Hinds Feet on High Places

This is a test, just to be sure that everyone can read and post responses.

Merry Christmas

The holidays are my favorite time of the year, and not just because we don't have to go to work/school.
Thanksgiving reminds us that we live in the best country in the world, and that God has blessed with many things people in other countries only dream about.
Christmas reminds us that the God who created the universe loved us so much that He sent his Son to an old stable to born...so that he could live a sinless life, and die for our sins.
Christmas is about love, hope, peace, and joy. The love God showed us, the hope we have in salvation, the peace in the midst of trouble, and the joy of family and friends.
Not to mention all the wonderful food, desserts, and cookies that we only make during the holidays!
I am blessed with a wonderful family, the most awesome friends, a good church, good health, and a job I actually like. What more could a girl ask for?
Merry Christmas!

Pg 165-193 Formal Assessment: Individualized Assessment

This is the chapter that I presented in class. If you need me to write a summary, let me know.

Pg 131-161 Informal Assessment

Informal Assessments described in this chapter “used primarily to determine whether students have mastered certain skills or performing at specified levels on various types of reading tasks” (p. 132).
This information provides valuable information for instructional decisions regarding the effectiveness of instruction or intervention.

Assessment Continuum
Informal (teacher created) to Formal (norm referenced)

Reliability & Validity
Reliability refers to the consistency of the test scores, and is measured from 0 to 1. The higher the reliability rating, the better the quality of the test.
Inter rater reliability refers to the scores assigned to an assessment by multiple scorers (such as TAKS Writing Prompt).
Validity refers to the “extent to which the test assesses what it was designed to assess (p. 134).
Content validity refers to the extent to which a test assesses the content that is being tested. For example a district would list the TEKS assessed on a benchmark to identify targeted skills.
Construct validity refers to the tests ability to assess a particular skill, and is measured with a correlation coefficient.
Treatment validity refers to the extent to which a test provides treatment or instructional information. Does the assessment monitor progress or demonstrate growth after instruction?

Criterion Referenced Assessment
These tests measure specific skills within a domain and are often used to determine PLOP (present levels of performance) and IEP goals and objectives. The initial assessment provides a baseline, and progress can be monitored with additional administrations.

Brigance Inventories
Brigance Diagnostic Comprehensive Inventory of Basic Skills-Revised

Progress Monitoring
Special Education and RTI require that student progress and response to treatment be documented through Curriculum Based Measures (CBMs) or other criterion referenced materials.
Slope is an important feature of progress monitoring. Student performance scores are plotted on a graph and compared with the class mean or other predetermined levels of performance, such as wcpm at the end of 1st grade.

AIMSweb: Provides a system of assessment and progress monitoring.

DIBELS (Dynamic Indicators of Basic Literacy Skills): assess reading skills of students in grades k-6 and is aligned with the NRP targeted domains
Some experts have questioned the reliability and validity of DIBELS.
Some have also criticized DIBELS because assessments are timed which may lead to an overemphasis on rate and fluency.

Computer Based Assessment of Reading
Total Reader: can be used throughout school years; aligned to lexile scores;
STAR Reading: measures vocabulary and comprehension
DORA (Diagnostic Online Reading Assessment): grade level equivalent scores; measures graphophonics, high frequency words, word recognition, phonics, phonemic awareness, spelling, semantics, and reading comprehension
Lexiles: a measure that is used to describe reading ability; scores range from 200-1,700; helps match ability level with appropriate level text; many basal and trade books use lexile scores;

Pg 102-126

Running Records
First described by Clay in 1993
A student reads aloud from any source; the teacher documents the errors and self corrections; a reading level is determined. A running record assesses word recognition, word decoding skills, and reading fluency.

Easy: 95-100% accuracy
Instructional: 90-94% accuracy
Hard: 80-89% accuracy

Advantages of Running Records
Text difficulty evaluation
Instructional grouping decisions
Progress monitoring
Error Analyses
Was the error related to syntax, semantics, or graphophonic/orthography?

