Curriculum Based Measurement

January, S. A. A., & Klingbeil, D. A. (2020). Universal screening in grades K-2: A systematic review and meta-analysis of early reading curriculum-based measures. Journal of School Psychology, 82, 103-122. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsp.2020.08.007

Curriculum-based measurement (CBM) tools are brief assessments that have several uses in school settings. They can be used for screening purposes and monitoring student progress in academic areas, including reading.

Authors (January & Klingbeil, 2020) summarized the validity evidence of early reading CBM tools for Kindergarten through Grade 2. The CBM tools in the review assessed onset sounds, letter naming, letter sounds, nonsense words, phoneme segmenting, and word identification.

Authors found that word identification (WI) and nonsense word (NW) skills had the strongest associations with reading achievement measures. This means students who scored well on WI and NW also did well on reading assessments that were longer and covered a wider range of reading skills.

To explore the NCIL free online CBM tool, go to: https://www.improvingliteracy.org/resource-repository/cbm-home