Literacy+Assessment

=**Literacy Assessment** =

__**NAPLAN**__
The National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) is a national based test that is conducted by years 3, 5, 7 and 9. The test focuses on literacy and numeracy and testing is done in a formal manner. In 2008, Naplan is conducted in May and when results are collected, each child will get a report on their performance and schools will also be rated based on their students' performance.

The literacy component are:
 * reading
 * writing
 * language conventions (spelling, grammar and punctuation)

**__Reading__**
[|Sample NAPLAN Reading Assessment- Grade 3] - 35-40 questions = 45 minutes [|Sample NAPLAN Reading Assessment- Grade 5] - 35-40 questions = 50 minutes

**__Writing__**
[|Sample NAPLAN Writing Assessment- Grade 3] - 40 minutes [|Sample NAPLAN Writing Assessment- Grade 5] - 40 minutes

__**Language Conventions**__
[|Sample NAPLAN Language Convention Assessment- Grade 3] - 40 minutes [|Sample NAPLAN Language Convention Assessment- Grade 5] - 40 minutes

**__Upper and Lower Case Letters__**
Teachers are able to assess children on their recognition of the alphabet by observing their work in the classroom. However teachers can do a formal assessment with children to find out which upper and lower case letters are easily identified. In this test the teacher shows a child upper and lower case letters and they are required to identify the letter by saying which letter it is and then they are required to say the sound the letter makes.

[|Alphabet recognition test]

__Quick Assessment-Initial Consonants__
In this assessment, the teacher asks the child to say the sound that each consonant represents. If the child can decode quickly and effectively, unfamiliar vocabulary will be easier to solve.

(Hill 2006, p224)
 * < =m= || =t= || =s= || =w= ||
 * < =r= || =p= || =l= || =j= ||
 * < =d= || =f= || =y= || =g= ||
 * < =h= || =k= || =q= || =z= ||
 * < =x= || =c= || =v= || =b= ||
 * < =n= || = = || = = || = = ||

**__Blend Sounds To Make Words__**
In this assessment, teachers get children to attempt to blend letters to make words. This assessment is divided into short vowels and long vowels.

__**Short Vowels**__
The teacher starts testing children on short vowels and have them blend letters to create words. For example:

/r/ /e/ /d/ = red

This would be repeated with words such as top, sun, cat and pin.

__**Long Vowels**__
After attempting the short vowel assessment, children would complete the same task with long vowels.. For example:

/l/ /â/ /k/ = lake

This would be repeated with words such as he, nine, rope and tune.

__**Running Records**__
Running records are used to assess children's reading abilities and performance as they read from a selected benchmark text. This test is usually taken at the earliest stage of reading and can be taken whenever the teacher needs to see a child's progression in reading. The child is provided with a text and accompanying it is a blank running records sheet to which the teacher uses for the assessment. Reading assessment is based on the first 100-150 words of the text.
 * Steps of Assessment:**
 * The teacher selects a book that represents the child's reading level and the teacher explains that the child will read aloud while they listen.
 * The teacher sits next to the child with the running record sheet in front of them and needs to be able to see the text and the child's eye movements as they read.
 * When the child starts reading, the teacher ticks the words that are correct on the running record sheet. If the child makes a mistake, the error is written down and the correct word underneath. It is important to not interrupt or correct their errors. Instead the teacher just observes.
 * If the child is reading too fast for the teacher, they would have them pause till they have caught up.
 * The teacher pays attention to how the child is reading the book and if they are using meaning (M), structural (S) and visual (V) to read words and form meaning.
 * If a child is stuck and fails to continue, the teacher would wait around 5 seconds and then tell them the word. This action would be recorded on the running record sheet.


 * Analysing Running Records:**
 * The teacher would count only the running words which would not include titles or subtitles.
 * In running records, teachers would look out for particular errors which include:
 * 1) miscues
 * 2) omissions
 * 3) insertions
 * 4) told words (words that child couldn't read at all)
 * 5) no response
 * 6) words in a skipped line


 * Errors are not recorded when:
 * 1) words that a child self-correct
 * 2) words the child repeats
 * 3) words that a child pronounces differently due dialect.


 * To calculate the accuracy of a child's reading, the teacher would subtract the total number of errors from the number of running words and then divide by the total number of running words. For example, if there were 120 running words and a child made 8 errors, the accuracy would be calculated as:

120-8= 112 112/120= 0.93333333.... Accuracy= 93%
 * Appropriate reading levels are based on percentage and are as follows:

Easy: 95%-100% Instructional: 90%-94% Hard: Below 90%


 * It is acceptable for children to read at least an instructional level with them reading between 90%-94% accuracy. This level they know most of the word but find some words challenging. After analysing the errors, the teacher would develop strategies to help correct their errors.

media type="youtube" key="tL1e_woKHRo&hl=en" height="230" width="273" This video is of an adult assessing a child using running records.

[|Running Records blank assessment sheet] [|Running Records example]

__**Emergent and Early Writing Development Assessment**__
When assessing writing at an emergent and early stage, there are three components that need to be considered: written language, ideas and text conventions.


 * Written Language**
 * At the beginning of writing development, language looks at what children know and understand about letters, words and sentences. At this stage children's writing may be characterised by lack of spaces between their words.
 * If letters are recognisable they would receive one point (refer to link below) and if words are recognisable, they would receive two points.


 * Ideas**
 * When looking at ideas in writing, a child must be able say their writing means something. The writing must convey ownership.


 * Text Conventions**
 * The third component is about placement and directionality. Children should be able to write from left to right. Spaces should begin to be developed and attention to punctuation is important. Text convention also looks at proof reading and editing work.

[|Emergent and Early Writing Assessment Sheet]

__Complex Writing Assessment__
When children have developed more complex writing skills, a slightly different assessment design is used.

[|Complex Writing Assessment Sheet]