Scoring: As the test taker reads words, the assessor follows his or her reading
along with a pencil and marks clearly any incorrect words with a slash . If the respondent self-corrects on any word, the assessor should count it as correct. If a word is
already marked as incorrect with a slash, the assessor should circle the word and go on. If the respondent hesitates for 3 seconds, the assessor points to the next word and says,
―Please skip to the next word and keep going.‖ The assessor marks the skipped word as incorrect.
Stop point: If the respondent gives no correct answers among the first five word
s, the assessor says, ―Thank you. Let‘s move on to the next item‖, and checks the space for the discontinued item.
4.2.3.3 Test of reading accuracy, fluency, and comprehension for L2-L4
Oral passage reading requires the application of all precursor skills: translating letters into sounds, unifying sounds into words, processing connections, relating text to
meaning, and making inferences to fill in missing information RTI International, 2009:32. This test component measures 1 how quickly and accurately Easter Tamang
adult learners can read a prose text and 2 how well they understand the passage. This test will be given to all the test takers preclassified by the assessor as literate at Basic L2,
Intermediate L3, and Advanced L4 levels. Sample items are presented in the box below.
R
o
-c R
o
-d. Oral reading skills – Accuracy, fluency, and comprehension of
passage reading [Time allocated for reading aloud and answering the questions: 6 minutes]
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Instructions: This is a test with a student sheet but without practice items.
When the test taker reads the passage on the student sheet for himher, the assessor marks hisher responses in a recording sheet with test items for each test taker. The assessor
says, ―Now I‘d like you to read this story. Start with the title and read out loud through the story. Please read as quickly and accurately as you can. Try to read the story naturally
as if you were talking to your friend. When you are finished, I will ask you a few short questions about the story. Are you ready to start reading? Then, go
‘
Nepal, My Country [3] Laso Hello My name is Chaangbaa. I was born and live in Nepal.
Nepal, my country, is a beautiful and peaceful country. [24] I Nepal, there are a y high ou tai s alled Hi alayas . Himalayas
ea the house of s o . Every year, many foreigners come to Nepal to see those mountains with snow all year. [54]
There are lots of hills and lowlands in Nepal too. There live many different tribal peoples and they speak different languages. Nepali is the national
language of my country. I speak Tamang language with my family and Tamang people. But I have to communicate with other people in Nepali. [103]
Most people in Nepal do farming. We raise corn, millet, wheat, and beans in the fields of the hill areas and rice in the lowland areas. We raise chickens,
goats, and buffalos too. We can get some fish only from rivers or lakes because Nepal has no sea around it. My country is surrounded by Tibet in the north and
by India in the east, west, and south. [171] There are dry and rainy seasons in Nepal. In the dry season, we can enjoy
clear skies and beautiful weather for several months. I like my country and my children also love to live in this coun
try. Why do t you o e a d isit y country and my family someday? [220]
Scoring: Number of correct words
220 words Time spent on reading
240 seconds If discontinued
The assessor starts the stopwatchtimer when the test taker reads the first word.
The assessor follows his or her reading along with a pencil and marks clearly any incorrect words with a slash . If the respondent self-corrects on any word, the assessor
should count it as correct. If a word is already marked as incorrect with a slash, the assessor should circle the word and go on. If the respondent hesitates for 3 seconds, the
assessor says, ―Please skip it and keep going on.‖ The assessor marks the skipped word as incorrect.
Stop point: If the respondent cannot read most more than 12 of the words in the first paragraph correctly or makes 50 or more errors in the first two paragraphs, the
assessor say s, ―Thank you.That‘s all you need to read.‖ The assessor marks the final
words with a bracket ], checks in the bottom row of the Scoring box, and moves on to the next item.
If the respondent finishes reading the whole passage in four minutes or less, the assessor marks the final words with a bracket and notes the time for reading. Then the
assessor removes the passage from before the respondent and asks the following comprehension questions one by one. The assessor should read aloud the questions for
each line up to the bracket marked. The respondent is given 10 seconds to answer each question. The assessor marks his or her response and then move on to the next question.
The assessor says , ―Now, I will ask you some questions about the story you just
read. Please listen carefully and answer the questions as best as you can. ‖
Oral comprehension question Answer
Correct Incorrect
1 What is the name of the person talking in the
story? for the 2
nd
sentence of the 1
st
paragraph Chaangbaa
2 What does Himalayas mean?
for the 2
nd
sentence of the 2
nd
paragraph The house of snow
3 What language does Chaangbaa speak with his
family? for the 4
th
sentence of the 3
rd
paragraph Tamang language
4 What is it that Nepal does not have according to
Chaangbaa ‘s geographical description of Nepal?
for the 4
th
sentence of the 4
th
paragraph The sea
5 How do you know whether Chaangbaa is a child
or an adult? for the 3
rd
sentence of the 5
th
paragraph He is an adult
because he has his own children.
Total number of correct answers: 5
4.3 Written test
To devise written test items for the proposed skill levels, I adapted the methodologies from the BLC, the EGRA, and the EGMA models. The written test will
be conducted in a classroom setting with an assessor and a group of test takers who are of the same level. Since the written test will be given to individuals diagnosed as literate at
the Basic, the Intermediate, and the Advanced levels, three assessors will administer the test in three different rooms with three different groups. There will be three separate test
booklets for these three levels. That is, contents from test components labeled for these levels in chapter 4 will be put into different test booklets. For example, every test item
labeled for L2 will go into the test booklet for L2. The written test includes various test items designed to assess the following
skills: word recognition, comprehension, critical reading skills, number recognition and basic computing skills, applied numeracy, and writing skill such as dictation. Different
test items of the written test are designed to assess individuals at three different levels –
Basic L2, Intermediate L3, and Advanced L4. Test takers at each preclassified level are expected to meet the following standards for three different literacy skills:
1 Silent reading – word recognition: 90 and above for Basic level L2
2 Silent reading – comprehension: 80 and above for each L2, L3, and L4
3 Numeracy: 50-69 for L2; 70-89 for L3; over 90 for L4
4 Writing skill: 50-69 for L2; 70-89 for L3; over 90 for L4.
The written test consists of a total of 42-46 items and will take approximately 35 to 40 minutes to complete.
