L EXILES EXPLAINED ( IN LESS THAN 20 MINUTES ) Jennine Bloomquist October 23, 2014

 Developed by MetaMetrics, based on research funded by National Institute for Child Health Development (NICHD)  An educational tool that links readers AND texts under a common designation known as Lexiles.  Allows educators to forecast the level of comprehension a reader is expected to experience with a particular text.  Most commonly used reading measure:  Over 19 million students receive Lexile scores through commercial/state assessments  Over 100,000 books and tens of millions of articles have Lexile measures The Lexile

Lexiles are based upon  Semantic Difficulty  (Word Frequency) Difficulty of words is based upon exposure; as a reader encounters a word again and again, it becomes more familiar.  Syntactic Complexity  (Sentence Length) Long sentences contain more clauses, communicate more information and ideas, require a reader to retain more information in short-term memory.

Student Lexiles vs Book Lexiles A student’s Lexile measure is a tool  to use in targeting reading material for students A book’s Lexile measure is a tool  for measuring the difficulty of a particular text for a particular student

Who Provides Student Lexile Measures?

 It is recommended that readers choose texts within their Lexile range  A Lexile range is 50L above and 100L below a student’s reported Lexile measure.  A student with a 890L should choose texts to read with Lexiles between 790L and 940L. A Student’s Lexile Measure

 Match a student’s reading ability with the difficulty of text material by using Lexiles  A student’s Lexile is interpreted as the level of book that a student can read with 75% comprehension  75% comprehension has been identified as “offering the reader a certain amount of comfort and yet still offer a challenge” Using Lexiles

Sometimes a Lexile measure by itself is not enough information to choose a particular book for a particular reader. This is why some books get Lexile codes (for example, AD580L).  AD: Adult Directed  BR: Beginning Reader  Only code that applies to both readers and text  HL: High-Low  Generally young adult  IG: Illustrated Guide  Usually non-fiction and reference  GN: Graphic Novel  NP: Non-Prose  Do NOT get a Lexile Measure, only a Lexile Code  NC: Non-Conforming  Useful to match high-ability students with developmentally appropriate materials Lexile Codes (Books only)

Limitations of Lexile Measures Lexile text measures do NOT address Text Characteristics – Age-appropriateness of the content – Text support (e.g., pictures, pull- outs) – Text quality (i.e., Is it a good book?) Reader Characteristics – Interest and motivation – Background knowledge – Reading context and purpose  Lexile text measures only measure text readability.  Input from readers, parents, teachers and librarians is necessary.

Common Core State Standards Text Complexity Qualitative levels of meaning or purpose; structure; language conventionality and clarity; and knowledge demands. Quantitative those aspects of text complexity, such as word length or frequency, sentence length, and text cohesion, that are difficult if not impossible for a human reader to evaluate efficiently, especially in long texts, and are thus today typically measured by computer software. *Reader and Task considerations (i.e., student knowledge, motivation, and interests) While the prior two elements of the model focus on the inherent complexity of text, variables specific to particular readers (such as motivation, knowledge, and experiences) and to particular tasks (such as purpose and the complexity of the task assigned and the questions posed) must also be considered when determining whether a text is appropriate for a given student. Such assessments are best made by teachers employing their professional judgment, experience, and knowledge of their students and the subject. (NYSCC Appendix A, p4)

WHY DOES ALL THIS MATTER?

Grade Band“Stretch” Lexile Band K-1N/A L L L-1185L L-1335L 11-CCR1185L-1385L

Lexile Stretch Bands & College- and Career-Readiness The “stretch” bands of the Lexile Framework show an upward trajectory of reading comprehension development through the grades to indicate that all students should be reading at the college- and career-readiness level by no later than the end of high school.

Want more information? Arrington, Marty. Teaching Students to Use Lexiles School Library Monthly, Sept/Oct 2012 v 29 #1 p 37 Beyond the Classroom Georgia Lexile Presentation Sept 2014 Guide to Reading Levels: demystifying computerized reading programs How Will the Ed-Tech Industry Shape Student Reading? Jack Stenner: the Lexile King The Lexile Framework as an Approach for Reading Measurement and Success Malbert Smith III, Phd: President, Metametrics NYS Common Core Appendix A Statistics in Brief: 1 st Year Remedial Course-taking 2000, 2004, 2008 The Story is More Important than the Words: a portrait of a reader-focused library program

Helpful Tools Metametrics Levelit App for Apple and Android Don’t forget your online catalog and electronic databases!

Comparison of Reading Levels

Slides that didn’t make it into the presentation

Students should be ready for college and career after high school. The most important factor for readiness is a student’s ability to read and understand texts of steadily increasing complexity as they progress through school. The Lexile ® Framework provides insight into student readiness by measuring both the complexity of reading materials and a student's ability to comprehend these texts. Lexiles and the Common Core

Changes in Textbook Complexity

College and Career Readiness Skills “Furthermore, students in college are expected to read complex texts with substantially greater independence (i.e., much less scaffolding) than are students in typical K–12 programs. College students are held more accountable for what they read on their own than are most students in high school.” -Erickson & Strommer, 1991; Pritchard, Wilson, & Yamnitz, 2007

College Remediation Rates

Life After Graduation “Student Readiness for Postsecondary Options” Gary Williamson, Ph.D. (2004) Median Text Measures: 11th/12th grade (LA/SS textbooks):1090L Military (training/field manuals):1180L Citizenship (newspapers, voting, jury):1230L Workplace (Daggett study materials):1260L Postsecondary - first two yrs (textbooks):1355L – GED Test Materials:1060L – SAT/ACT Test Materials:1180L