found to be important in moving forward in regard to

CBM was tapping into the child’s own temperament and personality. By learning what was

important to the student and having the ability to discover how he could be motivated, I was able

to set him up with the optimal tools for success. He was not given any advantage over any other
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student taking the DIBELS Next except the skills that he naturally possessed and which I was

able to help him discover.

Another aspect that was interesting to learn from administering the CBM was how it can

be unintentionally easy for assessments to be biased towards one demographic group or another.

I was able to learn about the DIBELS Next and see how the producers of this particular

assessment tried to make sure that it was a fair balance across all of the cultures. While I saw and

appreciated this, I compared it to other assessments that I have conducted or even taken part in as

a student and was able to see the importance of recognizing bias. Bias can skew the results of an

assessment because if colloquialisms are used, they will only be known by the culture group that

uses these words, or by a very well read audience. To put both of these on the same level as such

a type of assessment would do is obviously unfair. In such an instance, the middle ground of

students who are unaware of the colloquialism would suffer an injustice to their assessment

scores. In the DIBELS Next, I did not see very much of a bias, although for some students like

my student who was homeschooled and not surrounded by the popular culture, there were some

phrases or subjects which could almost be placed in this category and were unfamiliar to the

student. An assessment should be an accurate representation of key pieces of knowledge and

how to apply these, and the aspects of an assessment bias and personal motivation should be

used to clearly judge any assessment to be administered.

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Bibliography

Barton, B., & Booth, D. (1990). Stories in the classroom: Storytelling, reading aloud, and

roleplaying with children. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

Bilen, D., & Tavil, Z. M. (2015). The effects of cooperative learning strategies on

vocabulary skills of 4th grade students. Journal of Education and Training Studies,

3(6), 151-165.

Diamond, L. & Gutlohn, L. (2006). Vocabulary Handbook. Berkeley, CA: Consortium on

Reading Excellence, Inc.

Fountas, I.C., & Pinnell, G.S. (1996). Guided reading: Good first teaching for all children.

Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

Hoffman, A. R., Jenkins, J. E., & Dunlap, S. K. (2009). Using DIBELS: A survey of

purposes and practices. Reading Psychology, 30(1), 1-16.

Lane, H. B., & Allen, S. A. (2010). The vocabulary-rich classroom: Modeling sophisticated

word use to promote word consciousness and vocabulary growth. Reading Teacher,

63(5), 362-370.

Martin, C., Elfreth, J., & Feng, J. (2014). Effect on reading fluency of struggling third

grade students: Computer-assisted intervention versus teacher-guided intervention.

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Presented at Mid-South Educational Research Association Annual Meeting 2014.

Retrieved from http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED548040.pdf