A Practitioner's Handbook Speech or Presentation

A Practitioner's Handbook - Speech or Presentation Example Hope this exercise was fun and fruitful. Now we shall engage in a discussion of the Woodcock Reading Mastery Test which, apart from the Word Attack exercise conducted, examines various other aspects of an individual’s reading ability.I shall begin my speech by explaining to you what The Woodcock Reading Mastery Test actually is. The Woodcock Reading Mastery Test is a â€Å"norm-referenced† series of assessments that enables assessors to determine the reading achievements and abilities of individuals (Rathvon, 2004). The test is administered on an individual basis and is diagnostic in nature. Basically, the Woodcock Reading Mastery Test measures the â€Å"reading readiness† of individuals. It primarily targets individuals who have difficulty in reading. The purpose of this test goes beyond the general aim of identifying reading abilities of the candidate as it highlights the individuals’ strengths and weaknesses in particular areas of reading so that target ed action may be taken. It allows specific strategies to be devised for students who have special needs in reading. Particular attention is devoted to ELL learners whose reading abilities are determined by this test. Not only does this test allow for an evaluation of the candidate but also the institution or school’s reading programs.   The history of the Woodcock Reading Mastery Test can be traced back to 1973 when Dr. Richard Woodcock laid the first foundations of the Woodcock Reading Mastery Test   (Rathvon, 2004).... is a â€Å"norm-referenced† series of assessments that enables assessors to determine the reading achievements and abilities of individuals (Rathvon, 2004). The test is administered on an individual basis and is diagnostic in nature. Basically, the Woodcock Reading Mastery Test measures the â€Å"reading readiness† of individuals. It primarily targets individuals who have difficulty in reading. The purpose of this test goes beyond the general aim of identifying reading abilities of the candidate as it highlights the individuals’ strengths and weaknesses in particular areas of reading so that targeted action may be taken. It allows specific strategies to be devised for students who have special needs in reading. Particular attention is devoted to ELL learners whose reading abilities are determined by this test. Not only does this test allow for an evaluation of the candidate but also the institution or school’s reading programs. The history of the Woodcock Reading Mastery Test can be traced back to 1973 when Dr. Richard Woodcock laid the first foundations of the Woodcock Reading Mastery Test (Rathvon, 2004). This test could be taken by children from kindergarten through the twelfth grade which was a rather broad target segment for this assessment (Rathvon, 2004). This test was best suited for ESL candidates. Furthermore, the test involved short intervals and comprised of 5 subtests including the Word Attack, Word ID, Letter ID Passage Comprehension and Word Comprehension. This test was later revised in 1998 whereby Forms G and H were introduced which were not parallel in nature (Rathvon, 2004). These two forms allowed the assessor to test and re-test as they were non-overlapping in nature. Therefore, as you may think, this assessment was highly thorough in nature.