In the early days of my time as a secondary school mathematics teacher, I was surprised to find myself becoming increasingly concerned about the reading skills of pupils in my classes. Despite my best efforts in developing their mathematical skills, it was too often mathematical literacy difficulties that were the barrier to my pupils reaching their full potential. The reality is that pupils who struggle to develop as readers will find it hard to cope independently with the reading challenges of school and will see reading as a problem rather than as a tool for learning (nasen, 2014).
This situation in relation to mathematical literacy is echoed across many subject areas, meaning that the ability to read fluently could be described as a gateway to the wider curriculum. Individual pupils will have different starting points, different developmental barriers and different motivational parameters, so the need to use a trusted source for reading assessments is essential. An effective reading assessment should be fully adaptive and standardised so it can be used as a tool to support personalised learning through the graduated approach. It should inform the planning of interventions by identifying those pupils who need support and those who need to be stretched.
In the context of a school, it is important to ensure that whoever undertakes the reading assessment with a pupil shares the findings and recommendations with the relevant wider staff and other key stakeholders in a meaningful way. This will ensure there is a consistency and coordination in the approach used for interventions of differentiation across all subject areas, which will help to avoid duplication and maximise impact.
As with many aspects of learning, it is important to note that pupils may not always develop their reading fluency linearly. For example, pupils may have bursts of rapid progress and periods of slow progress relative to other pupils. Therefore, the monitoring and tracking of progress over time can be a useful part of any annual review process.
The reality is that pupils who struggle to develop as readers will find it hard to cope independently with the reading challenges of school and will see reading as a problem rather than as a tool for learning.
Individual pupils will have different starting points, different developmental barriers and different motivational parameters, so the need to use a trusted source for reading assessments is essential.
The role of the SENCO
The Special Educational Needs Coordinator (SENCO) in a school can often get mired in paperwork and administration (Curran et al, 2018; Curran et al 2020; Whalley, 2018), which may limit their capacity to support the development of high quality inclusive teaching across the school. If we consider SENCOs as having significant expertise in differentiation, accessibility and inclusion, and Heads of English as having significant expertise in the assessment and development of literacy skills, there can often be a debate about who should take the lead on identification and any subsequent interventions.
In practice, a partnership approach is needed to provide appropriate support for individual pupils and this should sit within a wider school-wide literacy development plan, which has the backing of school leaders and governors.
It is known that early identification and provision can be effective for meeting literacy needs (Faucet and Jones, 2019). However, a particular challenge for SENCOs in achieving this is being able to distinguish between differences in reading fluency that fall within normal levels of childhood development and those that require the additional investment of targeted interventions. A genuine child-centred approach and meaningful collaboration with families is vital in understanding pupils and their needs, but the reliability and validity of reading assessments also requires an effective reading assessment tool.
If we consider the latest available reading performance data from PISA (OECD, 2019), it is clear that girls outperform boys in every participating country. We also know that in general significantly more boys are identified with special educational needs than girls (NAO, 2019). This begs the question as to whether it is quality of assessment or the quality of any subsequent intervention that we need to focus on to support boys in particular to improve their reading.
Whatever approach is taken in relation to the development of literacy skills, I would encourage you not to lose sight of the importance of developing a love of reading in our pupils. Reading may well be a gateway to the wider curriculum, but reading for pleasure is a gateway to so much more.
References
- Curran, H., Moloney, H., Heavey, A. and Boddison, A. (2018) It’s about time: The impact of SENCO workload on the professional and the school. Bath Spa University. (Accessed 30th October 2019).
- Curran, H., Moloney, H., Heavey, A. and Boddison, A. (2020) The time is now: Addressing missed opportunities for Special Educational Needs Support and Coordination in our schools. Bath Spa University. (Accessed 30th October 2019).
- Faucet, A.J. and Jones, N. (2019) Evaluating a screening and support system for early intervention in Wales. Journal for Special Educational Needs. (early view only)
- nasen (2014) Supporting Reading and Literacy in Secondary Schools: A quick guide to supporting the needs of developing readers. Accessed on 17th February 2020.
- National Audit Office (2019) Support for pupils with special educational needs and disabilities in England. Department for Education. Accessed on 10th February 2020.
- OECD (2019) Education Statistics: PISA: Programme for International Student Assessment. Accessed on 17th February 2020.
- Whalley, S. (2018) A tale of three SENCOs. Support for Learning. Vol 33, pp407-428.
Reading may well be a gateway to the wider curriculum, but reading for pleasure is a gateway to so much more.
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Find out more about our reading assessments
Ongoing assessment of your students’ reading allows you to identify any gaps they may have - and our New Group Reading Test® (NGRT) is an ideal starting point. NGRT is a standardised, termly assessment that reliably measures reading skills against the national average, and it can be used alongside other assessments to pinpoint where support is needed and demonstrate the impact of your interventions.
Find out how we can support you
We offer a broad range of training and support options, to help you get the most out of your assessments and build a complete picture of your students’ strengths and needs. We also have a dedicated Assessment Insights team to assist you in making the best use of your assessments. Natasha, our Secondary expert, is on hand to answer any questions from talking through what your data is showing you to which reports are most useful for your school’s needs.
Find out more about our reading assessments
Early identification of any issues relating to your pupils’ reading is vital, allowing you to put in place any interventions required immediately. Our New Group Reading Test® (NGRT) is an ideal starting point - it’s a standardised, termly assessment that reliably measures reading skills against the national average, and it can be used alongside other assessments to support targeted intervention.
Find out how we can support you
We offer a broad range of training and support options, to help you get the most out of your assessments and build a complete picture of your students’ strengths and needs. We also have a dedicated Assessment Insights team to assist you in making the best use of your assessments. Ann, our Primary expert, is on hand to answer any questions from talking through what your data is showing you to which reports are most useful for your school’s needs.
Find out more about our reading assessments
We support a number of MATs with Trust-wide reading initiatives, often using our New Group Reading Test® (NGRT) as a starting point. NGRT is a standardised, termly assessment that reliably measures reading skills against the national average, and it can be used alongside a range of our other assessments to both support targeted interventions and demonstrate the impact your Trust is making.
Find out how we can support you
We offer a broad range of training and support options, to help you get the most out of your assessments and build a complete picture of your students’ strengths and needs. We also have a dedicated Assessment Insights team to assist you in making the best use of your assessments. James, our MAT expert, is on hand to answer any questions from talking through what your data is showing you to which reports are most useful for your school’s needs.
Find out more about our reading assessments
Ongoing assessment allows you to ensure that all the pupils in your care are making progress as well as identifying those who are at risk of falling behind. When it comes to reading, our New Group Reading Test® (NGRT) is an ideal starting point. It is a standardised, termly assessment that reliably measures reading skills against the national average and it is also adaptive, offering a personalised experience for each pupil so it’s accessible for those who are struggling and challenges those who need to be stretched.
Find out how we can support you
We offer a broad range of training and support options, to help you get the most out of your assessments and build a complete picture of your students’ strengths and needs. We also have a dedicated Assessment Insights team to assist you in making the best use of your assessments. Andy, our Independent expert, is on hand to answer any questions from talking through what your data is showing you to which reports are most useful for your school’s needs.