Amy Koenig, Sammy Loveless, and Kim Manley

GRAY ORAL READING TESTS

THE GRAY ORAL READING TESTS

• The GORT is used to measure oral reading rate, accuracy, fluency, and comprehension.

• Reading rate is determined by the time taken to read a story, and accuracy is the ability of the student to read words correctly.

• Fluency is determined by combining both scores.

• Reading comprehension is measured using multiple-choice questions after each story.

• The GORT can be used to identify students who are performing below grade level.

• The GORT can be used to determine students’ strengths and weaknesses in reading

• The GORT can be used to monitor student progress in reading.

USES OF THE GRAY ORAL READING TESTS

• The GORT is administered to students individually.• Students read aloud from a selected passage while the

teacher completes a miscue analysis. • Once the student has finished reading, the teacher

records the student’s time as well as any mistakes.• The teacher then reads the multiple choice questions

aloud to the student, and the student responds orally to the questions.

ADMINISTRATION

The GORT has a high reliability: average internal consistency reliabilities are .90 or above.

Validity has been studied, and the research determined that the GORT-4 measures changes in oral reading over time.

VALIDITY & RELIABILITY

The GORT-4 measures oral reading rate, accuracy, and comprehension all at the same time.

STRENGTHS

The reading comprehension questions are multiple choice, so it is possible for students to obtain correct answers even if they did not comprehend the passages. Therefore, the GORT may not provide accurate information about a student’s reading comprehension capabilities.

WEAKNESSES

• The GORT-4 was normed on a sample of over 1,600 students aged 6-18.

• The norming is consistent with the intended population – the GORT-4 is intended for use with students aged 6-18.

• The normative sample was stratified to correspond to demographic variables including race, gender, ethnicity, and geographic region.

NORMING & POPULATION

Form B, Story 2

“The girl likes to ride her new bike. It is yellow with white stars. She can ride very fast. But she goes slowly when she sees a car. She stops at the red light. She goes when it turns green.”

SAMPLE PASSAGE

1) The girl rides slowly when:

A) She sees the red light

B) She sees the green light

C) A car is coming

D) She is hot

2) Where do you think the girl rides her bike?

E) On a farm

F) In the street

G) In the house

H) In the park

SAMPLE QUESTIONS

3) What is the best name for this story?

A) The New Bike

B) Bikes

C) How to Ride Bike

D) A Good Bike Rider

4) Which does not go in the story?

E) The girl got the bike on her birthday.

F) The cars go very fast.

G) The girl is nine years old.

H) The bike is old and broken.

SAMPLE QUESTIONS

5) How does the girl feel when she rides her bike?

A) funny

B) afraid

C) sad

D) happy

SAMPLE QUESTIONS