Qualitative Reading Inventory (QRI)
One example of an interim assessment is the Qualitative Reading Inventory (QRI).
The QRI is a type of informal reading inventory. This assessment can be used with
students from pre-primer through high school and serves to estimate a reading level
by assessing both oral and silent reading skills as well as comprehension skills. The
results from this assessment provides the classroom teacher with quite a bit of
information regarding the students’ reading skills and strategies which is then used
to guide instruction and place students with texts that may be appropriate for them.
The materials for this test consist of an administration manual as well as graded
word lists, leveled passages and comprehension questions. At each level there are
both narrative and expository tests from which administrators can choose.
The QRI is administered individually and offers quite a bit of flexibility. The
administrator decides when to test students and while there are set word lists and
passages, the administrator can determine which passages to use and in what order.
They can also determine if the student reads the passages orally or silently.
This assessment is criterion-referenced and each passage is identified at the student’s
independent, instructional or frustration level. There are specific instructions in the
administration manual on how to score the assessment to determine these levels.
Not only does this assessment allow teachers to determine a student’s independent,
instructional and frustration levels of text, but it also provides insight into the student’s
strengths and needs in regards to reading. For example, you can analyze the data to
determine if students are better at silent reading or oral reading, narrative or expository
texts or answering explicit or implicit comprehension questions. Miscues can also be
analyzed to determine patters and help further guide instruction.
While this assessment provides teachers with much useful information about students’
reading development, it can be time consuming to administer. Also, for results to be
reliable among different administrators, professional development and training are
needed to ensure that assessments are being administered and scored consistently.
However, with the amount of information that can be gathered, it may be well worth it
to invest both the time and energy into assessments such as this one.
Rachel VandeGeissen
The QRI is a type of informal reading inventory. This assessment can be used with
students from pre-primer through high school and serves to estimate a reading level
by assessing both oral and silent reading skills as well as comprehension skills. The
results from this assessment provides the classroom teacher with quite a bit of
information regarding the students’ reading skills and strategies which is then used
to guide instruction and place students with texts that may be appropriate for them.
The materials for this test consist of an administration manual as well as graded
word lists, leveled passages and comprehension questions. At each level there are
both narrative and expository tests from which administrators can choose.
The QRI is administered individually and offers quite a bit of flexibility. The
administrator decides when to test students and while there are set word lists and
passages, the administrator can determine which passages to use and in what order.
They can also determine if the student reads the passages orally or silently.
This assessment is criterion-referenced and each passage is identified at the student’s
independent, instructional or frustration level. There are specific instructions in the
administration manual on how to score the assessment to determine these levels.
Not only does this assessment allow teachers to determine a student’s independent,
instructional and frustration levels of text, but it also provides insight into the student’s
strengths and needs in regards to reading. For example, you can analyze the data to
determine if students are better at silent reading or oral reading, narrative or expository
texts or answering explicit or implicit comprehension questions. Miscues can also be
analyzed to determine patters and help further guide instruction.
While this assessment provides teachers with much useful information about students’
reading development, it can be time consuming to administer. Also, for results to be
reliable among different administrators, professional development and training are
needed to ensure that assessments are being administered and scored consistently.
However, with the amount of information that can be gathered, it may be well worth it
to invest both the time and energy into assessments such as this one.
Rachel VandeGeissen