Answer
The screening test is a brief assessment that is intended to identify children who are at risk for educational or learning problems.
Screening tests are limited and may not identify a child's problems that need to be evaluated.
Screening tests should never be used in place of a comprehensive evaluation.
Schools also use informal reading assessments to test your child. This may be a teacher-made test or an informal reading inventory (IRI).
Teacher-made tests are based on the curriculum and prepared by teachers. Teachers use scores to measure their student's progress.
Informal reading inventories include graded word lists, graded passages, and comprehension questions for the passages. Informal reading inventories usually classify four levels of reading skill:
1. Independent level: The child reads without assistance.
2. Instructional level: The child finds the material challenging, not too hard or too easy.
3. Frustration level: The child is frustrated when trying to understand what he reads.
4. Listening capacity or potential level: The child understands material that is read to him.
An informal reading inventory may not be used to determine if a child is eligible for special education or in other high-stakes education decisions. |
