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| Curriculum-Based Measurement: A "Write" Way |
| Monday, May 29, 2006 |
| 9:00 AM–10:20 AM |
| Inman |
| Area: EDC; Domain: Applied Research |
| Chair: Terri Hessler (The Ohio State University, Newark) |
| Discussant: Timothy E. Heron (The Ohio State University) |
| Abstract: Curriculum-based measurement (CBM) has seen increasing use in the academic area of written expression. CBM is “an approach to measuring the growth of student proficiency in… skills that contribute to success in school. It is a fast, inexpensive, and easy-to-use system that allows teachers to continuously measure their students’ growth...and provide data for teachers to evaluate their instructional strategies…” (Deno, 2002). Curriculum-based measures are also sensitive indicators that researchers may use as dependent or outcome variables. These measures include but are not limited to number of words, number of T-units, number of words spelled correctly, and number correct word sequences (CWS). To date, assessment of writing quality has largely relied on subjective measures, such as holistic and analytic scoring. CBM requires only a sample of student writing, eliminating the time-consuming process of whole-essay evaluation and is a more sensitive measure of student growth. This symposium will present data from recent studies that used curriculum-based measures to assess writing performance of elementary, middle, and high school students. In addition, comparison to existing literature and a “lessons-learned” segment will be presented to assist practitioners and researchers in the selection of appropriate measures. |
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| CBM in the Elementary School. |
| SHAWNNA S. HELF (University of North Carolina, Charlotte), Nancy L. Cooke (University of North Carolina, Charlotte) |
| Abstract: Curriculum-based measurement (CBM) has seen increased use in the academic area of written expression at the elementary level. This presentation will share data from a recent study that used various curriculum-based measures to assess writing performance of elementary school students who used story starters to produce timed writing samples. |
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| CBM at the Middle School Level. |
| MOIRA KONRAD (The Ohio State University), David W. Test (University of North Carolina, Charlotte) |
| Abstract: Curriculum-based measurement is still emerging in the field of writing assessment so comparison of measures is essential information to contribute to the existing literature. This presentation will focus on CBM at the middle school level. Specifically, this study compared correct word sequences (CWS) with and without correct spelling as criteria and compared CBM scores to analytic scores. Students wrote paragraphs in response to expository prompts. |
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| CBM at the High School Level. |
| TERRI HESSLER (The Ohio State University, Newark), Ralph Gardner III (The Ohio State University) |
| Abstract: Curriculum-based measurement offers flexibility to teachers and researchers because of the variety of measures available and the various grade levels at which they can be used. This presentation will focus on CBM used at the high school level in an urban setting with students with mild disabilities. Specifically, this study utilized correct word sequences (CWS) with criteria more stringent than the existing literature suggests and compared CBM scores to holistic scores. Students wrote first draft 5-paragraph essays with and without extended prompts. |
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