CDT Screening & Progress Monitoring 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which early literacy skill assessed in kindergarten screening is the STRONGEST predictor of later reading difficulties?
- Letter-name knowledge alone
- Phoneme segmentation fluency (Correct answer)
- Listening vocabulary
- Print concept awareness
Correct answer: Phoneme segmentation fluency
Phoneme segmentation fluency is one of the most robust early predictors of reading difficulties and future decoding ability.
Question 2: A CDT administers the Comprehensive Test of Phonological Processing (CTOPP-2) and finds a student scores 1.5 standard deviations below the mean on Phonological Memory. This indicates:
- Average performance with minor variability
- A significant weakness in holding phonological information in working memory (Correct answer)
- A strength that should be leveraged in intervention
- No concern unless decoding scores are also low
Correct answer: A significant weakness in holding phonological information in working memory
A score 1.5 SD below the mean falls at approximately the 7th percentile, indicating a clinically meaningful phonological memory deficit.
Question 3: Which statement accurately describes the difference between a norm-referenced and a criterion-referenced assessment in screening contexts?
- Norm-referenced assessments compare a student's performance to a fixed skill standard; criterion-referenced compare to peers
- Criterion-referenced assessments compare a student's performance to peers; norm-referenced compare to a skill standard
- Norm-referenced assessments compare a student to a normative sample; criterion-referenced measure mastery of specific skills (Correct answer)
- Both types produce the same type of score and serve identical purposes
Correct answer: Norm-referenced assessments compare a student to a normative sample; criterion-referenced measure mastery of specific skills
Norm-referenced tests rank students relative to a normative group, while criterion-referenced tests measure whether a student has mastered defined skills.
Question 4: A student who is an English Language Learner (ELL) performs poorly on a phonological awareness screener administered in English. What should the CDT consider?
- ELL students cannot be screened for dyslexia risk until they are fully English proficient
- Results may reflect limited English proficiency rather than phonological processing deficits, and screening in L1 is recommended when possible (Correct answer)
- The student should automatically receive Tier 3 intervention
- Phonological awareness skills are language-neutral and ELL status is irrelevant
Correct answer: Results may reflect limited English proficiency rather than phonological processing deficits, and screening in L1 is recommended when possible
Phonological awareness can be assessed in a student's first language to distinguish language acquisition differences from true phonological processing deficits.
Question 5: When graphing progress monitoring data, the 'aim line' is drawn from:
- The student's first data point to the final benchmark goal by the end of the intervention period (Correct answer)
- The class average at the start of the year to the class average at the end of the year
- The student's lowest score to their highest score
- The national norm for the grade level across all time points
Correct answer: The student's first data point to the final benchmark goal by the end of the intervention period
The aim line connects the student's baseline score to the target goal, providing a visual benchmark for adequate rate of improvement.
Question 6: Which of the following is an example of a Tier 1 universal screening tool commonly used to identify students at risk for dyslexia in US schools?
- Woodcock-Johnson Tests of Achievement (WJ-IV)
- DIBELS Next (Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills) (Correct answer)
- Wechsler Individual Achievement Test (WIAT-III)
- Gray Oral Reading Tests (GORT-5)
Correct answer: DIBELS Next (Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills)
DIBELS Next is a widely used universal screener that provides brief, repeatable measures of early literacy skills for school-wide administration.
Question 7: A CDT is asked to evaluate whether a school's dyslexia screener is effective. Which psychometric property ensures the tool correctly identifies students who truly have dyslexia risk?
- Specificity
- Sensitivity (Correct answer)
- Reliability
- Standard error of measurement
Correct answer: Sensitivity
Sensitivity refers to a tool's ability to correctly identify true positives—students who actually have a reading risk or disability.
CDT Screening & Progress Monitoring 3
Which early literacy skill assessed in kindergarten screening is the STRONGEST predictor of later reading difficulties?