Hi all, not a new problem here but could use some of your help! DS is well above grade level in reading and has been all year - several tests support this. The school, however, always seems quite reluctant to move him up. So, for example, he was on their third grade level back in January (level 34) in instruction. They warned most third graders stay at that level all year and basically "be happy." However, he was just tested again a week ago and he is allegedly still at level 34. Allegedly he didn't pass the test to move to 38. Personally I don't think they want him starting third grade in the fall already at the 4th grade level. I also find it very hard to believe he didn't make progress. So I am asking for a conference on the issue. I told them I want to see the test, his answers and what he got wrong. Any advice and tips? Does anyone know what is required to pass the DRA ? My suspicion is they will just tell me he didn't pass when he really did because they don't want him that far ahead. Any help on what to say, look for and ask would be very appreciated!

I actually have reason for this paranoia - they were very reluctant to move him to 34 in January - they gave him several tests before doing so even though he passed the DRAs and I do believe the only reason they did that was because I wanted him moved to level he was testing at. I'm convinced they would have left him at the same level all year to let the other kids catch up and everyone would be the se.

The DRA is not a well-designed test, and IME kids with any kind of disability involving attention, memory, or sequencing tend to do worse on it. It requires the child to summarize the text, blow-by-blow. Kids who want to go off on a tangent because the text gave them an idea, kids who don't remember things in order, kids who think the whole exercise is pointless-- all these tend to do poorly on it.

We have requested that our school use a different assessment of reading comprehension. The Reading A to Z assessment is more accessible for 2Es.

I think I might approach this differently.

How about asking what happened in class that he didn't learn a thing, as illustrated by the DRA? Your child is entitled to one full year's growth each year, and this DRA score shows he didn't grow, and in fact declined based on his percentile rank.

http://www.wrightslaw.com/advoc/articles/tests_measurements.html#progress

Look down to "When apparent progress means regression"

I think you have a case that his teacher has been a disaster this year, and that the school needs to do some remediation to get him back up to where he was at the beginning of the year.

http://www.slideshare.net/faymus1/administering-the-dra-2

This is a link to a slideshow that gives more information about the DRA. It includes assessment samples at different levels, which I think you might find helpful. These assessment sheets should have been kept. I'd ask to see them.

I "think" some schools have a policy about testing too far out of grade level. That is, I think in some districts there is a ceiling that the tester won't go beyond. I don't know if this is the case for your district, but it could explain the reluctance.

I think the issue for the schools is twofold:

1. the time involved in testing kids to their "true" capability.
2. thematically difficult materials at the higher grades (i.e. age inappropriate text).

I would certainly ask for a conference.

Actually that was how I approached it in January... When they were reluctant to move him up then, it looked like he had not made any progress all year long ( he would have stayed where he had been in the beginning of the year). Their tests showed he's actually several years ahead in January on the QRI he passed the fourth grade level in comprehension and fifth in words he was also strong with fluency. Now they are pulling the same thing again - not sure why this is such an issue for them! When I inquired as to what went wrong this test, Teacher gave me some vague details that he did "well on the summary and fluency" but had lower scores on "literal comprehension, "interpretation" and "reflection"?

Thanks to all this helpful! Thanks Kathryn - that's exactly what I need... I need to know exactly what is required to pass the test so I can see where DS failed!

The QRI and the DRA are very different assessments. At his level, the DRA is more focused on comprehension skills, while the QRI tends to focus more on word identification.

They were reluctant to move him up, when I pushed they refused to tell me how he did on the DRA and then pulled him for QRI without telling me. After QRI they finally told me what his DRA scores were (they did warrenr his being moved up) and his QRI scores,.,.. He had also had the WJIII and they all lined up nicely with each other, putting him well above grade level.

Oh and there was a ton of comprehension Testing on the QRI. In depth comprehension tests for each level. And I mean a ton of comprehension questions .... It WAS NOT only word ID At all( although he took he took word ID subtests for each grade level). I saw the assessment, the passages he read and the questions he had to answer and what he got wrong. I can even link the assessment I think. There was heavy emphasis on comprehension especially as he went up in the levels in the test.

