What is an approved reading assessment?

An assessment of student reading is administered three times during the school year to all students in grades kindergarten through grade three to 1) screen students within the first 30 days of school to identify students who may have a reading deficiency, 2) measure progress toward grade level reading in skills including but not limited to: alphabetical and phonological awareness, sound-symbol correspondence, decoding and fluency and comprehension and 3) inform instruction targeted to student needs. Such assessments will be approved by qualified NDE personnel or its designees, be reliable and valid, and align with appropriate academic content standards for reading adopted by the State Board of Education pursuant to section 79-760.01. Assessments should allow teachers to access results in a reasonable period, be commercially available, and comply with requirements established by NDE.