English Language Arts and Reading.4.4

The student is expected to use appropriate fluency (rate, accuracy, and prosody) when reading grade-level text.

fluency and self-sustained reading TEKS talk image

Knowledge and Skills Statement

Developing and sustaining foundational language skills: listening, speaking, reading, writing, and thinking--fluency. The student reads grade-level text with fluency and comprehension.

Have students work in pairs to read aloud while their partner listens. As students work on accuracy with a partner, the teacher can travel from group to group individually assessing the student's rate, accuracy, and prosody. After reading aloud, have students individually write a brief summary of the text.

Notes:

  • Provide sentence stems for students who may need additional assistance.
  • Consider allowing some time for students to plan their summary. If needed, provide a graphic organizer or outline.
     

Further Explanation

For this assessment, students will demonstrate fluency while reading as part of a diagnostic assessment. Students should read the text with appropriate speed, accuracy, and prosody (phrasing and proper expression). The speed with which students read should make the text easily understood by themselves and the listener. The decoding of words should be accurate enough that it does not impede comprehension. Prosody is important to properly convey the tone and message of the text. Students should not sound robotic. Fluency should be practiced with a variety of text types at students’ reading levels.

the part of reading that involves constructing meaning by interacting with text
the ability to read text at an appropriate rate, with accuracy, expression, appropriate phrasing, and without significant word-recognition difficulties
Students must have the skills necessary to move through a text at a pace that matches the speed at which they can mentally process information. They should be able to connect words and the ideas they represent without significant interruption when they encounter new or complex information.
the vocal intonation and meter of spoken language
Students must have frequent and recurring opportunities to read a wide variety of texts that are challenging but not overwhelming. The structure and content of the text should reflect the concepts students are expected to understand at their grade level. For example, fourth-grade students should be challenged but should not be overwhelmed when reading texts that include compound sentences or references to the Texas Revolution because it appears in the curriculum for that grade level. However, texts with heavy dependence on compound-complex sentences or that include highly academic discussions of advanced concepts related to the Texas Revolution would likely not be appropriate for most fourth-grade students.

Research

1. Hosp, J. L., & Suchey, N. (2014). Reading assessment: reading fluency, reading fluently, and comprehension--commentary on the special topic. School Psychology Review, 43(1), 59+. Retrieved from https://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A364693563/PROF?u=tea&sid=PROF&xid=af82488e

Summary: This article provides a summary of four articles related to the assessment of oral reading. The authors acknowledge that while there are increasing accountability standards for reading, measuring reading ability remains complex and difficult. The authors make a case for oral passage reading as a way to measure both reading fluency and comprehension.

2. Carrison, C., & Ernst-Slavis, G. (2005). From silence to a whisper to active participation: Using literature circles with ELL students. Reading Horizons, 46(2). Retrieved from https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1137&context=reading_horizons

Summary: The article promotes the use of literature circles to support literacy, especially for English learners. Literature circles allow student to interact through sharing ideas, opinions, and personal responses to literature. Students become active participants and learn to manage their literature circle activities, negotiating the structure of their timelines. The study participants were a fourth-grade class in which 5 of the 24 students had varying levels of language acquisition. The use of literature circles led to decreased anxiety about reading and participation and increased reading accuracy and comprehension.