Irena, we have the same issue! My DS6 (K) was tested with the DRA upon entry in September and was determined to be on a beginning second grade level at that time. They pulled him and a small group 2x/week. Now it's June and what are they reading? Beginning second grade level. We just had him tested and he's reading at least two years above where the school has him. Very frustrating.

Thanks I am going to approach it this way. Perhaps he has not made progress because he was never taught at the appropriate instructional level?!? And now we will have summer? Will he regress even more. Perhaps he needs ESY now? Do you think I can at least ask for to be tested again to make sure he hasn't made nay progress?

It is so frustrating! How have you been handling it ? I think it's even harder at the lower levels dealing with this!

When the school is limiting kids to a ceiling, the DRA number will end in an '8'.

The new skill required in the 30s of the DRA is to be able to infer the feelings and intentions of characters in a story. For immature kids, literal kids, or those who otherwise struggle with such social inferences in the real world, the child will stagnate in the 30s.

I have repeatedly asked that DS be tested on comprehension, fluency, and accuracy independently within the DRA mess, but to no avail, even where we have diagnoses indicating difficulty with these specific skills. Maddening.

We are stuck at 28!

Irena, I have not done much this year as I was waiting for testing. We are in a district where everyone thinks their kid is gifted so my saying so was not going to mean much without the data, if that makes sense. I knew this year would be a wash, and it's only half-day. I did ask that they give him additional reading material or some chapter books but they only started that lately when he was singing "Let it Go" at the top of his lungs for two days straight and they needed to distract him.

I really cannot understand how a school can imply a child made no progress.

Ugh, Ktpie. Sorry that is happening!

Geofizz, thanks for your insight. My fear is that they do not like that he moves up as quickly as he does- If ends the year on 38 - he'll be in 40 by October of next which is beginning of 4th grade level and level black in 100 book challenge and I just don't think they want that. I think they are stalling. They tried to stall in January. The want him in the 30's for at least some of third grade - that is my feeling though I am not sure of the "why" behind their strategy. I just get that distinct feeling. I think they are just dragging every chance they get, in order for him to at least "look" not too far above the others in his class. I don't know, that is just my suspicion. As it feels like he never moves ahead without my being proactive and asking for him to be tested, etc. We already had trouble towards the end of this year with him being bored and too far ahead the others in his reading group... HE started getting in trouble for calling out answers telling kids what the word was that they couldn't read, etc.

I am thinking of sending this email:

Teacher, I have talked this over with DH and the more we think about this the more concerned DH and I become. Our son should show at least one full year of growth, this most recent DRA score not only shows that stopped growing mid-year (stagnating); but, in fact, is now declining based on his percentile rank. We are wondering what went wrong in reading class that he hasn't learned or made adequate progress since January? While DS may still be ahead of his peers, he has actually started to regress and that is troubling. We are very concerned that this may be because he was never taught at his instructional all year as he was the only one in your class at his DRA level so he was in a reading group that was instructing at least one level, if not two levels, below him. Perhaps he is not growing because he is not being taught at his “just right instructional level?” We are thinking, if this is the case, he needs some remediation as soon as possible because if DS’s percentile continues to fall, he will continue to regress. With summer recess coming up I am afraid he will regress even more. Please let me know when we can have a parent-teacher conference regarding this issue. We do not think it would be prudent to wait too long before starting some remediation as there isn't much time left in the school year.

Thanks,

I was just reading the techinical manual for the computerized test that DD takes and thought you would find this interesting. It's not the same as the DRA but maybe you could borrow some of the wording. Although your post sounds fine.

"It's also helpful to compare multiple testing periods (ex. Fall & Winter, Fall & Spring) to watch for overall patterns of learning growth. Some very high ability students will remain in the “Exceeds” or "Advanced" category, but will experience “Low Growth.”

Low Growth for any student, regardless of Percentile Rank, is a red flag and needs to be addressed. EVERY child needs to experience growth, regardless of where he/she was at the beginning of the year. A high ability learner who needs intervention and receives it should also experience growth. Some educators believe that it is okay for high ability learners to stagnate at their current ability level while peers catch up. This is never okay and indicates a need to advocate for academic intervention on behalf of that student."

