Dr. Betsy Stoutmorrill
Dr. Betsy Stoutmorrill, of Beacon College in Leesburg, recently facilitated a training on ways adult learner tutors and teachers can identify and solve reading error patterns.
Below is an excerpt, authored by Dr. Stoutmorrill, from the training.
“Is reading an art or a science?” To answer this, reading teachers and students, as well as adult non- or limited readers, may benefit from review of what I like to call “The Super Seven.” These are the seven skills, processes or talents needed to be proficient and competent at both the art and science of reading:
- decoding—sound-symbol association
- vocabulary—definition and pronunciation of words
- fluency/prosody—appropriate speed with accuracy and inflection
- syntax—sentence structure, word and phrase associations
- semantics—changes of word meanings in context
- schematics—prior knowledge, culture and memories
- pragmatics—intended meaning of the writer
Adults and children who struggle with the science of reading often do not get to the art of reading, so they do not experience the joy and wonder of all the knowledge and entertainment available through the printed page.
Error Pattern Analysis is one tool a reading tutor or volunteer can use to help a student with both the science and the art of reading.
How does the tutor know if an adult student did not learn a skill, learned a skill incorrectly, or has a reading disability? By listening, marking and discussing error patterns from a brief 100-150 word passage, the tutor can make a difference in the confidence and reading skills of an adult learner from the first day!
A simple system to consistently record the most common errors while listening to a passage allows a volunteer to analyze reading error patterns to plan or choose lessons for correction or practice. Adult students can also see progress by comparing the error patterns from the first reading to subsequent readings after tutoring and practice.
Tutors can also assess whether a passage is within a student’s reading level: independent (can read alone with few errors); instructional (requires a tutor’s assistance, some errors); or frustration (cannot read, multiple errors). Working within a student’s instructional level is the best scenario for improvement in every reading session.
The 10 Most Common Errors:
- saying the wrong word
- skipping a word/word part
- skipping a line of text
- adding a word/word part
- repeating a word/phrase
- sounding out a word
- self-correcting
- tell/ask for word
- try-again
- start over
The last four are considered errors for the purpose of helping the tutor to improve a reader’s proficiency and comprehension.
Resources about Reading Pattern Error Analysis:
Readinga-z.com: http://www.readinga-z.com/assess/runrec.html#sample
Curriculum-Based Measurement: Director for Administering and Scoring CBM Probes in Oral Reading Fluency http://www.jimwrightonline.com/pdfdocs/cbmresources/cbmdirections/cbmread.pdf
SunSprouts Record of Oral Reading as a tool for Assessment and Observation http://www.etacuisenaire.com/pdf/SunSprouts/assessment_instructions.pdf
Did you participate in this training? If so, tell us what parts of the training were most impactful/helpful for you in the comments section below.
Did you miss this training? You can watch the entire training online by clicking here!!