Curriculum Based Assessment
Teacher made assessments usually given at the end of a unit that assesses specific skills to determine mastery.
They can be used to asses reading fluency by measuring rate and accuracy.
A CBM assesses a particular skill and used to monitor progress/development of that skill over time; they can be used to compare student progress to class norms

Portfolio Assessment
Samples of various types of informal assessments (work samples, drawings, reflections, etc) that demonstrate skill progress and achievement over time. These samples are usually graded holistically or with a rubric.
To add to its authenticity, students should be able to select samples and have input into the grading criteria.
They can be sued to document progress in all areas of reading.

Readability
Readability is determined by word difficulty, sentence complexity, and paragraph length.
Common Readability/Grade Equivalent Scores
Dale-Chall
Fry (count the average number of syllables in a word and the number of words in a sentence)
Flesch
Harris-Jacobson
SMOG (count 10 sentences from the beginning, middle, and end; count every word of 3 syllables or more; calculate the square root of the number of polysyllabic words counted; add 3 to the square root or 1 as suggested by Harris)
Spache
Flesch Kincaid (used by Microsoft Word to determine readability)
Leveled Texts
Fountas & Pinnell leveling system
Reading Recovery books are rated from A to Z
DRA (Developmental Reading Assessment)
These systems are helpful so that the ability of the reader matches the difficulty level of the text.
5 Finger Rule (ask a child to read a page, counting each error; 5 or more errors means the book is too difficult)
90% Rule-if a child can read 90% of a 100 word sample, the text is at an appropriate level

Matching ability level to difficulty level of text is an important factor in a child’s motivation to read.

Special Considerations in the Informal Assessment of Young Children
McGill-Franzen Schedule for Kindergarten Literacy Assessment
-measures 8 critical skills that must be acquired in kindergarten through observations at the beginning, middle, and end of year
Letter sound association
Phonological awareness
Print concepts
Phonemic segmentations and representation
Word reading
Word writing
Text reading
Text writing

Special Considerations in the Informal Assessment of Adult Learners
Put reader at easy to reduce sensitivity

Purposes for Adult Assessment
-identify goals, strengths, and weaknesses
-progress monitoring
-chart learning over time

Special Considerations in the Informal Assessment of English Language Learners
4 Kinds of ELL
-new with limited school experiences
-new with formal school experiences
-dual language exposure
-long term

Teachers need to assess:
-language use
-knowledge
-experiences
-narrative
-relationships
-Aesthetics and ethics

Pg 69-102 Informal Assessment

Pg 69-102 Informal Assessment
Informal Assessments are criterion referenced and measure a specific skill and are usually teacher created.

Observation & Interview
Most common type of classroom assessment
Modified Concepts about Print Test measures the literacy skills of beginning readers

Teacher Made & Teacher Selected Curriculum Related Assessment
Basal Reading Series assessment materials may evaluate phonics, vocabulary, and comprehension
Advantages: selected and developed skill strands, controlled text difficulty, suggestions for material use, and “built in assessment strategies
Disadvantages: limited range and variability of the literature

Specific Skills Assessments
San Diego Quick Assessment-word recognition ages 5-16
Yopp-Singer Test of Phoneme Segmentation
Reading Teacher’s Survival Kit
Alternative Assessment Techniques for Reading & Writing
Rasinski & Padak assessments

Error Analysis
“determining patterns or reasons for student errors” (p. 80)
Task analysis a key component of error analysis that helps determine where the child is having difficulty. Task analysis is identifying the discrete concrete steps or prerequisite skills that necessary to master a skill. If a child is reading laboriously, can the teacher determine the cause or lacking skill that needs to be addressed?

Informal Reading Inventories (IRI)
A specific and comprehensive assessment that usually includes a graded word list, and texts that assess oral and silent reading comprehension.
Measures rate and accuracy through miscue analysis
The primary purpose of an IRI is to “inform instruction, plan for grouping, and identify skills to target” (p. 82).
Qualitative Reading Inventory-4
Students are first assessed by a word list that will determine their level and fluency at that level (independent, instructional, or frustrational). Students are then asked to read a text aloud and are asked comprehension questions.
IRIs are quantitative (reading level, word recognition, and comprehension scores) and qualitative (evaluation of types of miscues, retelling of the story).
Most common miscues are: omission, insertion, substitution, reversal, helper supplied word, repetition, lack of prosody, hesitation, mispronunciation, and self correction.