And more trouble! I picked up DS from school and they are doing money for math, which DS learned, I don't know - last summer maybe? I seem to remember them doing some money in 1st grade too... Anyway, he raised his hand and asked for a harder worksheet b/c this one was too easy for him and the teacher responded by asking the entire class to each raise their hand if they though what DS asked for was just him "bragging." And so everyone raised their hand. And DS learned nothing all week in math except that when he asks to be challenged he will get made fun of. Nice, huh? I am really losing my patience with this teacher.

Also, in regards to the DRA thing, teacher told DS that his summary for the DRA was excellent and something else was excellent but he got one literal comprehension question wrong (well, half wrong as the question was "what two things did a character lose ?"and DS only said one thing) and the "what do you think the most important point of the story" question wrong. I am wondering if that is enough to fail? It looks like his "most important" question was almost right to me... Apparently there is an "independent descriptor" and an "advance descriptor answer" - his answer matched the independent descriptor answer but was lacking, I think, for the advanced descriptor. I am not sure what the difference between the "independent descriptor" and an "advance descriptor" is - what that means in terms of moving levels. Anyone know?

I'm sorry but that teacher has no right at ALL to publicly humiliate your son like that! I am seething on his behalf!!

This sounds exactly like the issues we had here with DRA when Aiden was in pre school.

Is there anyway that you can just ignore the DRA stuff and send his own books with him to read anyway? IOW instead of fighting for every step, just go around the obstacle - surely when they see his choice of reading material they will start to understand or at least question.

In terms of the money worksheet - if this is happening now, you should assume its happening for most, if not all of the other in-class work. Again, perhaps asking him to just do it quickly and then send something he will be happy to work on that he can pull out of his bag and carry on with.

It's not ideal - the purpose of EDUCATIONAL institutions is surely to educate your child, and that should mean that he is learning something new and growing at a decent, regular rate in knowledge acquisition, understanding, comprehension and application of knowledge across the board.

I really hope you come right one way or the other.

How unprofessional!

Seriously. See, for this teacher, asking for a challenge and to actually learn something is "argumentative" "oppositional" poor behavior, etc. These are some the "behaviors" that she sees as a problem, that she considers argumentative and oppositional. She felt the same way when DS wanted to read more challenging books. That was also a big fight. I plan to document with an email but I did call and say very calmly and actually sadly that all DS his desire for challenge and to learn offensive and felt compelled to shame him in front of the entire class for his asking to actually learn. He was asking to please learn something, for something challenging - isn't that suppose to be what a teacher wants to see in a student?


I would be willing to do this (and I do send in books - big battle that was too) but DS gets upset and angry and starts acting out, causing more problems, when he doesn't see himself making progress in the levels. He literally said and, I quote, "It's not fair that everyone else gets to learn and move ahead and I don't. If I really failed the test maybe it's because they just aren't teaching me and that's why I get bored. It's just not fair!" And he has point. And, an additional concern, is how far should he fall (how long should he stagnate) before I step in and say something and find out why and what can be done? If he really failed, I feel like I would be a bad mother if I just let him regress and not see why and try to help, ykim? I mean, if he is really failing then he isn't learning and that just isn't acceptable to wait until he is below grade level to see why.

Irena, are you keeping him at this school next year? If so, I'd talk to the principal if I were in your shoes. If no traction there, I'd move on up the chain, with special attention to those people who are responsible for compliance with special education law.

Yeah and I got smart this time. I called another mom in the class (not easy for me to do) and asked her to ask her child what happened. I wanted to make sure I don't hear "DS misinterpreted" or that "never happened" this time.

Good for you. That is horrendous. I'd talk to administration as well because behavior like that should not occur.

You know what's ironic. I am angry but not that angry - you know why? And this is pathetic. Usually he is humiliated by teachers and paras for his disabilities. I am actually relieved she didn't make fun of him based on his disabilities... weird, huh? But this teacher ... man, what beyotch. Every chance she gets she tries to pull him down. He told her that he had practiced counting money and figuring out how much things cost all last summer (yeah, well he likes to go on amazon and shop for toys - he compares prices and then presents his case to DH and I LOL And the boardwalk at the beach had tons of lessons in money as well!) - you'd think she could have used him as an example to say "see - if you practice you'll master this skill too class- DS practiced and knows ways to make learning money fun and easy ...." or something that recognized his ambition and hard work (it's not like he said "I was just born brilliant, you bunch of dumb-butts - he admitted that he had worked at it). I don't know something more like that, rather than what she did. Ugh.

