Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums General Discussion How do you define grade level?

I think I'd be willing to accept that interest dictated level if the interest was completely (or almost completely) within a narrow band of ability level already -- like the Junie B Jones + Magic Treehouse example. But in a case like DS's... his interests span a huge range, and while he does like some age appropriate books, there are many more that he doesn't, and some of his favorites are much more challenging. So interest doesn't really do it either...

I tend to think at DS's level, that he's a "fluent" reader... and ability isn't a major limiting factor.

From my perspective, "grade level" reading has to be a combination factors:

Decoding/fluency--which speaks to the ability to translate a sequence of symbols into recognizable words smoothly enough to maintain tone/meaning.

Basic comprehension--which speaks to the ability attend to the meaning behind all of those sequenced symbols and to apply reading strategies when the meaning breaks down.

Stamina--how long the student can read independently before losing focus and/or losing the thread of the story (comprehension can look very different when a student reads a short passage vs. reading a long article or chapter book).

Flexibility--how flexible is the student when it comes to genre. Can they read and comprehend both fiction and non-fiction at similar levels? Do they understand text features of different genres?

Advanced Comprehension--synthesis, evaluation and analysis of text.

Communication--ability to discuss text orally and/or in writing, extracting evidence from the text or elsewhere in order to support ideas, inferences and responses.

All of which is a long-about way of saying that I think the original two examples probably represent different overall reading levels, but really there isn't enough information until/unless we observe what Jane does when assigned Pride and Prejudice.

I don't necessarily think that recreational reading preferences represent reading level (although they MAY be indicators of stamina)since--as others have pointed out--we often read recreationally below our top ability.

So...what value is reading level? I think it actually can have a lot of value. If some skills are comparable to the typical 8th grader, some to the typical fifth grader and some to the typical eleventh grader, we can better target both instructional goals and identify instructional peers.

I see composite scores like the WJ-III (although I prefer WIAT for reading assessment) to be less about grade level and more about the understanding a child's relationship to the norm for their own age/grade. Regardless of grade equivalent score, a scale score that falls significantly outside of the norm on either end bears further investigation and consideration. When the scores are on either tail, it is likely that the instruction being delivered in the regular education classroom will not be adequate to meet the child's needs.

Thank you for the suggestion! I have checked our library before and unfortunately they only seem to carry the large print editions of popular adult fiction (think Nora Roberts and Danielle Steele). I will be glad when his eyes finally mature and this isn't so much of an issue for him!

I think m2gts is exactly right. Those scores can be kind of confusing, can't they?

Here's a real-life example that uses math scores and so is easier to interpret: DS9 had an overall grade equivalent of 12.9 on his 6th grade standardized math test a few months ago. To me, grade level 12.9 means end of senior year in high school, or the end of either HS calculus or Advanced Math.

NO WAY is DS9 there. What the result meant was that an average end-HS senior should get the same score as DS9 had (presumably, no or almost no mistakes).

(IMHO, the results slips could explain those "grade equivalents" a bit more clearly.)

Val

The WJ III and the WIAT actually do have questions from various grade levels, so their scores mean that the child answered questions at that level. The caveat with those scores is that the number of questions asked at each grade level is extremely small and from about middle school and up they have extremely low expectations of what grade level means. I think I read that 12th grade level math on the WJ is algebra. But for most of the achievement tests given in the classroom, their grade equivalents aren't really equivalent.

My DD7 does not like the 4rd grade & higher level books as much, because many of them spend more time on details & descriptions She frequently "wishes they would get to the point".