Pg 57-67

How Do We Know Whether a Student has a Reading Disability?
If a student fails to respond to quality instruction and interventions, they may be referred to special education for a full and individual evaluation to determine if there is a learning disability.
LD is the most prevalent of the 13 special education disability categories, and was typically measured as a discrepancy between IQ and achievement. However, this method of identification is no longer the primary source for a determination of disability. States can also use RTI to determine a LD.
The book lists 7 LD categories including basic reading and reading comprehension, but reading fluency was also added with the reauthorization.
The authors define a learning disability as “a pattern of intra-individual strengths and weaknesses” (p. 59).
The authors discuss the attributes of dyslexia-difficulty with word recognition usually accompanied by poor spelling, that are the result of weak phonological processing skills-despite average or above average intelligence and ability.
Note: in Texas, dyslexia is serviced under 504 and not special education

How Do We Distinguish ELL Challenges from Disabilities?
ELL are the fastest growing population in the US, and schools are accountable for their progress under NCLB. Teachers need to understand that ELL difficulties may be the result of the non-native language and not a learning disability. If an ELL is suspected of having a LD, the full and individual evaluation must include the native language, and rule out language factors.
Best practices are discussed-such as native language performance, comparing performance to similar ELLs, the students BICS and CALP, verbal vs non verbal tasks, and response to instruction.

Low Literacy Adults
Non-native English speakers make up a large portion on low literacy adults.
Estimates show that 11 million adults in the US are non literate.

The Literacy Instruction Pie
Effective teachers know how to use data to make instructional decisions.
Reading instruction should include:
Word Analysis
Fluency
Reading/Writing Connection
Vocabulary
Comprehension
The amount of time and complexity of task will vary depending on the grade or ability level of the learner.

Pg 39-56

Historical Models for Context of Reading
Reading difficulties were first documented by physicians in 1676. In 1896, a physician used the phrase “word blindness” to describe a child who could not read, despite good instruction, good vision, and good mathematical skills”
The medical model presumes a deficit within the child.
When evaluating reading difficulties medical causes, such a poor eyesight or chronic ear infections, should be ruled out.
Developmental Models of Reading
Chall described reading as a series of progressive stages.
Emergent Literacy (print awareness)
Decoding
Confirmation & Fluency
Reading for information (new vocabulary & content)
Multiple viewpoints (Analysis/high school level)
World View (college level)

Spear-Swerling and Sternberg Model
Visual Cue Word Recognition
Alphabetic Insight
Phonetic Cue Word Recognition
Controlled Word Recognition
Automatic Word Recognition
Strategic Reading
Highly Proficient

Frith’s Developmental Model & Checklist can be useful in indentifying at risk kindergartners

Adam’s Cognitive Model links reading with the cognitive processes that must take place to derive meaning such as making connections and prior knowledge.

Information Processing Model of Reading
Information is received, either visually or auditorily, which interacts with short term and working memory, then the information is processed and an output occurs. The key to this model is what happens in short term and working memory, and the ability to make connections with prior knowledge.

Gagne developed a model to explain how print is processed in the brain to attain comprehension.
Gagne describes long term memory as declarative knowledge and procedural knowledge.
Declarative knowledge is activated through decoding and sight word recognition.

Brain research supports the information processing model.
Cognitive processes involved in reading development include
Auditory processing
Processing Speed
Short & Long Term Memory
Our ability to read is affected by the processes and can be measured or assessed through an IQ assessment.

What is the relationship between reading and IQ?
Studies show that there is a significant relationship between reading achievement and IQ, both verbal and nonverbal. However, the relationship is not as strong in younger children. The relationship is also affected by the skills that are used to measure intelligence and the whether reading is defined as letter/word recognition or comprehension.

Transactional View of Reading
“focuses attention on situations in which literary experiences occur and emphasizes the importance of context interacting with the reader to construct new knowledge” (p. 53).
Rosenblatt believes that reader gives more attention to certain features of the text. Rosenblatt states that the way a reader reads is influenced by the purpose for reading, pleasure or information. Rosenblatt also states that comprehension is influenced by social and cultural experiences.
What the reader attends to is influenced by the classroom climate.