I know there are teachers like this out there but every time I hear about one, my heart just aches for the kids.

Sounds familiar. Why is it too much to ask that our kids make a year's progress each year? Ds7 went backwards in maths his first year and seems to have made minimal progress in the last year. In reading his teacher gave the top group no instruction once they reached a certain level so everyone could finish at the same level. Maybe that is what they mean about kids levelling out.

You might want to edit your son's name out of your post Irena. I am sure it was a slip.

Irena - I don't think he can be failed if he doesn't read those specific books. Maybe set up a special reading challenge for him at home; let him set a target of books and read them. Take them to school etc. You can tell him quite bluntly that those levels are unnecessary to monitor his personal progress, that he should read for enjoyment rather.

you are not failing him this way, he is not stagnating - he will be moving ahead faster than on the DRA levels, and you can thereby explain to him that the levels are unnecessary for him and that you want him to pick books based on his interest rather than the school's perception of where he should be at now. The teacher should be happier because he isn't asking for more challenging readers, so win-win for everyone I'd say.

It took me ages to get Aiden reading again after this exact same issue with the DRA levels. He got so frustrated when he wasn't progressing in the levels and I wish someone had told me earlier to just subvert.

Someone here once said something about advocacy for the general gifted populace being awesome - just not at the expense of his/her child. I didn't get it at the time. I do now.

Thanks Sweetie. I got it.

Thanks Madoosa. It is easier at this level because there are interesting books for him at this level - unlike when thety would try to keep him at the lower levels. I am going to see if they can re-tests him or what. I already sent the email. Not sure how far I'll get. Hoping to get a teacher next year that actually likes DS!

She would love my DS. DS's teacher mainly just works with him on math one-on-one but teaches him very advanced concepts (right now he's learning how to solve problems like (-18)-(-29)=. DS tells her he already knows how to do this and actually sometimes tells her she's wrong and argues with her about answers! I don't think his tone is necessarily as rude as that sounds, but still! DS is so sweet and quirky it's hard for anyone to get mad at him. But I don't know what happened to my quiet passive little guy. He will also say things like "That work is way too easy for me." when he sees the regular first grade stuff. She said she's kind of annoyed by that and has been working on it with him, but she's not judgmental and crabby like your teacher.

Wow so jealous - my DS would love that!

I do understand not wanting him to make other children feel less than or being boastful. God knows we have ourselves been on the other end and it so hurts (I do remind DS of that). In fact, I think that is why he really wants to work on and excel in the subjects he does do well and why he is proud of them. And why it means so much to him earn his levels in reading and math. Gotta remember this kid is the only kid in his class who can't write. At ALL. Every day, all day he is reminded, as are all of the other kids, that he can't write . He writes letters and numbers backwards - still. He is the only one. You know how that looks and feels... All the other kiddos write with ease and write well - really well. My kid just can't, and every day he knows it and all the other kids do too... Now his little brother is writing. So maybe she could go a little easier on him - find a way to remind him to be a bit more modest without the public humiliation - sheesh!

I think they really need to do something about he math. He can't go for another 4 weeks without learning anything? Or can he? I guess he can.... I told him to read when he is finished his math but he gets in trouble for that because he has to be doing math work in math. Sigh. he asked if I could send in a math packet for him to do when he gets bored so I guess I'll do that.

DS's teacher thinks that the next teacher is just going to carry on next year the way she has and teach him whatever he needs to master next. She said "I'm teaching him the negative integers because that's what showed up on computerized test as an objective." It's wonderful that she has done that, but I'm not sure what planet she is on. From everything that I've read here and my experience with the other school, what she is doing is not normal.
DD hasn't learned anything for a good long time. The teacher tried reading groups for about 2 weeks and then gave up. So everyone does the same reading. DD says that someone pulled them out to assess them and now they each have a "letter" but it's up to them if they want to read and what book they want to read. If they have any reading instruction, the whole class gets instructed on the same thing. So your school looks like a dream compared to that. Just to put it in perspective.

