Introduction to Reading Assessment; Assessment of Phonological Skills

6.2 Issues in Assessing Phonological Skills

Learning Intentions

After viewing this module session participants will be able to: 

  • identify some of the challenges to assessing phonological skills
  • Describe the importance of assessing working memory and rapid automatized naming
  • Indicate why phonemic manipulation tasks are more useful than other phonemic awareness tasks
  • Identify what constitutes “average” performance

View

Watch the session below.


*Please see the Transcripts resource folder located in Module 0 for a text copy of the transcript from this video. 

Summary

  • Each phonological core deficit area should be evaluated in word-reading evaluations
  • There are several advantages to assessing working memory and rapid automatized naming
  • Phonemic manipulation tasks are best practice because they correlate more strongly with reading, can assess phonemic proficiency, and were used in the most successful reading intervention studies
  • Average performances need to be adjusted to refer to the top two thirds of students (based on national norms)


Reflect & Connect

How might you design a battery that  includes the assessment of phonological skills?