Dibels/Justin the Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early

DIBELS/Justin

The Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills (DIBELS) are a set of procedures and measures designed to assess the acquisition of early literacy skills from kindergarten through sixth grade. As emphasized by Kaminski, Cummings, Powell-Smith, and Good (2008), DIBELS is a generic indicator and represents a broader sequence of skills to be taught. I approached family friends about using DIBELS to test their younger son, Justin, a sixth grade student. Justin is a high achiever with very good grades and a positive attitude about school. His best subject is math. His parents have been worried about Justin's reading skills. Although he was tutored in reading at Sylvan Learning Center, Justin's parents still do not believe he has attained the proficiency of which they believe he is capable. I hoped DIBELS would demonstrate Justin's reading strengths and weaknesses.

In talking with Justin, I discovered he has a more extensive vocabulary than many of his sixth grade peers. The household is multilingual and, in addition to English, two other languages are spoken at home. Justin attends evening classes twice a week, learning to read and write both Greek and Albanian.

The testing took place in the family's home office. The room was comfortably warm, well lit, and painted in a light color. It was a good setting in which Justin could focus on testing. Justin was prepared for the testing and was cooperative throughout, although he did not seem to be very enthusiastic about the process.

For the Oral Reading Fluency (ORF) test, Justin read three passages: "The Grand Canyon" (345 words/3 errors), "Over the Rainbow" (348 words/4 errors), and "Louis Erdrich" (321 words/1 error). His scores for the three passages were, respectively, 3/345 = .0086; 4/348 = .011; and 1/321 = .003. The percentages indicate Justin was able to read the passages at the Independent level. However, his reading speed was somewhat slow. (For this test, I allowed Justin to complete his reading of each passage in its entirety; I did not stop him at the end of one minute). Justin met the benchmark score of 40 words per minute (because he was able to read each passage in less than eight minutes), but as he progresses through school he may have difficulty completing assigned readings because he will not have sufficient time. Increased reading speed will facilitate greater academic success as Justin moves into the higher grades. School success seems important to both Justin and his parents. Increased reading speed will be especially important if Justin wants to enroll in advanced or honors classes. Greater reading speed will also help Justin perform better on standardized tests, including college aptitude tests.

On the Retell Fluency (RTF) assessment, Justin's scores were 91, 87, and 71. The drop in the third test score pulled his overall average down to 83. To be on track with comprehension, students should read at least at the benchmark score of 40 words per minute and have a retell score that is at least 25% of their oral reading fluency score (DIBELS Data System, n.d.). Justin's score meet these criteria.

Justin's strongest retell score was on "The Grand Canyon." He mentioned that he knew "a lot" about the Grand Canyon and this prior knowledge was likely a factor in his score. He had the most errors in the passage titled "Over the Rainbow," which was likely of less interest and with which Justin was perhaps unable to use prior knowledge. Justin's reading of "Louis Erdrich" was the most successful, with only one error, but his retelling was poor. It is possible that Justin was uninterested in the passage. He may have been unable to use prior knowledge. It is also possible that, because it was at the end of testing, Justin was becoming restless and did not devote his full attention to the passage.

If I were to do this testing again, I would engage the student earlier in the day, when he was likely to attend more closely to the task. The testing environment was quiet and comfortable for Justin, and I hope that I would be able to replicate that kind of setting when testing students in the classroom. Distractions were minimal, and I believe that helped Justin perform well on these tests.

As mentioned, it will be important for Justin to increase his reading speed as he progresses through school. I would like to do further work with Justin, if possible, to find the reason for his relatively slow pace. Questions to consider include the rate at which Justin speaks in normal conversation -- he cannot read aloud any faster than he can talk. Does Justin subvocalize when he reads? Does he read word-by-word and struggle to decode unknown words rather than read in phrases and get meaning from the context? It is possible that Justin has not developed good strategies that will help him read more quickly.

With respect to comprehension, Justin's scores seem to be reflective of his level of interest and prior knowledge. Throughout his academic career, Justin will encounter reading material that does not particularly interest him and subject matter with which he is not familiar. He must develop the skills that will enable him to successfully read such material. Justin should learn and practice various comprehension strategies, including questioning, summarizing, reflection and notetaking. These skills are, hopefully, part of Justin's academic curriculum. If not, he may benefit from additional tutoring.