Okay, so we're going to have conference. Looks like it will be with DS's reading teachers (the teachers rotate groups) and principal. The dir of specEd was cc'ed also, not sure why or if she will attend.

So I am going to approach it as we discussed, i.e., that this is a problem b/c DS is not making appropriate progress. I am sure that they will argue he is making progress even though he didn't pass the test. They will say he improved in fluency and his summaries are good, he just didn't pass the test. Any ideas how to counter this? Also, I think I would like him re-tested to make sure he wasn't just having a bad day (when he told me what his teacher said that he e missed on the test, he commented that he may have accidently skipped a page when he was reading (you know two pages get stuck together or something). He may just have been having a bad day. (Allergies are bad and he's all drugged up, etc. it's a bad time of year.) Can he be re-tested (obviously with a different text)? Should I ask that they re-test him prior to the conference so that we are sure we are talking about lack of progress? Or, should I wait to discuss that at the conference? Any ideas would be so appreciated.

If he should be ending the year at level 38 (presupposing appropriate growth and progress), I want to try and get him there. Obviously, it's not the end of the world, but he gets so demoralized by this stuff and he gets resentful that his level does not correspond with his work and effort. So, if it's just them being jerks about the above-grade level - I would like to get around that if I can and have him at his appropriate level. Also if he doesn't get recognized at the appropriate level then he doesn't get taught at the appropriate level and that is disastrous b/c he is bored and irritated, etc. On the other hand, if he really isn't learning the skills or doesn't have the skills he should be gaining at this level, I want that addressed. (and maybe tested again at the end of the year after some remediation).

Any help would be appreciated!

I would have been furious if a teacher had deliberately humiliated my DS- and involving other kids is inexcusable.

I know that this thread is about the lack of growth shown on the DRA and the teacher who sounds kind of like a bully, frankly.

My DS7 took the DRA earlier this year, and I know that understanding the characters (motivations, growth, etc.) was what kept him at the 3rd grade level. I give him mid third to fourth grade options for "realistic fiction and characterization." I read some classics out loud that emphasize different people, motivations, character traits. Right now, we're finishing up "Black Beauty." I highly, highly recommend reading it out loud and talking about it.

Books that are fantasy, plot driven, etc. DS goes all the way up to middle and high school provided that the themes aren't too mature. Right now, he's valiantly trying to get through 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (his reading choice-ideally, this one could have waited).

I give DS math at home rather than wait for the school to get with the program (he's in private). I don't know how sustainable this will be long term. At some point, I may find that we have to homeschool or request more accommodation. We switched schools primarily because of math, but also because the reading wasn't up to par. My DS scored nearly four years above grade level in language (the school's own test!) and they insisted upon keeping him at a 1st grade reading level. "See Spot Run" at school and "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" at home.

This is terrible! My older DS has such a low tolerance for this - he would have been acting out like crazy.

Thank you for posting this. The school used DRA testing as a part of their reasoning for not accelerating DS8 and I disagreed completely with the tester. She basically wanted him to recite what he had read about Gandhi. He told her the salient points and then expounded upon the text and Gandhi but neglected to mention things like, "This is a biography of Mahatma Gandhi."

I said, "You noted here that he said something about Gandhi?"

"Yes, but he didn't say, 'This is a biography of Mahatma Gandhi.'"

...

My son was assessed with the DRA as reading late second grade. He comes home with level 28 books. We just had him tested and he's reading and comprehending on a 5th grade level.

Yes, it seems rather subjective to me. And it sounds a bit misleading. Apparently ,they ask "what do *you think* the most important part of the story is?" Which, to DS, for awhile, really meant what *for him* was the most important event, ie, how he felt. I had to explain to him recently that the question really is "what is the most important part?" and there is a "right answer" and a "wrong one" regardless of what "he thinks" - they are not asking for his personal feelings/critique. Anyway, my DS is a little weird like that...

