Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Identification, Testing & Assessment A question about Lexile vs. DRA vs. NWEA

Hoping one of our random testing geniuses here can explain how this works out!

We just had our parent teacher conference today. DS is in 1st grade. He was given a DRA score of 44 and we were told that he is reading at late 4th early 5th grade level in his reading group. His DRA test had lengthy comprehension questions which he was allowed to dictate answers to since he doesn't write at that level!

However, his teacher said his Lexile score, generated from his NWEA P-MAP test, was a 406. She said that even though it looks like he comprehends at DRA 44, he doesn't really. Because he hasn't experienced "all that stuff in his own life" so even though he can read it and answer questions, he doesn't really "get it, get it, like totally relate to it." (her words).

I realize that Lexile doesn't have a grade equivalent but she recommended he read Junie B Jones and early Magic Treehouse that are well below his DRA score and what he would ever choose on his own.

I suspect that maybe the P-MAP has a ceiling and he reached it and it doesn't generate a lexile score beyond that? Or is his teacher just not making sense? Or are these two numbers really not comparable?

The first thing that seems odd is that DD7's P-MAP reports from last year always gave Lexile scores as a range and not a single number. The Lexile range from P-MAP can go at least up to 729-879 so it doesn't look like a ceiling issue.
http://www.nwea.org/support/article/528

Since you have 2 pieces of data showing a higher reading level (DRA score and what he chooses to read) and MAP showing a lower level, I'd advocate for making sure higher level books are available for him to choose at school.

I hate to say it but many educators feel this way and it just drives me crazy. YOU know what your son understands and doesn't. When my daughter was younger I allowed and encouraged her to take books from home with her to school so she didn't have to check out books at the school library without my guidance, since the school only allows the children to pick from a limited number of "grade level" books. Now that she's older she see the value in being picky about her reading material.

Your son's teacher might be pushing the lower leveled books to slow down his progression because it's very difficult to educate an outlier.

Junie B. Jones - ewwww. Gifted minds should read books by gifted writers. Encourage him to read the classics. His "experience" will grow with his imagination.

Inky-
The weird thing is that she wants to keep giving him the DRA 44 books at school but she wants me to give him Lexile 406 books at home and have book discussions. Bizarre!

We had a very similar experience with our son in first grade. He was kept at the same reading level all year. (4th grade) Meanwhile, at home it was obvious he was reading faster, with better comprehension, and picking harder and harder books that he enjoyed and could discuss. My particular giftie is not known for a shining work ethic and pushing himself. The end of our first grade experience actually led to homeschooling.

I think teachers say these things because they're at a complete loss and don't really understand gifted children. See if you can get the teacher to let you supply reading material for him maybe?

Books my son enjoyed in first grade were Roald Dahl books, Spiderwick Chronicles, Kate DiCamillo, Goosebumps, Warriors. Between 1st and 2nd he started the Harry Potter series (He was very intimated by the size of the books!). He also loved (and still loves as a 3rd grader) more complex comics and graphic novels.

Good luck!

What? That just proves she has no clue, doesn't it!?

I am no expert. This chart might help http://www.oema.net/lexiles/ReadingLevelComps.pdf.

I can see where she might be going, balancing what might be developmentally appropriate versus readablility levels. The problem is that you should be able to do better than Magic Tree House. Does you DS have a problem with inferance meaning, problems with fiction, or something similar that she might be basing this suggestion on? Is she negating the DRA results because most school districts require written answers above a certain level? The books she mentioned are on track based on Lexile level, but not necessarily by DRA level.

You might do better to visit www.lexile.com. In book search you can set both your age range and your lexile range. If you use the higher lexile around 500, which gives you a range higher and lower you can find tons of books that might be much more appropriate for a 1st grader by age but at a higher reading level. You can also limit by topics of interest. I would play around with that using the chart and see what you can find that might be of interest.

That actually makes some sense since she thinks the tests show his decoding level is high but his true comprehension is low.

I'm not a fan of narrowing a child's reading to a Lexile number. If there's an advanced book on a subject DD7 and DD5 find interesting, they'll usually rise to the book's level.

Also, was this the first time he took the P-MAP? I saw some pretty big increases between the first and second time DD7 took the test. I think some of that was just learning how to take computerized tests.

Melissa- That's the exact chart she gave us. Which lead me to say "How come the DRA level doesn't line up with his Lexile level?" That's when she started talking about not really getting it because he hadn't lived it or whatever. She's not negating the DRA level which is the most bizarre- she thinks that's his good instructional level for school. They use Reading A-Z and he is getting a new DRA 42-44 book every week with a comprehension packet.

He only reads fiction. He recently finished the first three Wimpy Kid books, (Illustrated Classics) Around the World in 80 Days, the last four Franny K Steins and Herbert's Wormhole. I preread them all and asked him a bunch of questions about story prediction, plot, "what if this had happened" and other stuff. He totally gets them. Based on all of that, I'd comfortably put his lexile level closer to 700-750.

She did talk previously to us about making sure we control content. Maybe she wants him in that lexile range at home so that we are controlling content since they are using a specified program at school? She knows that content is controlled?

That would be the only other thing I can think of. But like I mentioned you can certainly find material that he would enjoy, that is appropriate age wise, and at a higher level.