Case ReportRachel Monroe

Introduction

Dallas Swaney, female, age 9, rising 4th grader

As a graduate reading clinician in Appalachian State University's Master's Degree Program in Reading Education, I tutored Dallas for 13 one-hour sessions across the summer, 2010 semester.

Initial literacy assessments

The following assessments were given to Dallas on June 23rd and 24th 2010 to determine independent, instructional, and frustration levels:

Schlegal Spelling Assessment (level 1-3)

Word Recognition in Isolation Inventory (WRI)-1-3--Flash and Untimed

Contextual reading-Oral with comprehension (PP2-Level 3)

  • Listening Comprehension (Level 3 through 5)
  • Written expression
  • Sense of story: Elements, Story Organization, and Sentence Syntax on “Goldilocks” and “Poor Old Dog.”

A student’s independent level in a particular area is the highest at which he or she can successfully work without instructional support. The instructional level is the optimal level for working with instructional support. One's frustration level is that at which he or she can not readily benefit even with instructional support.

Dallas was very excited to begin her summer tutoring. She was a part of the program last year, and expressed that she wanted to come back again because she enjoyed it so much. She admitted that she does not like to read aloud in class or have the teacher call on her to read because she does not feel she is a good reader. So when it came time to read aloud during the assessments, Dallas seemed very uncomfortable with her ability and seemed to second guess herself. She was trying to read quickly, instead of paying attention to what words were on the page. By the end of the assessment time, she seemed happy to have it completed.

Reading Interest Inventory/Reading Attitude Survey

Dallas completed an interest inventory and reading attitude survey to find interest for writing and reading topics. These inventories may also give insight into reading issues. Dallas enjoys playing softball and going camping with her family. Her favorite book is Junie B. Jones and her best subject is math. Through the analysis of her reading attitude survey, I found Dallas does not like to read books in her free time, but she does like to read a home. She would rather play outside than read and she really dislikes workbooks. She likes to read, but does not like reading aloud in class. She said that she feels like her reading is not as good as others.

Spelling

Dallas was given the Schlagal diagnostic spelling assessment beginning at the first grade level. The Schlagal spelling test consists of grade level lists of words from first to eighth grade.These lists consist of similar spelling patterns or high frequency words for the grade level. The spelling test was given to see at what stage or grade level material Dallas is spelling in and to determine whereDallas needs further instruction. Spelling and word recognition are closely related; therefore, Dallas’ spellings can give a hint to what kind of words Dallas will have fluency and recognition with when reading. This assessment also shows what knowledge Dallas has about how letters work in words and what word/spelling knowledge she will bring to reading. To determine Dallas’ levels I used the following criteria: independent level 90-100% of words spelled correctly, instructional is 50-89% of words spelled correctly, and frustration is below 40% correct.

Results: Dallas’ spelling tests results are listed below.

Schlagal Spelling Level / Dallas’ Percentage Correct
1 / 92%
2 / 42%
3 / 16%

After administering the Schlagal spelling test, I determined Dallas’ independent is level one because at this level, she performed at 92% correct. The independent criteria states that Dallas should score at 90-100% to be considered able to spell these words successfully without instructional support. Since Dallas scored within range for this criterion, we can assume she does is independent at level one.

Dallas’ instructional level is second grade level because she scored 42% on level two words. The criterion of instructional level is set at 50-89%; however, there is a gray area between 40-49%. This gray area is set to say that Dallas could still use instructional support at this level because she is struggling in this area, not enough to be frustration, but enough for support.Dallas can spell successfully at level two with instructional support. She will need further instructions on spelling patterns and how letters work in words at this level.

Dallas’ frustration level is third grade level. At 3rd grade she scored16%. The criterion states that scores below 40% create a frustration level. This means Dallas will not be able to successfully use spelling knowledge of patterns and recognition to spell level three words. Dallas has very little to no recognition of spelling pattern or understanding of how letters work in level three words.

An analysis of Dallas’ spelling errors revealed that Dallas is in the within-word stage on the word study continuum. Dallas has an understanding of some vowel and phonics instruction. She understands her short vowel patterns and instruction at level one because of her 92% correct. She only missed the word “sister” as (srister). She has more trouble at level two. She has issues when doubling, “shopping” (sping), “trapped” (tracht) and “stepping” (studding). Dallas also needs further instructionwith all long vowel patterns such as “queen” (quesuies), and “chase” (chanchs). She needs to sort short vs. long vowel patterns to see the distinction. She will need practice with vowel pairs, “ee”, “ea”, “au”, “ai”, in one-syllable words, due to her spelling of “queen” and “scream” (scread). Most of these words are at her instructional level two, so instruction can aid these areas. Dallas needs work with r-controlled vowels, “thirsty” was spelled “thirts” and “careful” was spelled “krish”. She also needs further instructions in dipthongs, “noise” was spelled “nose” and blends such as ck, “thick” was (thansk). At level tree, she only spelled two words correctly “send” and “knock” which means she will need instructional support with long vowels, diagraphs and blends before mastery and readiness for level three patterns.

