As a former elementary school teacher, I spent hours and hours giving DIBELS tests. My school district received a Reading First grant, and reading fluency was a key measurement. My past makes it even more exciting to introduce MAP^® Reading Fluency™, the first and only K-3 computer adaptive oral reading fluency assessment using speech recognition technology with automatic scoring. The 20-minute assessment of oral reading fluency, comprehension, and foundational reading skills is delivered online, enabling group administration and saving teachers hours of time.

Teachers will receive immediate, objective results, actionable data, and instructional guidance to support individualized reading development for every student. They can also listen to the recordings again and use them with students and parents.

The product has been years in the making! Great technology was critical. NWEA partnered with LanguaMetrics, Inc., the leader in speech-enabled education applications. LanguaMetrics uses patented speech recognition and scoring technology EduSpeak^® from SRI International. EduSpeak is one of the first speech engines that is specific to children ages four through eight, and addresses beginning reader behaviors, like word skips.

A complement to MAP^® Growth™ and part of the MAP Suite of assessments, MAP Reading Fluency is computer adaptive, so it adjusts to accommodate pre-, early-, and fluent readers. Using a headset and microphone, students self-pace through activities, including reading passages aloud and answering comprehension questions. Passages are recorded, saved, and automatically scored using advanced speech scoring technology. Kids love it!

The results are delivered to teacher dashboards, along with reader profiles and specific instructional suggestions for each student. Teachers can use results for differentiated and group instruction, guided interventions, and in screening for RTI. Student recordings allow teachers to further evaluate prosody and analyze miscues.

MAP Reading Fluency is another way to help teachers tailor instruction to their students’ different needs. We’re excited to bring this new K-3 oral reading assessment to educators, and we look forward to sharing stories of success here at our blog soon!