On this page:
Overview
Reading Progress Indicator (RPI) provides reading assessments within mySciLEARN, and reports the test results in the Reports pages. The RPI assessments correlate to nationally recognized normed assessments, are reliable and validated, and provide overall reading scores that can help indicate how students are responding to Fast ForWord product use. For more information on Reading Progress Indicator and how the scores are calculated and used, see Reading Progress Indicator FAQ.
Reading Progress Indicator provides four assessment levels based on the grade entered for the student: K-1, 2-3, 4-6, and 7-13+ (pre-Kindergarten students are not eligible for the assessments). The assessments are not timed. The student may complete an assessment across work sessions and days, but should complete it in a timely manner. The assignments remain unavailable until the student completes the assessment.
Tip: Your students can use Reading Progress Indicator on iPad.
Reading Progress Indicator presents assessments automatically. You can supplement these assessments with Manual RPI tests, if needed. To learn more see the rest of this topic.
About Auto RPI
Reading Progress Indicator presents assessments automatically, based on component usage (see How RPI administers assessments). During each student work session, RPI determines if the student is eligible for an assessment. If so, the RPI graphic appears on the Student Exercises screen in place of the assigned component graphic, prompting the student to take the assessment. To learn more see Take RPI assessments. When complete, the assessment results are immediately available on the Reading Progress Indicator reports, in the Auto RPI Assessments view. See Reports.
You can manually assign an RPI test to supplement the automatic assessments, if this feature is enabled at your school. See About Manual RPI to learn more.
How RPI administers assessments
Reading Progress Indicator is designed to automatically assess Fast ForWord students before and after Fast ForWord component use. Here’s an example of how it works:
- Students receive their initial assessment upon enrollment in mySciLEARN.
- As students progress through the Fast ForWord components, they receive a follow-up assessment after completing each Fast ForWord component (that is, after earning a Switch or Complete status in that component). For example, students will receive a follow-up assessment after completing Foundations I, then after completing Foundations II, and so on. Students have up to two months to complete a given follow-up assessment.
About Manual RPI
As described in How RPI administers assessments, Reading Progress Indicator automatically presents assessments based on component usage. This is the best way to use RPI. However, you can choose to administer a Manual RPI test to supplement the Auto RPI tests as needed—for example, at the end of a school year, if your Fast ForWord students have not received an RPI test for their current component.
By default, instructors are not allowed to access the Manual RPI feature—a district manager or school manager needs to turn it on at the school level (see Set RPI school defaults for steps). Once enabled, instructors can choose to assign Manual RPI assessments to any student who is currently using RPI. To learn how see Assign Manual RPI tests.
When assigned, the Manual RPI test is presented to the student on the next work session, as usual: the RPI graphic appears on the Student Exercises screen in place of the assigned component graphic, prompting the student to take the assessment. To learn more see Take RPI assessments. The results are immediately available on the Reading Progress Indicator reports in the All RPI view. See Reports.
To get the most out of Reading Progress Indicator, you’ll want to be thoughtful about assigning Manual RPI assessments. Here are a few general rules.
- RPI assessments should not be administered more than three to four times per year. This includes both Auto RPI and Manual RPI assessments.
- Manual RPI assessments, if administered mid-Fast ForWord component, may not capture the full benefit of the product.
Use the following table for further guidance. To learn more about what RPI does, see Reading Progress Indicator FAQ.
|
What RPI does best |
What RPI does NOT do |
|---|---|
|
RPI provides a general measure of early reading skills: phonological awareness, decoding, vocabulary, comprehension |
RPI does not provide a comprehensive measure of Common Core or any other curricular standard, and should not replace any other clinical, district, or state assessment |
|
RPI serves as an outcomes measure suitable for infrequent administration, such as after completing a Fast ForWord component |
RPI should not be used as a progress monitoring tool for frequent Response to Intervention (RTI) decisions, or as a diagnostic tool for specific language or reading disabilities |
|
RPI is sensitive enough to usually shows gains made after completing a Fast ForWord component |
RPI may not be sensitive enough to detect gains mid-Fast ForWord component |
|
RPI provides a fixed test, with two forms available at four levels |
RPI does not provide an adaptive test |
See also