Word recognition in isolation

Dallas was given the word recognition in isolation flash/untimed test to determine the sight words that she is familiar enough with to read quickly and correctly in daily use. The test consists of twenty sight words per list ranging from preprimer to grade 8. The flash test consists of the instructor flashing a word for a fraction (1/3) of a second to see which words a child has committed to memory and recognizes automatically. If the child misses the word or hesitates during the flash, the word is uncovered and the student reads the word untimed. This portion of the test shows words that a child needs to draw upon current knowledge to decode the word. Automaticity with these words will allow a child to focus on comprehension of reading instead of word decoding. These tests should have some congruence to the spelling assessment because word recognition and spelling are closely related. Student fluency and word recognition is a key element in reading ability. The test is completed when the student misses more than 50% of the words on the flash test. Dallas would be considered independent, or able to read words automatically from memory at 90-100% on flash. She will be considered instructional at 70-89% on flash, and below 50% will be considered frustration level.

I began the flash/untimed test at level one since Dallasscored independent on this spelling level. Dallas scored 100% correct on the flash and untimed for level one. According to the criteria of 90-100% for word recognition independent level, level one is Dallas’ independent level for word recognition in isolation.This is the highest level at which he can recognize words quickly and accurately without instructional support. She scored a 90% flash, 100% untimed at level two. This could also be considered independent based on the criteria; however, at level three Dallas scored a 40% flash and 70% untimed. This is a dramatic drop from level two. Therefore, I believe Dallas is instructional at level two, even though her criteria could pass for an independent level. Her score of 40% flash at level three qualifies as frustration level. Dallas will not be able to read words based on memory at level three, but she can use automaticity to read words at level two.

Dallas had a little difficulty with “break” and “felt” at level two. She said “breath” and “left” at first. I noticed the almost reversal of “felt” to say “left”. This was also an issue in her reading. At level three, Dallas hesitated on almost all words. After hesitation, she was able to correctly name “accept”, “favor”, “bandage”, “moat”, and “storyteller.” She was unable to read “receive”, “icy”, “customer”, “plop”, “further”, and “unroll”. This shows her trouble with long vowel patters, just like in the spelling test.

WRI Level / Flash / Untimed
Level 1 / 100% / 100%
Level 2 / 90% / 100%
Level 3 / 40% / 70%
  • Congruence or disconnect with previous test results: Dallas’ spelling predicted she is a level one independent and level two instructional, her word recognition indicates the same information. This is a congruence among testing.

Contextual reading

Contextual reading is assessed by the student reading leveled passages for fluency, prosody, word recognition in context, accuracy, and comprehension. Passages begin at the preprimer level and go up through 8th grade level. It allows the instructor to see a students reading ability and where further reading instruction is needed to increase fluency, word recognition in context, and comprehension.Analyzing oral reading can give insight into reading skills, level, and needs. The student’s independent reading level is the highest level they can read words in context accurately at 98% or better, have fluent prosody, read at the highest end of the average speed range for their grade level passage, and have 90% or better comprehension. This means the student can read this material without instructional support, have word recognition and comprehend material at this level. The student’s instructional level is said to be when a student reads with 95-97% word recognition accuracy, fluent enough prosody, within the grade level range of words per minute, and 70-89% comprehension. This is the level where students will need further instructional support to read accurately and fluently. A child’s frustration level is the level at which a child reads below 90% accuracy, disfluently, below range in wpm, and less than 50% comprehension.

Dallas’ oral reading results are as follows:

Oral Reading Level / WRC / Fluency / Comprehension
PP2 / 94% / 62 wpm/ 3 prosody
Primer / 89% / 82 wpm/ 2 prosody / 100%
Level 1-2 / 94% / 86 wpm/ 2 prosody / 100%
Level 2 / 83% / 69 wpm/ 1 prosody / 40%

Dallas’ scores are somewhat hard to interpret because they do not follow the normal patterns. I believe Dallas’ independent level in oral reading is PP2 to Primer level because of the higher accuracy, rate, and 100% comprehension. She can read at this level without instructional support. I think she was frustrated with testing during this point, and was a little nervous with the tape recorder on. I believe this affected her scores not being the 98-100% needed for independent level.

Dallas’ instructional level is level 1-2because of the 94% accuracy, rate, and comprehension that is high. She will be able to read material at this level with instructional support in fluency, word recognition, and comprehension. Dallas needs to slow down, and think about the words on the page. She often rushes and makes additions or reads ahead with her eyes and does not focus on what the words at hand are saying. She also needs exposure to vocabulary and re-readings for fluency and word recognition automaticity.

Dallas’ frustration level is second grade because of the low accuracy, rate for this grade level and very low comprehension. She will not be able to read accurately and understand information at the third grade level, no matter the instructional support.

At the PP2 level, Dallas made 5 errors, “I like fishing” was “I like to go fishing” and “You are” was said, “Are you.” This shows that she often uses reversals, much like in her spelling and word recognition. At the primer level, Dallas had 11 errors. Many were added in words or words were said that have the same beginning sound. Such as: “The cloud became a cat” was “The cloud become a mouse.” She was able to correctly answer comprehension questions at this level. At level 1-2, Dallas made 6 errors, and this was the passage she read first. I feel this is her instructional level because she read it well enough to use instructional support when needed. She had three self-corrected errors, and others were words substituted for the same beginning sound. At level two, Dallas had 20 errors, low comprehension, and low rate. Most were once again added in words or reversals.

