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per minute. Maluku, Nusa Tenggara, and Papua, on the other hand, showed the lowest correct words per minute at only 29.7, as shown in Table 1.2. The table may indicate the existence of
reading problems in the eastern part of Indonesia.
Table 1.2: Oral Reading Fluency Level Correct Words Per Minute in Indonesia EGRA
The EGRA results can be used by policy makers to identify schools with particular needs and develop instructional approaches for improving foundation skills, for example: poor letter
naming results may indicate the need for additional alphabet exercises. In addition, based on the EGRA results, teachers may be taught to monitor students’ oral reading fluency and
practice decoding strategies. In some African countries, such as Mali and Niger, EGRA results were used to convey the development of materials and sequenced, as well as scripted teaching.
The continuous assessment strategies have demonstrated very promising results. As a result, EGRA data is used for planning, monitoring, and evaluating education policies and programs.
RTI International 2014, however, acknowledged the limitations of EGRA and its results. Firstly, EGRA measures a specific set of critical early grade reading skills, not necessarily all
important literacy skills. Secondly, the individual nature of assessment administration and the size of a typical sample mean that it is usually used to report results at the district, regional,
national, or program level, not at the school or student level. Thirdly, EGRA is not a high- stake accountability tool. Finally, the assessment is not suited for direct cross-language
comparisons, but could be used to report on the percentage of children meeting grade-level expectations. Despite the limitations, EGRA has been applied to assess early grade reading
ability in many countries, including Indonesia, as there is no clear benchmark for reading ability in the national curriculum.
1.3.2 What EGRA Measures
Grade 2
National 52.1
Jawa-Bali 59.2
Sumatera 47.4
Kalimantan-Sulawesi 42.4
Maluku, Nusa Tenggara, Papua 29.7
Region
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The EGRA instrument consists of a variety of subtasks designed to assess foundational reading skills that are crucial to becoming a fluent reader. EGRA measures the basic skills that a child
must possess to eventually be able to read fluently and with comprehension —the ultimate
goal of reading. There are five key components of EGRA measures, namely: alphabetic principle, phonemic awareness, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension, which each is further
described in the following sections.
Alphabetic Principle
To learn to read, children need to be familiar with the alphabet and the written spelling systems. An alphabetic principle is the knowledge that letters and letter sequences represent
the sounds of spoken language. EGRA subtasks that measure this skill are: letter name identification, syllable reading, non-word decoding, and dictation.
Phonemic Awareness
Phonemic awareness is the ability to hear, manipulate and break apart the smallest units of sounds phonemes in words. EGRA subtasks that measure this skill are initial sound
identification and phoneme segmentation.
Fluency
Fluency measures not only whether a child knows something accuracy, but whether she has integrated the knowledge and can process the information automatically quickly. Oral
reading fluency is the ability to read a text out loud with speed, accuracy, and expression. Being able to comprehend text requires being able to read words correctly at some minimal
speed per minute. An EGRA subtask that measures this skill is oral reading fluency ORF.
Vocabulary
Vocabulary is knowledge of the meaning of words. There are two types of vocabulary: expressive vocabulary and receptive vocabulary. Expressive vocabulary is the ability to put
words that we understand into use when we speak or write. Receptive vocabulary is the ability to understand the meanings of words that we hear or read. EGRA subtasks that
measure these skills are oral vocabulary, reading comprehension, and listening comprehension.
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Comprehension
Comprehension is the ability to understand, interpret, and use what has been read. Comprehension is dependent on all other components of reading. EGRA subtasks that
measure this skill are reading comprehension and listening comprehension.
EGRA measures each of the previously mentioned abilitiescomponents to assess the foundational reading skills. The skills are tested in individual subtasks and presented in order
of increased level of difficulty. Because the first few subtasks are easier, EGRA can, therefore, measure a range of reading abilities for beginning readers.
EGRA, in Indonesia and elsewhere, is not intended to be a high-stakes accountability measure to determine whether a student should move up to the next grade level. Additionally, EGRA
should not be used to evaluate individual teachers. The final EGRA instrument for this baseline study included seven subtasks, all of which are summarized in Table 1.3.