Speaking, Reading, & Writing
Reading is not an isolated skill, and is affected by receptive and expressive language skills, such as vocabulary.
Rosenblatt and others describe reading and writing as a reciprocal process of gaining meaning from print and using print to convey meaning.

An Inclusive View of Reading
All of these models demonstrate the complexity of reading. Not only are there cognitive influences from within the child, but also environmental factors from without.
Affective Dimension
Sight Word Knowledge
Fluency
Cognitive Correlates of Reading
Phonological Awareness
Phonics
Comprehension
Context
Vocabulary

Pg 24-29

Pg 24-39
What is the multitiered model of instruction?
When a student fails to respond or make progress in the general education classroom with current instructional practices, they are moved into Tier 1. Tier 1 requires scientifically based instructional practices in a specific area for a specific amount of time in small group or individually. Progress is assessed and monitored through CBMs or other benchmarks. If a child does make adequate progress at this level, then they move to Tier 2. At this level, they continue to receive the Tier 1 interventions and are also provided additional targeted intensive instruction by the general education teacher or a content area specialist. Progress is assessed and monitored more frequently. If, after an extended period and several interventions, the child still fails to respond to instruction, they may be referred to special education to determine if the child has a learning disability. Tier 3 interventions are usually provided through special education.
Assessment is a key component of RTI and is the basis for instructional decisions and interventions.
What is scientifically based research in reading?
Consider the source: Is this a peer reviewed journal?
Replication: Have other studies had similar empirical findings?
Consensus: Do the experts and research support these findings?
Support: Do related studies support these findings?
Did the investigators organize their study? Was this a quantative or qualitative study? What type of experimental design was used?
How does scientifically based research help in the classroom?
“can empower educators to make informed decisions about which strategies and procedures to use” (p. 33).
What are the reading wars and how are they related to assessment?
Phonics vs. Whole Language
Decoding vs. Sight Words
Phonetically based text vs. Authentic literature
Instead of either or; teachers should take a balanced literacy approach implementing the strengths from both approaches.
Assessment will help a teacher determine whether a student needs remediation in decoding, comprehension, or both areas.
What are the major types of assessment?
1. Informal
2. Criterion referenced (curriculum based)
3. Formal standardized Individual
4. Formal standardized Group

Pg 1-23

Pg 1-23
What is the role of assessment in instruction?
Assessments, whether informal CBMs or TAKS, should provide information about a student’s strengths and weaknesses. That information should then be used to guide instructional planning.
What do teachers need to know about reading assessment?
Teachers need to have an understanding of the ELA TEKS for the grades they work with, and know what tools are available or can be made to measure progress on these skills.
Purposes of Assessment
1. Instructional Planning-which skills has the child mastered, what areas of weakness need to be targeted, which learners can be grouped together effectively
2. Progress Monitoring-is the child making progress towards mastery, is progress being made when compared to baseline data
3. Accountability-is the student, class, and school meeting the state and federal criteria
4. Eligibility for Special Education-assessment is one of the tools used to determine eligibility for services, what IEP goals and objectives does this child need
What is reading?
-getting meaning from print
-comprehension, fluency, vocabulary, phonics, phonemic awareness (5 Areas Identified by the NRP)
Phonemic awareness is the understanding that speech is made up of discreet sounds (auditory skill).
Phonics is the understanding that sounds are represented by letters (auditory and visual skill)
While Adams & the NRP support phonics instruction for young children, there are those support a whole language approach.
The authors of the text also included orthography as an essential component of reading. Orthography, knowledge of the letter system, influences a child’s automatic recognition of words and reading fluency.
Fluency is the ability to read with automaticity and accuracy. Fluency is receiving more attention because poor comprehension may be a result of poor fluency.
Vocabulary are the words we understand when we read, speak, or listen. Poor vocabulary can also result in poor comprehension.
Comprehension is our understanding of what we read. This is the focus of most reading instruction in the upper grades. Strategies that can be used to improve comprehension include metacognitive or self monitoring strategies, graphic organizers, various types and levels of questioning, story maps, cooperative learning groups, and direct instruction.

