Christopher Age 7 Years and 2 Months
The 2nd Edition YARC Manual has revised guidance on how to administer and score passages when Level 1 accuracy exceeds the discontinuation rule. Also, a small number of children may not be able to read to the end of the Level 1 passage: here is a case study showing what to do in this instance.
Christopher is aged 7 years and 2 months and in his first term in Y2 (P3). His reading is delayed but he loves books and makes great efforts to progress through the reading scheme. He enjoys participating in class and talking about things he has done outside school. YARC was being implemented in Y2 to check how children’s reading was progressing and to identify particular difficulties that would need additional support.
It was unlikely that Christopher would be able to read Level 2 (the passage for his year group) so his teacher decided to start with the Beginner level passage. Christopher read this with eight errors and answered five comprehension questions correctly. However, Christopher found Level 1A much more difficult to decode and struggled without the support from his teacher afforded by the Beginner passage. Christopher did not finish the passage and the test session was ended with some general discussion to help Christopher overcome any anxiety about his reading. The comprehension questions were not asked and a score of zero was recorded.
Christopher’s scores:
| Accuracy | Comprehension | |||
| Errors | Ability Score | Questions Answered | Ability Score | |
| Beginner A | 8 | 24 | 5 | 25 |
| Level 1A | Discontinued | 16 | 0 | |
In line with revised administration and scoring guidelines in the 2nd Edition Manual, the Ability Score for 16 or more errors was recorded for Accuracy.
| Standard Score | |
| Accuracy | 81 |
| Comprehension | 78 |
The advantages of administering YARC to Christopher are firstly that he can be included in the assessment given to all his classmates and secondly, the scores provide a benchmark from which his progress can be tracked. He is below average in decoding and comprehension skills are low so Christopher will need support now and throughout his time at Primary school.
