Elizabeth B. Meisinger

Teaching Children to Become Fluent and Automatic Readers.

The purpose of the study was to examine the effects of two instructional approaches designed to improve the reading fluency of 2nd-grade children. The first approach was based on Stahl and Heubachs (2005) fluency-oriented reading instruction (FORI) and involved the scaffolded, repeated reading of grade-level texts over the course of each week. The second was a wide-reading approach that also involved scaffolded instruction, but that incorporated the reading of 3 different grade-level texts each week and provided significantly less opportunity for repetition. By the end of the school year, FORI and wide-reading approaches showed similar benefits for standardized measures of word reading efficiency and reading comprehension skills compared to control approaches, although the benefits of the wide-reading approach emerged earlier and included oral text reading fluency skill. Thus, we conclude that fluency instruction that emphasizes extensive oral reading of grade-level text using scaffolded approaches is effective for promoting reading development in young learners.

Reading fluency: implications for the assessment of children with reading disabilities

The current investigation explored the diagnostic utility of reading fluency measures in the identification of children with reading disabilities. Participants were 50 children referred to a university-based clinic because of suspected reading problems and/or a prior diagnosis of dyslexia, where children completed a battery of standardized intellectual, reading achievement, and processing measures. Within this clinical sample, a group of children were identified that exhibited specific deficits in their reading fluency skills with concurrent deficits in rapid naming speed and reading comprehension. This group of children would not have been identified as having a reading disability according to assessment of single word reading skills alone, suggesting that it is essential to assess reading fluency in addition to word reading because failure to do so may result in the under-identification of children with reading disabilities.

Insights into Fluency Instruction: Short- and Long-Term Effects of Two Reading Programs.

The purpose of the study was to examine short- and long-term effects of two instructional approaches designed to improve the reading fluency of second-grade children: Fluency-Oriented Reading Instruction (or FORI; Stahl & Heubach, 2005) and a wide reading approach (Kuhn et al., 2006). By the end of second grade, children in the wide reading classrooms showed better fluency and self-concept compared to children in control classrooms. Classroom observations indicated children in FORI classrooms were more likely to be off-task than controls. However, by the end of third grade, children in both programs displayed better comprehension. We conclude that extensive and long-term focus on the oral reading of complex texts using practices that scaffold reading in second grade is beneficial for the long-term development of reading comprehension skills.

The Contributions of Oral and Silent Reading Fluency to Reading Comprehension

Silent reading fluency has received limited attention in the school-based literatures across the past decade. We fill this gap by examining both oral and silent reading fluency and their relation to overall abilities in reading comprehension in fourth-grade students. Lower-level reading skills (word reading, rapid automatic naming) and vocabulary were included in structural equation models in order to determine their impact on reading fluency and comprehension. Results suggested that oral and silent reading fluency represent separate constructs, but only oral reading fluency contributed to reading comprehension. Vocabulary was found to contribute uniquely to comprehension even after controlling for reading fluency.

Examining the Effects of Skill Level and Reading Modality on Reading Comprehension

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of reading skill and reading modality (oral versus silent) on reading comprehension. A normative sample of sixth-grade students (N = 74) read texts aloud and silently and then answered questions about what they read. Skill in word reading fluency was assessed by the Test of Word Reading Efficiency, Second Edition (Torgesen, Wagner, & Rashotte, 2012), and students were identified as either normal or at-risk readers based on those scores. A 2 (reading skill) X 2 (reading modality) mixed factorial ANOVA was conducted. Results revealed that both normal and at-risk readers demonstrated better comprehension of text read orally as compared to text read silently. The middle school curriculum requires independent silent reading, yet students may enter middle school without the literacy skills they need to be successful. These findings suggest that students transitioning to middle school may benefit from additional pedagogical support in silent reading comprehension.

A Review of the Test of Silent Contextual Reading Fluency

The Test of Silent Contextual Reading Fluency (TOSCRF; Hammill, Wiederholt, & Allen, 2006), as its name implies, is designed to measure contextualized silent reading fluency in students aged 7 to 18. Its purposes are to identify good and poor readers, to measure contextual fluency, and to monitor reading development. The TOSCRF measures how quickly students can determine individual words within a series of passages that increase in difficulty. The passages progress from the preprimer up through the adult level; the content, vocabulary, and grammar within the passages become increasingly complex. As the TOSCRF involves so many different aspects of reading (i.e., fluency, word identification, reading comprehension), it can be used as a screener of general reading skill.

Disentangling Verbal Instructions, Experimental Design, and Sample Characteristics: Results of Curriculum-Based Measurement of Reading Research.

Abstract. Directions used in curriculum-based measurement of reading (CBM-R) currently ask students to “do your best reading.” The purpose of this study was to examine whether varying these verbal directions would affect CBM-R performance and whether these alternative directions would influence the important relation between CBM-R performance and reading comprehension. Previous studies have varied in their findings, though they also varied in the alternative verbal directions they used and in their methodology. Third-grade students (N = 104) from two schools that differed in terms of their demographic characteristics were randomly assigned to one of two sets of direction conditions used in previous research. Results from a mixed between-subjects/within-subjects factorial analysis of variance found that, regardless of school setting, CBM-R performance was significantly influenced by one set of directions but not by the other set of directions. Possible methodologic explanations for these differences in results, as well as implications for practitioners, are discussed.

Test Review: Test of Word Reading Efficiency–Second Edition (TOWRE-2) by Torgesen, J. K., Wagner, R. K., & Rashotte, C. A.:

The Test of Word Reading Efficiency–Second Edition (TOWRE-2; Torgesen, Wagner, & Rashotte, 2012) is designed to measure fluency in sight word reading and phonetic decoding skills for individuals aged 6 to 24. According to its authors, the TOWRE-2 may be used for early identification of individuals who require more intensive or explicit instruction in word reading skills, to diagnose reading disabilities, and to serve as a quick and reliable assessment of word-level reading skills in research studies. The availability of four equivalent forms in this recent edition improves the utility of this test for monitoring progress and evaluating response to reading interventions. Because of its speed and ease of administration, the TOWRE-2 also provides an efficient means of monitoring the growth of two word reading skills that are critical in the development of overall reading ability.

Test Review: Comprehensive Test of Phonological Processing–2nd ed. (CTOPP-2) by Wagner, R. K., Torgesen, J. K., Rashotte, C. A., & Pearson, N. A.:

The Comprehensive Test of Phonological Processing–Second Edition (CTOPP-2; Wagner, Torgesen, Rashotte, & Pearson, 2013) is a norm-referenced test that measures phonological processing skills related to reading for individuals aged 4 to 24. According to its authors, the CTOPP-2 may be used to identify individuals who are markedly below their peers in phonological abilities, determine individuals’ relative strengths and weaknesses in phonological abilities, document individuals’ progress in specific intervention programs, and serve as a research tool in studies investigating phonological processing. This second edition differs from its predecessor in that it has new norms, ceilings have been increased by adding more difficult items, and a new phonological awareness subtest has been added (i.e., Phoneme Isolation). Floor effects present in the 5and 6-year-old version of the first edition were successfully addressed by adding easier items, extending the use of the new edition to children as young as 4. However, floor effects were apparent on selected subtests for children in the lowest end of the extended age range (i.e., 4-year-olds). Measures of symbolic and nonsymbolic naming are now included in the 4to 6-year-old form.