The Lexile Framework® for Reading
What Is It?
The Lexile Framework for Reading provides a quantifiable system for teachers and parents to evaluate a text and match it to a specific reader. The Lexile Framework for Reading consists of two measurements: the reader measure and the text measure.
The reader measure is obtained via a Lexile reading test or program, and it evaluates a student’s reading comprehension on the Lexile scale. A higher Lexile reader measure indicates a higher level of reading comprehension and vice versa. Many standardized tests include a Lexile measurement upon completion.
The text measure shows the reading difficulty of a selected text on the Lexile scale. The lower a book’s Lexile measure, the easier it will be to comprehend, and the inverse is true as well.
These measurements can be used to match students to texts that best meet their needs. Giving students something within their Lexile range can reinforce grade-level reading comprehension while giving them a text with a higher measure can challenge their reading skills. Reluctant readers can be encouraged by building their confidence with texts at a slightly lower Lexile measurement.
BJU Press provides Lexile text measures for many JourneyForth books to assist teachers and parents in the goal of developing strong and discerning readers.
How Are Lexile Measures Determined?
A Lexile measure is based on a proprietary algorithm that evaluates a text using characteristics such as word frequency and sentence length: two strong predictors of how difficult a text is to comprehend. A Lexile measure also takes into consideration elements such as font size and clarity as well as the amount of white space on the page.
How Is the Measurement Identified?
A Lexile measurement will fall between 0L or BR (beginning reader) to 2000L. The L indicates that it is a Lexile measurement. Each reader’s individual Lexile range is from 100L below to 50L above his Lexile measure. For example, a reader with a Lexile measure of 1000L would have an ideal Lexile range of 900L–1050L.
Why Is This Useful?
When the reader and text measures are used in tandem, a teacher or parent can do the following:
- Choose reading material that is at an appropriate difficulty level for individual students.
- Estimate how well a student will comprehend a certain text.
- Determine how a certain text will contribute to the growth of a reader.
- Encourage the growth of reading skills by providing content based on the complementary Lexile reader and text measures.
- Choose JourneyForth books based on your child’s Lexile measure.
For more detailed information about Lexile, visit www.lexile.com
Testing & Evaluation Products
The following products show Lexile measurements on test results when all reading sections are completed.
Stanford
All achievement results for Primary 1–TASK 3 will list a Lexile measure in the top section of the student’s Profile with Objectives report.
Iowa Assessments™
All achievement results for Level 6–Level 17/18 will list a Lexile range at the bottom of the student’s Profile Narrative report.