Reading Assessment Database - Overview
This searchable database describes
in detail all available early reading assessment tools that are
published and distributed in the SEDL region. It is intended to
provide valuable information about all of the options available
to teachers and administrators who are seeking reliable reading
assessment tools for children in grades Pre-K to 3.
Overview
Teachers depend on assessment tools for determining the reading
abilities of students in their classrooms, and administrators depend
on assessment tools for making decisions about literacy education
from the school level to the regional level. Recent state and federal
initiatives requiring early reading instruction and intervention
are further driving the need for comprehensive and accurate information
about reading assessment tools - especially those tools that are
appropriate to administer to young children before the second grade.
It was with this in mind that SEDL created the Reading
Assessment Database for Grades PreK-3. We collected information
about 80 reading assessment tools that are appropriate for
children who have not yet entered the 3rd grade, and we are presenting
this information to the public in an easy-to-use, Internet-accessible
format. The information provided about each of the assessment tools
is unbiased - SEDL is not affiliated in any way with any of the
publishers of these assessment tools. Also, we do not offer nor
imply any opinions about the quality of any assessment tool - our
role is to inform the public about all of the options available
for assessing the reading ability of young children, and the information
provided in this database is only meant to assist teachers and administrators
to decide for themselves which assessment tools are most appropriate
for their particular needs.
What's in the Database?
This is more than a simple database of early reading assessment
tools - we've collected quite a bit of information about each of
the reading tests and have presented that information in database
form. On each page, you'll find the name of each reading test, plus
a brief description of what skills and abilities each test measures
(subtests, such as phonemic awareness or alphabet knowledge). Also,
we've included information about the reliability and validity of
each of the tests, as well as a description of how the scores are
reported by each test (e.g. percentiles, stanines, etc.). In addition,
we've reported information about each test's restrictions, such
as the time it takes to administer each test, what grades or ages
the test is appropriate for, whether the test can be administered
individually or in groups, and whether the test can be administered
in languages other than English. Of course, we've also included
pragmatic information about the cost of each of the tools and information
about ordering the tests from the publishers, and finally, we've
included a space for miscellaneous information where we've tried
to highlight features of the test that may otherwise be overlooked.
How to Use the Database
We've designed a simple search engine to allow you to search the
database for parameters that are of particular interest to you (e.g.
certain grades or certain subtests), or you can simply browse the
whole database, learning about all of the assessment tools. For
more information about how to use our search engine, go to our tips
on searching the database page.
The Reading Assessment Clipboard:
If you would like to keep track of reading assessments that interest
you, you can add them to your "Reading Assessment Clipboard" for
later printing. You even have the option to e-mail the details about
the assessments to yourself or others.
-
To view the clipboard,
click on the large clipboard image to the right.
-
To add an assessment to the clipboard, search the database,
then click on the tiny clipboard next to any of the assessments
on the search results screen.
Tell Us What You Think
We
are very interested in hearing from you - we'd like to hear your
comments about this database (in general terms) and about specific
assessment tools that we have described in the database (or that
we have failed to describe - it is certainly possible that we have
failed to include certain assessment tools that would be appropriate
in this database).
Using the Information
Using this database, educators and administrators will be able
to select reading assessment tools that are most appropriate for
the needs of their students. They will be able to select the most
affordable assessment tool, and they will instantly have information
about the reliability and validity of the assessment. Further, because
different reading tests assess different facets of reading at different
stages of development, teachers and administrators will be able
to select tests that complement each other, and which, when combined,
provide a complete picture of the reading instruction needs of any
student.
Thank you - we hope you find the Reading Assessment Database for
Grades PreK-3 to be informative and useful.
| 