So anyone have any thoughts on what I should do? I am going to approach it as we discussed, i.e., that this is a problem b/c DS is not making appropriate progress. But they will argue he is making progress even though he didn't pass the test and move to the next level. They will say he improved in fluency and his summaries are good, he just didn't pass the test. Any ideas how to counter this?

And, I would like him re-tested to make sure he wasn't just having a bad day (when he told me what his teacher said that he e missed on the test, he commented that he may have accidently skipped a page when he was reading (you know two pages get stuck together or something). He may just have been having a bad day. (Allergies are bad and he's all drugged up, etc. it's a bad time of year.) Can he be re-tested (obviously with a different text)? Should I ask that they re-test him prior to the conference so that we are sure we are talking about lack of progress? Or, should I wait to discuss that at the conference?

Any ideas would be so appreciated.

That's it exactly! They ask what he thinks is most important and then disregard what he says because it doesn't fit with their actual answers. If you don't want to know that Gandhi went on hunger strikes to promote peace, then don't ask what is most important.

Irena- I think this is the trajectory when a teacher can't or won't be flexible.

1. Teacher receives high test scores for the child that they don't do anything with
2. Child is assigned work that is mind-numbing, gets bored and often disruptive because needs are unmet
3. Grades go down because the child is only half-attending to what is going on and working carelessly just to get it over with
4. Teacher uses careless, sloppy work, inattentiveness, and behavior problems to falsely justify holding the child back

The only step we skipped before switching schools was "disruptive." Mine has mild social anxiety, so instead of disrupting class, he spent a good part of the day looking out the window.

That's certainly the path we followed. I am hopeful that the SWAS in Reno will be different...sigh...

Hi Irena -

Sorry I'm coming in late here - I think I've read everything!


This is good that you're having a meeting - I'm just curious - how many weeks left do you have in the school year? I think maybe I saw 4 mentioned above? I'd want to be sure to stress at this meeting that you want a plan in place to be sure this doesn't happen again next year.


This is a good plan - and your email you composed above is good too.


If they argue this, they are using circular logic with you, so use it back-at-them. When they say he didn't pass the test, ask for specifics re what he didn't pass, what type of questions he missed. Listen (even though I'm guessing you already know the answer :)), then reply that since he missed those questions, are they saying he hasn't made progress in that specific area. If they say no, then say ok, why hasn't he been moved up in reading level. If they say yes, then ask how they have been instructing him to remediate. I think you'll find they'll move past this argument fairly quickly if you just stay calm and continue questioning each thing they suggest - because really, it's a never-ending loop the way they are trying to explain themselves, and you need to call their bluff.


I would definitely ask them to retest. If they have an issue with testing him at the same level (same book or whatever - which shouldn't be an issue, I'm fairly certain DRA offers a choice of several books) - ask that they test him at a higher level.


I'd ask now, via email, and ask specifically that it be done before the conference. The only reason I wouldn't ask is if you think it's likely he won't be able to do his best due to allergies or some other reason. I think really it's a win-win for you no matter how he performs on the test - you are either going to see he's at a higher level, hence you can argue he should have been receiving higher level instruction, or if he's at the same level it strengthens your argument that he is not making adequate yearly progress.


FWIW, the schools my kids have been in have never emphasized levels with the students other than in really really early reading where the kids had to choose from specific boxes of books that were truly level-appropriate and that the kids could "test" themselves out of by reading to the teacher and showing mastery. The school *did* give the students DRAs, but the kids weren't assigned books based on them and they could check out any book they wanted to from the library. With an emphasis on knowing your level, it can put the focus on that when really (jmo) the important thing for young readers is lots or exposure - read, read, and read some more! - lots of listening to reading (parents or adults reading to them), and most importantly - encouraging their enjoyment of reading. That's what's going to keep them reading and ultimately develop their reading skills the most.

Another thing I wanted to mention - our school phased out DRA testing by the end of 3rd grade, when they felt most students should have achieved a "40" - that was the goal. After that point, I think the school didn't see value in the DRA as an assessment - and I think your ds is most likely past that point.