I did not administer the silent reading assessment due to the fact that Dallas had frustration with level two assessments.

Listening Comprehension

For listening comprehension, a grade level passage was read aloud to Dallas and she was asked to answer comprehension questions based on the reading. This assessment gives a clue to Dallas’ ability in understanding material that is read to her with correct rate and accuracy. Children may be able to understand a passage that is read aloud on a level higher than oral/silent reading ability because students are able to focus on comprehension instead of decoding of words. Taking word recognition out of the equation helps the instructor see the reasons for comprehension issues. A student’s instructional listening level is found by a child answering 70-89% of comprehension questions correct. This means the student can correctly answer questions about a story that is read aloud with instructional support. An independent level is set at 90-100% and frustration level is below 50%.

Listening Comprehension Level / Percent Correct
Level 3 / 100%
Level 4 / 83%
Level 5 / 49%

Dallas’ independent listening level is at third grade level because of her 100% correct on comprehension questions. Dallas can listen to materials at third grade level without instructional support. Dallas’ instructional listening level is level four, which is her soon to be grade level, based on her score of 83 %. He will be able to listen to level four materials with instructional support: especially vocabulary support. She missed one question about a vocabulary word. Dallas’ frustration level is five because of the below 50% comprehension percentage.

Congruence or disconnect with previous tests and subtests: This test shows a connect with previous tests because we hope Dallas could understand grade level material or one level higher that is read aloud because it is at the correct rate and accuracy. She would then be able to focus on comprehension instead of decoding level four words. Dallas was able to understand grade level material when read aloud, meaning Dallas’ listening level is above her instructional reading level mentioned for contextual reading and word recognition in isolation assessments. It will be recommended that she has access to audio recordings of all grade level materials.

Sense of Story

  • The sense of story test is administered to determine if students have an understanding of “book language” when retelling a story and gives the teacher an idea of how much “book language” students have been exposed to. The test has two passages, one-“Goldilocks and the Three Bears,” the other a higher level, “Poor Old Dog.” These passages are read aloud one at a time with the student retelling the story to their best ability after each reading. This assessment shows understanding of story elements, organization, and sentence syntax.
  • Dallas was able to retell “Goldilocks” with chronological sequence using the connection “and then, and then…” For the elements portion of the assessment, Dallas had a correct beginning “There were three bears,” as well as setting. She introduced characters, all three bears and Goldilocks. She gave feelings and descriptions of the characters and conversations of the bears talking. She had an ending of Goldilocks running away. She had complete sentences on the sentence syntax scale.
  • Dallas’ retell of “Poor Old Dog” was less detailed and had more holes. She had a correct beginning, “Once upon a time”, and a setting “the park”. She introduced the dog and had a correct sequence. She did not tell any feelings or descriptions, yet did have some conversation. She had the correct ending of “bought the house and moved in”. She had the same “C” level organization which was well sequenced with “and then’s” beginning most sentences. She also had a “C” level syntax of complete sentences.
  • Interpretation: This assessment proves to me that Dallas has some understanding of the use and need for book language. I feel as though she has had exposure to book language, otherwise her retelling of Goldilocks would not have been as through. She needs more exposure with higher level book language, like in “Poor Old Dog”. Because she is reading below grade level, she may have had little experience reading her own book with rich plots and text language. She needs further exposure listening to and practice reading stories with rich language and plots

Writing

  • Dallas’ writing ability was assessed to what degree she has use of rich story language in written expression. The oral composition is use to see if spelling has an affect on written composition, is she able to tell more of the story without having to get her thoughts down on paper. It shows that Dallas is able to create a story orally with rich language instead of worrying about the correct use of written language. The written composition is used to see if word recognition and spelling are holding Dallas back from telling the complete story.
  • Results: Dallas told a story about a time she was scared. Her oral retelling was much like her writing sample. She was able to add some detail and create a chronological sequence. Most of her sentences were complete, but began with “and then”. She had a beginning, “One time…” and a complete ending. There was little description included. There was one example of conversation included when her dad told her to go back to bed. She was at a level C for sense of story organization, which means she gave a logical sequence of events. The sense of story scale is leveled A through E, A being syncretic retelling (disoriented) and the highest E being audience awareness demonstrated through complete information. Hannah also scored a level C for sentence syntax which means she wrote in complete sentences. This sentence syntax range moves from level A, which is 1 or 2 word statements to level E, which is book language grammar, usage, and vocabulary are honored.
  • Interpretation:

Dallas can tell a story in sequence with some details incorporated. She enjoys writing; however, she does focus much of her attention on spelling. She wants to spell correctly, but has much trouble doing so because of her spelling level. She needs experience listening to and reading rich plot and rich book language texts so that it will crossover into her writing ability. Her spelling ability is affecting her written composition; however, her oral composition did not have many details or rich language descriptions either. This means she needs more exposure to rich text and plots to be able to use the ideas gained from these readings in creating her own stories.