Rubrics, Reading Inventories, and More

The authors of this study (Applegate et al., 2009) sought to determine whether there was a link in fluency and comprehension and if one inspired the other. In doing so they developed a reading comprehension  of tool – The Critical Reading Inventory (CRI-2) - to measure text-based question responses, inferences, drawing conclusions and critical response to text.  In addition, a component to measure fluency was included by virtue of a “fluency rubric.” The assessment was designed to distinguish between  “readers who can recall information from the text and those who can think about it” (p. 51).

It was concluded that 36% of readers scored at a level that suggested they were proficient readers based on fluency, but scored low in comprehension. “It is difficult to escape the conclusion that many of these children had been judged strong readers on the basis of their pacing, accuracy and prosody alone” (p. 52). Reinforcing that it is easy to confuse good reading with fluency, but should not be confused with comprehension. “Few authors we reviewed would go so far as to suggest that the correlation between fluency and comprehension is linear or causal. Indeed many writers specifically warn against this oversimplification of such a complex interrelationship (Pikulski & Chart, 2005; Strecker, Roser & Martinez, 1998 In: Applegate et al, 2009).

Administration Procedures for The Critical Reading Inventory

• Establish rapport with the child; use the Child Interview form to assist in this activity.
• Explain the purpose and process of the assessment, answer any questions and address any concerns.

Use of Word Lists:

• Start at least two levels below grade level.
• Flash 1-second exposure using two index cards; record child’s exact (phonetic) response in case of a miscue; use “+” to indicate a correct response.
• Untimed 10- to 15-second exposure to allow the child to “decode” or correct miscues from the flash portion.
• Discontinue once the child has scored 70% or less on the Flash portion.

Reading Passages:

• Start with oral reading at the highest level at which the child attained 100% on the Flash portion of the word lists.
• Introduce the process for the passages by reading the Introductory Statement on the Examiner’s Copy of the CRI.
• Record the child’s oral reading miscues on the Examiner’s Copy, using the notation guidelines on the next page; later you will calculate the RAI and MMI for each oral read- ing passage that the child has completed.
• Remove the story from the child and ask the child to retell the story to you; record his or her retelling verbatim for scoring later. If the child does not do so in the course of the retelling, remind the child, “Tell me what you thought about the passage.”
• Ask the comprehension questions and record the child’s exact responses. Score as you go if you are an experienced user. Otherwise, estimate the level of the child’s performance so that you do not exceed the child’s Frustration Level.
• Follow the same procedures for the silent passage at each level (except, of course, for recording the oral reading performance).
• Estimate the average for the oral and the silent comprehension performance after each level is administered.
• Stop when either the oral reading performance RAI score is 90% or less or when the average (oral + silent reading comprehension/2) is 50% or less.
  • Proceed to listening comprehension assessment if the child’s Instructional Level is below the child’s grade level or if you note that word recognition problems are seriously affect- ing comprehension.
  • If you start with a level where the child does not obtain an “independent” score on oral reading performance and/or comprehension average, then go down a level until an independent level is established.

References:

Applegate, M. D., Applegate, A. J., & Modla, V. B. (2009). "She's my best reader; she just can't comprehend": Studying the relationship between fluency and comprehension. The Reading Teacher, 62(6), 512-521.

Applegate, M.D., Quinn, K.B., & Applegate, A.J. (2008). The critical reading inventory: Assessing students’ reading and thinking (2nd ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education.

EngageNY, January, 2015