Running Record & Miscue Analysis of Two English Language Learners

A running record combined with a miscue analysis is a powerful assessment tool.  The information obtained from completing a running record is valuable data that can be used to drive instruction.  Furthermore, a running record gives a better-rounded picture of a student’s abilities rather than just relying on computerized assessments.  This week I assessed two English Language Learners using this valuable assessment tool.

The first ELL student I tested was Armando.  His primary language at home is Spanish.  Armando is a fourth grade student who enjoys speaking with his friends, but is very quiet around teachers.  This year is Armando’s first year at our school, he came to use due to moving into our enrollment area.  Armando is a very bright student, but not very motivated to complete his work independently.  Unless an adult is sitting near him, he does not complete his work.  Armando also struggles to turn in his work or read at home.  During the fall semester mom supported sending him to our free after school homework club, and Armando really benefited from the extra support.  His test scores and in class performance showed his new found confidence with his academic stills, but due to a change in mom’s schedule, Armando was unable to take advantage of another semester of homework club.  Based on Armando’s previous assessment data including DIBELS, MAPS, STAR, and in classroom observations I know Armando is reading on a fourth grade level.  Therefore, I decided to test him on a fifth grade passage in order to identify next steps for support.

The second ELL student I tested was Luca.  Luca is a fourth grade student in my colleague’s class.  Luca’s family speaks German at home.  Luca is very dedicated towards his studies.  In addition, he is a very outgoing kid who loves recess and playing with his friends.  Luca’s teacher has informed me that Luca is reading fluently at a fourth grade level, and that she would love for me to assess him on a fifth grade level so that she can communicate the results to his parents.  Luca’s parents are planning to try to work with him this summer, so this would be valuable information that she can pass along to the family.  Luca has been very lucky to have parents support him in his development.

I was very glad to be able to give the same running record assessment.  This seemed like the best scenario for me to be able to determine if I could correlate a connection between errors and first languages.  I gave both students a Level X passage entitled, Many Happy Returns by Marilyn Gould, found on Reading A-Z.  

Armando’s reading was slow and choppy.  He does not read with much expression, and it is clear that this impacts his comprehension.  When Armando came to a word he did not know he used several strategies to help him decode the words.  He reread the words, sounded them out, and used pictures when they were available to determine meaning.  He read slowly to correctly decode words, and when he made a mistake he went back to fix it.  Armando self-corrected the majority of his errors.  Armando’s retell was very brief, and it was clear that his comprehension was hindered by how much energy he had to focus on decoding the text.  I also believe that Armando’s retell was affected by the way he interacts with adults.  Armando is very talkative with his friends, but quiet around adults.  Armando did not elaborate when retelling the story.  I aided his retell a few times by asking additional questions, but the responses I received were also very short and limited.  Overall, Armando comprehended the story, but was very limited in the details he provided.  Armando’s pronunciation was influenced by his native language, but I could not determine that any of his miscues were directly related to his native language.

Luca read most of the passage with expression and intonation.  He was very confident in his abilities to read the text.  However, I often found that his mistakes were due to reading too fast.  I believe that Luca could benefit from being taught to vary his reading speeds to correctly convey meaning, and read more accurately.  After analyzing Luca’s errors I do not believe the errors he made reflect his native language.  Based on my experience reading with Luca, and what his teacher says about his classroom performance I believe many of his errors were due to trying to read the text too quickly.  Mrs. Merry tells me that she frequently has to remind Luca to slow down and take his time.  Since Luca was able to successfully retell the story I could also that his comprehension was not hindered by his errors.

Teaching Points Based on Running Records

Running records provide a wealth of information that can be used to directly plan strategy instruction for students.  Based on my findings from the running records I believe that both boys could benefit from instruction in both fluency and comprehension. 

Armando could benefit from instruction focused on his retell abilities.  I believe that instructing Armando on his retell abilities would assist in his ability to retell details, and ultimately help in his overall comprehension of the passage.

For both boys, I see that next steps to improve their reading ability would be to provide fluency instruction.  Armando’s reading was slow and choppy, while Luca’s reading was occasionally rushed.  I believe both boys could benefit from practicing fluent reading.  Models of fluent reading, either from a peer or teacher, would help these boys learn appropriate pacing.  Armando needs additional help reading with intonation.  Armando’s reading is very monotone, and reading with expression will help him better understand the text he is approaching.

In addition, both students could also benefit from instruction in prereading strategies to help them activate background knowledge.  Using this information and the miscue analysis of the types of errors, I know the boys relied too heavily on just the graphophonic cues.  I believe both boys would benefit from previewing the text, and set a purpose for reading.  If students come to a text with an idea of what they will be reading about then the reading becomes a much easier task (Gibbons, 2002).  If teachers utilize prereading strategies, and focus on constructing meaning then students can better utilize all three cueing systems instead of relying just on phonics (Freeman & Freeman, 2004).  Therefore, the data from this assessment suggests that both students could benefit from instruction that will help them make use of both the syntactic and semantic cues from the text as they read (Freeman & Freeman, 2004). 

Running records are powerful tools.  These authentic assessments provide such a wealth of information that can be used to directly plan instruction for students.  Not only do these assessments provide valuable information to drive instruction, but they are also great for documenting a child’s reading progress.

Resources

Freeman, D., & Freeman, Y. (2004). Written and Second Language Acquisition. In Essential linguistics: What you need to know to teach reading, ESL, spelling, phonics, and grammar. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

Gibbons, P. (2002). Scaffolding language, scaffolding learning: Teaching second language learners in the mainstream classroom. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

Gould, M. (n.d.). Many happy returns. ReadingA-Z.com.