Reading Diagnostic Assessment	Purpose of Assessment	Strengths	Weaknesses	Assessment Appropriateness
Slosson Intelligent Test (SIT)	Estimation of general verbal cognitive ability or index of verbal intelligence	-Quick (10-20) min. -Easy to administer -question-and-answer format	- Should only be used as screening measure -follow-up assessment usually necessary	Appropriate for screening purposes for individuals ages 4 and over
Slosson Oral Reading Test (SORT)	Estimation of target word recognition levels for children and adults	-Quick(3-5) min -Can also be used to assess student progress -can determine the student’s reading level	- Does not measure all aspects of reading such as word knowledge and comprehension	Appropriate as a screening instrument and to assess a student's progress, grade level in reading, and needs
Basic Reading Inventory  (BRI)	Used to help gather information for instructional decision-making in reading	-Easy to administer -allows teachers to gain insight into reading behaviors and reading ability	Resulting scores do not always align with other assessments	Appropriate literacy assessment that identifies needs, suggests strategies, and tracks progress
Wepman's Auditory Discrimination Test (WADT)	Used to measure the ability of children to recognize small differences between English phonemes	-Quick(5-10)min -inexpensive -identifies auditory discrimination problems	- A poor results could be the result of a hearing impairment and not the ability of the child -usually not a sole assessment	Appropriate for screening children for auditory discrimination deficits and for identifying children who are slower than average in developing auditory discrimination skills
TEST OF VISUAL PERCEPTUAL SKILLS – 3RD Edition   (TVPS-3)	Used to determine a child's visual perceptual strengths and weaknesses in multiple skill areas one of which is visual discrimination	-Easy-to-use -answers to questions can be vocalized or pointed at with finger scoring is quick and easy	-No time limit on responding to answers plus multiple subtests could lead to longer testing times	Appropriate in the determination of the child's visual perceptual strengths and weaknesses
Psychological Processing Checklist–Revised    (PPC–R)	Used to evaluate the processing disorder is likely in a child by rating observable and measurable characteristics and behaviors in the classroom.	-Quick scoring process -results easy to interpret -results can be used to facilitate communication between professionals and parents	-Relies on observational skills of the administer	Appropriate in assessing psychological processing disorders

 

    When my youngest son was in third grade I was told by his teacher that he was reading a 10th grade level. This is not surprising as a kid is constantly reading something. My oldest son, while making much improvement, still struggles with reading because of a processing delay. Only recently has my oldest son found enjoyment in reading. So how do two kids from the same environment end up on opposite ends of the reading spectrum ? It's not really a mystery. Sure, they had different personalities and different abilities. That's just a small part of it. There are so many aspects, skills and abilities that affect a child's ability to not only read but learn to read. One deficit in one area of reading could easily prevent the child from mastering the reading process. This is why assessment for reading is a necessity. Identifying reading deficits through assessment enables teachers to determine areas of need for student seven difficulty with reading. Different reading tests assess different aspects of the reading process. The above table compares and contrasts five assessments in regard to their purpose, strengths, weaknesses, and appropriateness.

   

    The Slosson Intelligent Test (SIT) is intended to provide a quick estimate of general verbal cognitive ability or index of verbal intelligence. Stress is easy to administer and score. All 187 items are presented in question-and-answer format and assess the cognitive domains of vocabulary, General Information, similarities and differences, comprehension, quantitive ability, and auditory memory. It is recommended that this assessment be used for screening purposes and that follow-up assessment also be administered.

   

    The Slosson Oral Reading Test (SORT), much like the The Slosson Intelligent Test is a quick and easily administered assessment. It is used to estimate target word recognition levels for children and adults. This is not a diagnostic assessment and does not measure all aspects of reading such as word knowledge and comprehension. An estimated reading level for students is the result of this assessment. The SORT can also be used to assess student progress, student grade level in reading, and to determine if further diagnostic assessment is necessary.

    The Basic Reading Inventory is a relatively quick and easily administered individual test that assesses the five core components of effective reading instruction. This assessment is also used to gather information for instructional decision-making in reading. The BRI is an appropriate literacy assessment that identifies needs, suggests strategies, and tracks progress.

    The Wepman's Auditory Discrimination Test (WADT) is an assessment used to measure the ability of children to recognize small differences between English phonemes. It is a quick and easily administered assessment that identifies auditory discrimination problems. It is appropriate for screening children for auditory discrimination deficits and for identifying children who are slower than average in developing auditory discrimination skills. One drawback of this assessment is that poor scores could actually be the result of a hearing problem and not an auditory discrimination deficiency.

    The Test of Visual Perceptual Skills– 3RD Edition   (TVPS-3) Is used to determine a child's visual perceptual strengths and weaknesses in multiple skill areas one of which is visual discrimination. The interesting thing about this assessment is that answers can be either vocalized or pointed at with a finger. This means that the student doesn't necessarily have to have command of verbal language to take a test. Another interesting characteristic of this test is that there no time limit on answers. This could, however, result in longer test times.

    The Psychological Processing Checklist–Revised (PPC–R) Used to evaluate the processing disorder is likely in a child by rating observable and measurable characteristics and behaviors in the classroom. This is an appropriate assessment for identifying psychological processing disorders. Out of the five assessments that I researched, this is the only one that didn't directly involve the student. This assessment usually consists of a teacher rating observable and measurable behaviors of the student classroom. Therefore, the results of this assessment are somewhat affected by the observational skills of the administer.

    Most of the above assessments were relatively inexpensive and are easy to administer. They were all appropriate in determining deficiencies in different areas of the reading process. While all of the assessments had some degree of weakness, none were at the point where the assessment would be considered invalid.

   

   

http://books.google.com/books?id=9WOiKcBmGxUC&pg=PA61&lpg=PA61&dq=strengths+of+slosson+intelligence+test&source=bl&ots=EoOEZHjain&sig=k9SASAnyGldW_T286Ore8dUneyc&hl=en&sa=X&ei=gw

Slosson Oral Reading Test: http://cps.nova.edu/~cpphelp/SORT.html

Slosson Intelligence Test:http://www.cps.nova.edu/~cpphelp/SIT.html

http://www.ecasd.k12.wi.us/student_services/assessments/ADT.pdf

http://theanonymousot.com/2013/02/15/visual-perceptual-skills-real-life-applications/