ABSTRACT
Chapter 6 introduces the idea of performance-based assessment as an important complement to the standardized assessment measures typically used to evaluate clients referred for educational therapy. Performance-based measures can provide a window into strengths that may not be revealed in other forms of testing. The measures selected for discussion all contribute toward building the client profile in the literacy skills, beginning with a key measure for reading assessment, The Informal Reading Inventory (IRI). The discussion of the IRI is for the ET who wishes to conduct a more specific assessment of reading strengths and needs, to go beyond the grade level or percentile scores of reading achievement from standardized testing. The IRI provides the descriptive data that enable the ET to focus on specific strengths and needs and to be more selective regarding appropriate methodologies and materials for the individual client. Five other performance-based measures are included to round out the client profile in areas directly related to reading: the Language Experience Approach (LEA) for early readers, the Cloze Procedure for assessment of context analysis skills, The Interest Inventory, The Study Skills Survey, and an informal survey of student knowledge of structural analysis (use of word roots and derivations). These measures have all been devised to provide diagnostic data in a structured manner and which can be linked directly to instruction.
