Early Literacy Skill Assessments

Early Literacy Skill Assessments: A Resource for Teachers Name of the Student Institutional Affiliation Course Code and Course Name Professor Date of Submission Early Literacy Skill Assessments: A Resource for Teachers Introduction Control of the foundational skills is helpful for students' further literacies. Analysis of prior studies shows that phonemic awareness plays a central role in the overall ability to learn to read. Regarding early literacy practices, it is always essential for reading/literacy specialists to diagnose early literacy skills and use results for teaching. This resource provides information on different assessments, how they inform the teaching process, and how best to include assessment practices in lesson planning. Types of Assessments Informal Assessments: These assessments can take the form of observation, anecdotal notes, and student portfolio samples. According to Mullis and Martin (2019), they allow instructors to assess the level of comprehension of their learners at any given time and can also be used to adapt the teaching technique to the learner. Diagnostic Assessments: Diagnostic tests are formal instruments used to determine detailed patterns of strengths and deficits in a particular student's literacy profile. Such tests may comprise phonemic awareness checklists, vocabulary checklists, and rate-of-reading checklists. Screening Assessments: A screening assessment is a short test administered to determine students at risk of reading problems. These assessments usually test rudimentary learning skills such as phonics, alphabet, and simple reading (Mullis & Martin, 2019). Progress-Monitoring Assessments: Developmental check-up assessments are a type of classroom assessment utilized to gauge the student's learning over a certain period of time. These assessments range from daily quick quizzes that check fluency to end-of-chapter comprehension questions that allow teachers to gauge teaching efficiency. Importance of Assessing Early Literacy Skills It is essential to periodically evaluate the students' progress in early literacy to guide teaching in the subsequent years; this means that when one i...