The development of these tests is based on the prescribed framework for basic competencies in the curriculum. Furthermore, careful attention is given to the established psychometric criteria for educational measurement while designing new tests.
About the project
Purpose
The purpose of the National Assessment of Reading Literacy is to assess students’ reading literacy and text comprehension as a basic skill in all subjects. The tests are designed from a wide selection of texts within different subjects in order to measure students’ reading comprehension. The results from the tests are meant to be used as a basis for formative assessment of students learning and also as an indicator for school development.
Implementation of National Assessments of Reading Literacy
The tests are computer-based, and the students are required to complete the tests in 90 minutes. The number of texts and tasks differs, but typically, for grade 5 students the test consists of five different texts and approximately 30 tasks. For grade 8 and 9 students, the test consists of seven texts and approximately 40 tasks.
The tasks are categorised in three different ways, depending on the type of reading process that is required to complete an answer, such as
- Students ability to locate, search and retrieve information
- Students ability to make inference, integrate and interpret information
- Students ability to reflect and evaluate form and content
The test for the 8 and 9 grade includes approximately one fourth open-ended responses, where students formulate their own answers. These responses require human coding. The remaining tasks are coded automatically. The test for 5th grade only contain multiple-choice items.