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Abstract
The purpose of this study was to examine the process of reading subskills testing by examining the relationship between student achievement as measured by the series of basal Reading Subskills Tests and reading achievement as measured by the Reading Placement Test within a single basal reading series.
The American Reading Placement Test PrePrimer 1 through Grade 8 (Goldberg, 1980) was administered as an oral informal reading inventory to 166 third-grade students enrolled in the regular education program at a suburban elementary school. From this population, a sample of 101 students were identified as average-achieving, third-grade readers.
The series of American Reader (1980) Reading Subskills Tests, appropriate to average-achieving, third-grade readers, were then administered to each class group of students. Reading Placement Tests and Reading Subskills Tests were administered within two weeks of each other. Analysis of the resulting data enabled the researcher to reach the following conclusions subject to the limitations of this study: (1) The two types of basal reading test instruments, the Reading Placement Test and the series of Reading Subskills Tests, did not measure matching constructs. (2) Reading subskill level was a function of something other than reading ability as measured by the Reading Placement Test. (3) Mastery of reading subskills did not transfer into the ability to read as measured by the Reading Placement Test. (4) Nine Reading Subtests were identified as uncorrelated to reading as measured by the Basal Reading Placement Test. These subtests were entitled:(UNFORMATTED TABLE OR EQUATION FOLLOWS)$$\vbox{\halign{#\hfil&&\qquad#\hfil\cr&2-1 Level:&Final Consonant Clusters\cr&&Predicting Outcomes\cr\cr&2-2 Level:&Inflected Verb and Noun Endings\cr&&Antonyms\cr&&Synonyms\cr&&Inferences, Conclusions and\cr&&\quad Characterizations\cr\cr&3-1 Level:&Guide Words\cr&&Following Directions\cr&&Details\cr}}$$(TABLE/EQUATION ENDS)
