Wide Range Achievement Word Reading Subtest Questions and Answers — Questions and Answers
Question 1: An examiner is administering the WRAT-5 Word Reading subtest to an 8-year-old student. The student provides incorrect responses for five consecutive words in the middle of the word list. Which of the following is the correct procedure for the examiner to follow?
- Administer the remaining words on the list to allow the student to attempt all items.
- Discontinue the subtest and begin calculating the raw score. (Correct answer)
- Reverse to the beginning of the word list and start again.
- Administer the Letter Reading section before discontinuing the subtest.
Correct answer: Discontinue the subtest and begin calculating the raw score.
The standard discontinue rule for the WRAT-5 Word Reading subtest is to stop administration after 5 consecutive incorrect responses. Continuing to administer items after the ceiling has been reached is not the standard procedure. [1, 7]
Question 2: The Word Reading subtest of the WRAT-5 is primarily designed to measure which of the following skills?
- Reading comprehension and passage understanding.
- Reading fluency and rate.
- Phonological awareness and blending.
- Letter identification and single-word recognition. (Correct answer)
Correct answer: Letter identification and single-word recognition.
The WRAT-5 Word Reading subtest specifically assesses an individual's ability to recognize and name letters and to pronounce single words accurately. [2, 4, 5] It is a measure of decoding and sight-word recognition, not fluency or comprehension.
Question 3: When scoring the WRAT-5 Word Reading subtest, which of the following is an important guideline regarding an examinee's pronunciation?
- All mispronunciations should be scored as incorrect, regardless of the cause.
- Only mispronunciations that change the meaning of the word are scored as incorrect.
- Articulation differences due to dialect or regional speech patterns should not be penalized. [1] (Correct answer)
- The examiner should ask the examinee to repeat any mispronounced word once before scoring.
Correct answer: Articulation differences due to dialect or regional speech patterns should not be penalized. [1]
The WRAT-5 manual provides specific instructions that examiners should not score responses as incorrect if the pronunciation reflects articulation differences related to dialect, regional speech patterns, or the influence of English as an additional language. [1] This ensures a fair assessment of reading ability, not speech production. The rule allowing the examiner to ask for a repetition was part of the WRAT4, but not the WRAT5. [1]
Question 4: A 10-year-old examinee is administered Part 2 (Word Reading) of the Word Reading subtest first, per standard procedure. The student reads only three words correctly before making five consecutive errors. What is the examiner's next step?
- Discontinue all reading testing and move to the Math Computation subtest.
- Record a raw score of 3 for the subtest.
- Administer Part 1 (Letter Reading) in its entirety. [1] (Correct answer)
- Provide coaching on the missed words and then re-administer Part 2.
Correct answer: Administer Part 1 (Letter Reading) in its entirety. [1]
For examinees aged 8 and older, Part 2 is administered first. If the basal criterion (a raw score of 5 or more on Part 2) is not met, the reverse rule applies, and the examiner must administer all items in Part 1 (Letter Reading). [1, 6] The final raw score will include items correct from both parts.
Question 5: Which of the following is a key difference between the WRAT-4 and the WRAT-5 administration of the Word Reading subtest?
- The WRAT-5 introduced a time limit for the subtest.
- The WRAT-5 discontinue rule was changed from 10 consecutive errors to 5. [1] (Correct answer)
- The WRAT-5 requires all examinees to start with Letter Reading.
- The WRAT-5 eliminated the use of alternate forms.
Correct answer: The WRAT-5 discontinue rule was changed from 10 consecutive errors to 5. [1]
A significant change in the WRAT-5 is the more stringent discontinue rule. For the Word Reading subtest, administration is stopped after 5 consecutive errors, whereas the WRAT-4 allowed for 10 consecutive errors before discontinuing. [1, 8]
Question 6: An examiner is preparing to administer the WRAT-5. The Word Reading subtest results can be combined with which other subtest to form the Reading Composite score?
- Spelling
- Math Computation
- Sentence Comprehension (Correct answer)
- There is no Reading Composite score in the WRAT-5.
Correct answer: Sentence Comprehension
The WRAT-5 allows for the creation of a Reading Composite score by combining the standard scores from the Word Reading and Sentence Comprehension subtests. [2, 3, 4] This provides a broader measure of an individual's overall reading achievement.
Wide Range Achievement Word Reading Subtest Questions and Answers
An examiner is administering the WRAT-5 Word Reading subtest to an 8-year-old student.
The student provides incorrect responses for five consecutive words in the middle of the word list.
Which of the following is the correct procedure for the examiner to follow?