McDonalds Chicken Nuggets vs Milkbone Dog biscuits

My reading professor made a very dramatic illustration in class on Thurdsay night.
She read the ingredients in the milkbone dog biscuits and pointed out that all of the ingredients were items we could understand....and then she ate one! Yuck!
Then she told us about the ingredients in McDonals Chicken Nuggets...half of which we could not pronouce.....
She also compared the calories in the dog biscuits & chicken nuggets....guess which one has alot fewer calories....yep, the dog biscuits!
So is it we don't eat dog biscuits...but we will pay lots of money to eat mystery meat thats loaded with fat and calories....!
Let's just say when I drove by McDonalds today...I had no desire to stop and order chicken nuggets!
The point she was trying to make was the power and effect of a label!
We make judgements about people and kids based a label, and not what's inside the package!
When we should take the time to learn about the inside of the package, before forming an opinion.

Germany-Some Final Thoughts

Germany is a beautiful country full of history.
I loved all the old building, castles, and downtown plazas and pedestrian areas.

Germany is very clean and the people are very environmentally friendly (all their trash must be sorted and vehicles need special stickers to drive in the large cities).
The people are different..we are used to southern hospitality and friendliness...but friendly is a not a word I would use to describe most Germans you meet on the street. Not because they are intentionally rude...they just aren't friendly.
I love the autobahn....Germans are the best drivers..everyone knows the rules and they follow them. No wonder they are safe drivers with no speed limit.

Having to pay to go to the bathroom was something that took getting used to. It didn't matter if you were eating at the McDonalds, in the mall, or at a rest stop on the autobahn ...you have to pay 50 euro cents. But I have to admit, when we stopped at the rest stop on the autobahn it was the cleanest bathroom I have ever seen. The toilet seat automatically cleans itself after every flush...so its was well worth it!
Having to pay for ketchup also seemed strange.
Germans like sparkling or mineral water...so you have to be careful about which water you get ...no gas/no bubbles!
The missionaries we saw are doing a great job...and made me stop and consider what my priorities should really be! Because in eternity, most of the things we value will be worthless.

Germany Day 14

Monday
We still had lots of souvenirs to buy, so Gary and Chastity took us back into Frankfurt to try to find some stuff to bring home.
Everything was so expensive, then when you figure out the exchange into dollars-you don't want to buy anything...but then you realize that this is one of those once in a lifetime opportunities and just quit worrying about the cost of every item.

We rode the train..and that was an interesting experience.

We ate at Kentucky Fried Chicken in the train station...it was good but its not the same...and of course it was alot more expensive. A 2 piece meal with fries and a drink was over 7 euro...which equals about $10.50.
See...I am not exaggerating about the cost of everything.

Germany Day 13

Sunday
We had Sunday School in English with Bro. Gary. He did a really good lesson on the person of Jesus Christ. Then we had a regular church service in German. We recognized a couple of songs because they used the same music. Thankfully Bro. Gary translated for us, while Bro. Michael preached.
Then we drove to Frankfurt to have lunch with Bro. Gary's church. He has a group of Burmese people who made us a German lunch of ham, mashed potatoes, and sauerkraut.
I never saurkraut in the States, I don't even like the smell of it...but I ate this sauerkraut-it was delicious.
Then we had church in German..but Bro. Michael translated while Bro. Gary preached. It was a really good service.

Germany Day 12

Saturday
Road Trip!
We all piled in the van and we drove for over 2 hours form Frankfurt to Weimar in what was Eastern Germany.
We went to the Buchenwald Concentration Camp.
I have read read lots of books on this time period, and I am familiar with alot of the torture the Nazis inflicted on not only Jews, but everybody they didn't like-gypsies, mentally handicapped, political prisoners, the elderly. But somehow that knowledge made walking through the camp all that much harder.
It is so hard to describe. I took lots of pictures outside, because of course you are no allowed to take picture inside.

