Journal Question #14

This entry answers #14 of the Reading Methods Journal

In what ways (formal as well as informal) does the teacher evaluate student progress in reading?

Mrs. Overstreet’s class reading levels were divided into letters which were assigned to each child at the beginning of the school year (A being the lowest level and V being the highest level for elementary). I believe that they used the Fountas-Pinnell guided reading levels. Each student was placed in a group based on his or her reading level. Mrs. Overstreet would evaluate each student/group during guided reading time using anecdotal notes in which she recorded their growth in fluency, comprehension, and word recognition skills. During independent reading time, Mrs. Overstreet would pull her students aside and have them read for her as she recorded anecdotal notes on their reading progress/challenges. The children were also evaluated on their ability to complete word sorts and take spelling tests. Along with these forms of evaluation, the children were required to take computerized Accelerated Reader tests after reading each of their books selected from the library. These tests are supposed to measure comprehension of reading.