Another thing about testing at our kids' school - they didn't test past 40, or past grade level etc. So once our ds hit "40" his teachers all smiled and said "Great!" and that was it. Leveled reading groups also phased out before 3rd grade, and the class instead read books together and discussed together. This was honestly something that my ds both loved and hated all at the same time. He liked the books that were discussed - they were good books. I read them too and liked them lol! But the class read very slow, they might take a few days to read a full chapter, and ds could sit in class and read the whole danged book in an hour or so. So ds did just that - he read ahead. Then he'd be bored when he was supposed to be reading but he'd already finished the book. DS is a pretty mellow kid and he was pretty demoralized by school due to writing issues, so he didn't complain until he just finally erupted at home telling us he wasn't going back because it was just too boring. So - stay on top of it. I don't know a good answer and I've really not had a chance to see reading differentiated meaningfully in any of the classes my kids have been in past 1st-2nd grade.

On the other hand, I also would point out that I think the only "damage" from not receiving appropriately leveled reading instruction for my ds was the boredom of not having faster-paced reading peers so that class discussions and reading time didn't drag out. Even though he was reading way below his ability level in school that didn't stop his comprehension/etc from growing through the reading he did on his own.



Absolutely ITA with all of the above

When is your meeting?

polar

Any help would be appreciated! [/quote]

Irena, this would have made me furious! I did walk away from my reply for a few minutes to think through - but really, what the teacher did is bullying. I would absolutely bring this up at the meeting. If the teacher doesn't want your ds asking for a challenging worksheet in front of the rest of the class, that's fine. There are other ways to handle it - in my ds' 3rd grade classroom math worksheets were left out on three different clipboards - easy, moderate, and challenging, and the kids just picked whichever worksheet was their level to work on. No "bragging" (argh!!) required.

I would personally like to have a talk with your ds' teacher - lol! But I am sure she doesn't want to hear from me

polar

Thanks so so so much Polarbear! That is exactly how I am going to handle it. Unfortunately, so far, the DRA levels are pretty meaningful at DS's school at least at this point. Otherwise, DS wouldn't be as bothered (and nor would I). They use the levels to group the kids reading groups. They also use the levels to determine what books they are permitted to read and what the corresponding 100 book challenge level is. Past posts of mine show this is a MAJOR issue as they are real sticklers about making the kids only read books on "their just right level." I am mostly concerned about the instructional.

The principal emailed me and said someone would get back to me with dates for the meeting ...but no one has yet. I haven't responded to that email yet because I wanted to hash it out here first. I didn't want to do anything in haste. But now I will respond and specifically request that they re-test him before the conference.

DD's third grade teacher made the entire class read Boxcar Children books for the first 6+ weeks of school. DD read the first one in a couple days, so she went onto book #2, then #3, then 4, etc. Meanwhile other kids were still on #1. Would it really have been hard for the teacher to tell her "Ok, choose whatever you want now" after Boxcar #1? Talk about a wasted 6 weeks! The teacher knew that some kids were beyond that level, and that it was TOO HARD for other kids (there are at least two kids in her class who still can't read at all), but still, everyone had to read (or try to read) Boxcar Children books. I can see this for the first few days if she was in the process of assessing people, but 6+ weeks?

Hopefully your meeting goes well, let us know.

Update: So I never actually responded the principal's last email saying they would get back to me with dates for a conference. We were hit with a crisis here (really times consuming, stressful distraction that still has not ended) and I just dropped the ball. Anyway, I was about to email on Monday and then DS came home and said he was pulled out by the 4th grade reading teacher and given an hour's worth of reading tests. He said one seemed like the DRA and some were not. I goggled the book that he thought was DRA and it is the next level up. Not sure what they are up to but they did this last time before moving him up. So I guess this is good. I just want him at the right level starting next year... I have learned my lesson that when DS is not at the right level of challenge there is hell to pay.

well that sounds like a positive step in the right direction Irena
... perhaps his teacher is not "qualified"/ "allowed to" do the higher level testing and so she was just going with what she had at her disposal? (just a summation on my part)

either way - that sounds promising for your little guy

I suspect this may be the case. Interesting, though, that if I don't say something they'll just stop and leave him at the same level.