When we entered the camp we walked into to the crematorium and saw the ovens and the cellar. Out of respect, it is a place of silence-but you could sense the weight of the atrocities committed there. It was such a mix of emotions, part of me wanted to puke..the other part just wanted to cry.
Then we went into the museum portion of the camp. They took the storehouse building and turned it into 2 floors of artifacts and information. As you entered a new section in the chronology there would be an English description, but the frustrating part was that most of the descriptions were in German, and I kept having to ask for a translation. Even with the language barrier, you could still figure out what you were looking at.
We also saw the disinfecting rooms, where the people were processed when they arrived.

It is a place I will never forget.

Then we left the camp and were going to go to the castle where Martin Luther translated the Bible into German, but exit from the autobahn was closed. But from the autobahn, we could see the castle at the top of the hill.
Its ok...I will just have to see it when I go back.

Germany Day 11

Friday
Chastity took us to another cool castle called Ronneburg, just north of Frankfurt. This castle has a well that is almost 100 meters deep. When we pour the water down it takes over 12 seconds before you hear the water hit the bottom. It was the neatest thing.
This castle was different from the one Hanau, it was much older and alot more hands on. We climbed up to the very top of the parapet...those were the steepest stairs I have ever climbed, but the view from the top was worth it. You could see the whole country side. I also found some cool souvenirs, like a replica of the sword of Richard the Lionheart!

Germany Day 10

Thursday
Today we had to drive back to Heidelberg to get the rest of our luggage, and to say goodbye to the Castellaws. It took us about an hour to get there and almost 2 hours to get back because of the traffic on the autobahn. The sky has been gray all day...the Luticks told us that duringh te month of November it will be gray and rainy almost every day...:(
On Thursday nights, the Lutricks have their mid week service. They go out into the town and invite people to come. Then after the service they feed everyone a meal, and take them back home.

Germany Day 9

Wednesday
Today Chastity took us to a castle in Hanau. It had a large fountain with a rose garden in front, and big staircase, and the most beautiful ceilings. In every room the ceiling has a different design. The doors had lions for door handles, and the wood carvings were incredible. Each room also had unique chandeliers. Eveything was so beautiful. The castle also had a special exhibit of tarantulas from around the world. They were all the size of my hand, but some ofthem were kind of creepy looking.
Then we went to Subway, and had the 5 euro footlong special....I saved the receipt so you could see the taxes they charge here...one tax was 7% and another was 19%...that's insane!
Tonight, we went with Bro. Gary and another man to downtown Frankfurt and passed out tracts in the pedestrian zone. I still cannot get over how many people smoke. Even though we were outside and there was a breeze, my eyes and nose are still burning. Even when it got later and there weren't alot of people, I could still smell the smoke. The girls did a really good job, I was so proud of them! They just got out there and started handing them out! Most of the people were friendly, and a few even said thank you! There are alot of Arab/Indian/Muslim people here...and even a few of them took the tracts.
The weather here had been warmer than it was last week, so we aren't freezing anymore!

Germany Day 8

Tuesday we slept late again...we must be getting lazy.
We walked back to the pedestrian zone by ourselves, and went to the mall to order some breakfast/lunch. The lady at the counter didn't speak English and I don't speak German, so I just pointed and held up my fingers to tell her how many. It was quite interesting, but I did manage to get us some food.
This evening, Bro. Duke drove us back to the Frankfurt area. We were supposed to leave around 2:00, but didn't get on the road until after 6:00, so it was late when we finally got there. I was disappointed that it was already dark..since there are some really great views, but I loved seeing all the little villages lit up across the plains and the mountains.

Germany Day 7

Monday we were so exhuasted from the late nights and Sunday, we slept late.
Then Danica came over and showed us around Wilhemshaven. We ate döner at this Iraqi restraunt. To me they are alot like Greek gyros. Then we walked down to the pedestrian area with lots of neat shops and a McDonalds...they have alot of McDonalds everywhere. We also wlaked though the town mall. Then we walked down and saw the coast...or where the river empties into the North Sea. There were several large sailing ships in the harbor...kind of like pirates of the carribean. The big bridge turns sideways, lets the ships pass, then it turns backs. It wsa cool to watch. We also saw some German miltiary boats. On the other side of the bridge there were more military ships...because there is a German navy port.
This evening, Danica drove us out to a dairy farm and we had fresh milk...I am not a big milk drinker...but that was really good.