Benchmarking







  • Purpose:     to diagnose student learning and/or monitor progress locally during the year.
    Characteristics:     may be teacher, school, district, state, or commercially developed; can be used multiple times during the year to make instructional adjustments for students or groups of
    students.

    Are my students on track?
    How well are they progressing?
    How well is this program/instructional unit working?

    Benchmarking Tips:

    General observations

    Assessing for INSTRUCTIONAL level, reporting HIGHEST instructional level on report cards

    • See handout for how to determine instructional levels
    • Independent levels used for Read to Self book selections
    • Use word list to help determine possible starting point for new students, students with substantial growth, etc.

     Using ACCURACY and COMPREHENSION to determine levels

    • Fluency is not a factor in the equation but offers you good information

    Assessing for ACCURACY

    • See handout for how to consistently score miscues—MARK MISCUES
    • Make sure to mark Self-Corrections and determine self-correction ratio.
    • Looking for direction for your interventions?—consider doing the MSV to help decide what skills your students needs intervention in.

     Assessing for COMPREHENSION

    • See handout for assessing comprehension
    • It is a comprehension CONVERSATION—Have a Conversation!  The prompts provided are just prompts; you have the freedom to use other language. 
    • Offer choices, ask to locate in book, etc.
    • Importance to recording comprehension responses & additional prompts/questions.

     Use recording forms provided during benchmarking periods; make sure to include HIGHEST instructional level in Benchmarking folder.  This is an ASSESSMENT!

     Enter benchmarking levels for ALL students into grade level spreadsheet—in Shared File.

     Staff questions/concerns

    *Does anyone use the timer consistent?  Are people recording Oral Reading Rate?

    *Students not reading at grade level exiting 4th grade should be benchmarked

     General Care of Kits

    Please make sure to sign out a kit when you take it!

    Double-check that all of the books/materials are included in the kit before returning it.

    Volunteers to meet after school to go through kits/make sure everything is currently present.


    At UGES we benchmark students in the lower grades several times a year.  Here are documents that will help you benchmark your students:

Related Files