earlyReading English - Decodable Words (DW)
The earlyReading English - Decodable Words subtest assesses a student’s ability to read phonetically regular words. earlyReading English - Decodable Words can be substituted for earlyReading English - Nonsense Words in the earlyReading English - Composite assessment, and it can also be used for progress monitoring. The earlyReading English - Decodable Words subtest is also available in Braille.
It is important to note that the earlyReading English - Decodable Words subtest uses real English words that students might already know by sight. If they know these words already, the test will not show how well they can decode unfamiliar words. Decoding unfamiliar words is an important skill in becoming a reader, so having information about how well students can decode non-words (also called nonsense words or pseudowords) is the best way to know if they will be able to decode real words that are new to young readers. For this reason, FastBridge recommends the use of the earlyReading English - Nonsense Words subtest rather than the earlyReading English - Decodable Words subtest for screening since it is a more accurate predictor of students’ decoding skills.
Before administering the earlyReading English - Decodable Words subtest, be sure to download the student forms from the Training & Resources tab in the FastBridge system.
- Select the Training & Resources tab.
- Select Downloads
- Then, select Download resources under earlyReading.
- Finally, click on the PDF icon under the DW column, in the Administrator row.
Here is a sample student form:
To administer this assessment for the purpose of universal screening:
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Log in to the FastBridge system as a teacher.
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Go to the Screening tab.
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Select the earlyReading assessment.
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Select the DW column from the earlyReading English Screening page.
To administer this assessment for purposes of progress monitoring:
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Log into the FastBridge system as a teacher or a specialist.
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Go to the Progress Monitoring tab.
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Use the filters to find the correct assessment group of students.
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Select Start for the desired student and choose a Form.
Here is what the teacher sees when administering the earlyReading English - Decodable Words subtest:
For more information about the earlyReading English - Decodable Words subtest, complete the earlyReading English - Decodable Words certification course found in the Training & Resources section of the FastBridge system.
To do so, navigate to the Training & Resources tab, and click on the earlyReading English course tile.
Then, select the Decodable Words option on the vertical menu. Complete Lessons 1 through 8 in order to certify in the earlyReading English - Decodable Words subtest.
