Standards and Assessment
The child who reads well in one state should be able to read well in another state, but today almost every state has developed their own state reading/language arts standards.
Standards
National Reading Standards
Currently, one of the best national references that you can link to is the standards that were developed by the National Council of Teachers of English and the International Reading Association http://www.ncte.org/about/over/standards.
Previously several valuable National Center on Education and the Economy (NCEE) New Standards products that outlined what reading skills students should be able to develop from Kindergarten through grade 3 were referenced. Although the entire standards are no longer online, three excellent products are still available for a fee. These included "Speaking and Listening for Preschool Through Third Grade," "New Standards Primary Literacy Standards: Reading and Writing Grade by Grade," and, "What Parents Need to Know about Reading & Writing Grade by Grade: Literacy in Kindergarten Through Third Grade." http://www.ncee.org/store/products/index.jsp?setProtocol=true&pt_sort_fld=display_label&pt_sort_order=true&pt_iter_ref=30&stSection=1
Finally, when you discuss national standards for reading, you need to keep in mind the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). This is a report card on the US educational system. Assessment are at grades 4, 8, and 12 in eight subject areas, but emphasis has been on reading, math, and writing. Review the state profiles and sample questions under Special Tools via http://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/sitemap.asp
State Standards
Next, look at state standards. You can locate these standards through the MCEC Education Resource Center using the state Curriculum link. Most states broadcast their standards proudly.
Achieve
Achieve has developed benchmarks for what students need to know in math (K-12) and English (4-12) via http://www.achieve.org/node/479. Benchmarks are presented in spans of two years. Reading benchmarks are found under Acquiring Information (A).
Education Week
"Education Week" publishes a comprehensive document, Quality Counts which reviews the state of education. Consult online for information on state standards and assessments at http://www.edweek.org. Look at standards and assessments.
National Center for Educational Achievement (Just For the Kids)
Just for the Kids, part of the National Center for Educational Achievement website, collects and analyzes student achievement data in core academic subjects. They identify schools that are succeeding under all types of circumstances as well as the best practices these schools are using to obtain academic excellence. Choose any state from the "Select a State" dropdown menu to see the information currently available for that state. To see the most complete application of the Just for the Kids school information and improvement model, select "Texas" at http://www.just4kids.org.
Assessment Instruments K-12
So what are the current reading assessments that are administered?
At grades K-2, few states administer standardized multiple-choice reading assessments because this type of assessment is considered developmentally inappropriate by educators. You can get an idea of the variety of assessment instruments by looking through a very thorough reading assessment database for grades K-2 compiled by the Southwest Educational Developmental Laboratory. Most require substantial training for administration and interpretation of results. Fees can also be prohibitive. Find out which states require a particular assessment by looking at http://www.sedl.org/reading/rad/states.html.
For grade 3 and up, go to the respective states to determine state specific reading assessments. You can reference the state education websites throughout the MCEC's Education Resource Center. at http://www.militarychild.org/assessment
While at the state website, you may be able to locate copies of the previous years examinations; i.e. Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills released exams are available online at http://www.tea.state.tx.us/student.assessment/resources/release/index.html. Not all states provide this opportunity but some offer sample questions and/or study guides. Many have parent information about assessments available as well.
