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Use cloze activities to test reading comprehension

Posted on April 29, 2018 | Leave a comment

If you are trying to assess whether your student, especially your English Language Learner, can understand what she is reading, use cloze activities.

Cloze activities are written passages with words left out. Students need to supply the missing words. Sometimes random words are omitted—such as every seventh word—and a blank space replaces a missing word. Sometimes a particular part of speech is omitted. Sometimes words that are important for the structure of a sentence, like prepositions, are omitted.

Let’s take a paragraph and show several cloze variations which yield particular information about a student’s reading comprehension.

This morning, I woke up early and slipped downstairs to play with the new puppy. Max was in a cage, so I opened it, and let him out. Quickly I took him to the back of the yard where he knew what to do. I threw a ball which he liked and a rubber bone which he didn’t like. Then we came inside and I fixed him a simple breakfast.

Now suppose we leave out every eighth word of the above paragraph. Here is the result.

This morning, I woke up early and _______ downstairs to play with the new puppy. ________ was in a cage, so I opened ________, and let him out. Quickly I took _______ to the back of the yard where ________ knew what to do. I threw a ________ which he liked and a rubber bone _______ he didn’t like. Then we came inside ________ I fixed him a simple breakfast.

Depending on the word choices the student makes, you can learn if the student understands the meaning of the paragraph. You can ask her to justify her choice by explaining which context clues she used.

Now suppose we try a different cloze paragraph, this time leaving out all pronouns.

This morning, _______ woke up early and slipped downstairs to play with the new puppy. Max was in a cage, so _______ opened _______, and let _______ out. Quickly _______ took _______ to the back of the yard where _______ knew what to do. _______ threw a ball which _______ liked and a rubber bone which _______ didn’t like. Then _______ came inside and _______ fixed him a simple breakfast.

From this exercise, you can learn whether the student knows both subject and object pronouns and when to use them.

Now suppose you are testing appropriate use of articles. You can remove all articles, and in addition, put spaces before all nouns or adjective-noun groups to see if the student knows whether articles are needed and if so, which articles are needed.

This morning, I woke up early and slipped downstairs to play with _______ new puppy. _______ Max was in _______ cage, so I opened it, and let him out. Quickly I took him to _______back of _______ yard where he knew what to do. I threw _______ ball which he liked and _______ rubber bone which he didn’t like. Then we came inside and I fixed him _______ simple breakfast.

If a student is studying vocabulary, a word bank can be supplied and from those words the student chooses words to fill in the blanks.

Before you use a cloze activity, know what you are testing for and then create or find a cloze activity which will yield that kind of information.

Parental expectations for ELL can be too high

Posted on January 28, 2018 | Leave a comment

How long should it take for an English Language Learner (a student learning English as a second language) to read at grade level?

Longer than many parents want.

I am working with an ELL fifth grader from another country. I tested her by having her read a list of basic English words, all of which she said she knew. Then I had her read passages at a second, third and fourth grade level, and answer questions.

What I noticed is that she could score 100% on the second and third grade questions, providing the questions were multiple choice. If she had to write a definition, she could copy what the passage said, but she could not paraphrase the words. If she had to write sentences in her own words, she couldn’t do it. If she could say the sentences aloud rather than write them, she couldn’t do it.

This is typical. Multiple choice responses are easiest since the answer is provided; you just have to identify it. Putting ideas into your own words is harder because you must rely on vocabulary which might not be in the passage and you must create sentences, a task which calls on so many skills—vocabulary, grammar, syntax, subject-verb agreement, pronoun case, articles—the list goes on and on. A person can learn to read English without learning to speak or to write, but in the US students are tested verbally and in writing, and of course both skills are needed for 21^st century success.

Another factor to consider when judging how long learning to read will take is whether English is spoken at home. For this student, it is not. She cannot ask a parent what a word means. She cannot hear proper pronunciation. She is on her own.

Still another factor is the student’s motivation to learn English. My student is motivated. She focuses for the full hour we are together and completes her homework.

The mother of this student hoped that her daughter would learn to read quickly enough to be ready for fifth grade state exams in three months. I told the mother that is unlikely, watching sadness fill her eyes.

Could it happen? Yes, for an extremely intelligent and motivated learner living in an enriched English environment. But is it likely? No. Becoming fluent in a language takes time, more time than many parents want.