FAST: earlyReading English
Letter Sounds
Rating Summary
Classification Accuracy | ![]() | |
---|---|---|
Generalizability | Moderate Low | |
Reliability | ![]() | |
Validity | ![]() | |
Disaggregated Reliability and Validity Data | ![]() | |
Efficiency | ||
Administration | Individual | |
Administration & Scoring Time | 1-2 Minutes | |
Scoring Key | Computer Scored | |
Benchmarks / Norms | Yes |
Cost | Technology, Human Resources, and Accommodations for Special Needs | Service and Support | Purpose and Other Implementation Information | Usage and Reporting |
---|---|---|---|---|
The Formative Assessment System for Teachers™ (FAST) is online software that requires no hardware or special add-ons. FAST is supported by an extensive set of materials to support teachers and students, including self-directed training modules that allow teachers to become certified to administer each of the FAST assessments. The entire FAST assessment package (i.e., reading, math, behavior, and on-line training) is provided at an annual flat rate of $6 per student. |
Testers will require 1-4 hours of training. Paraprofessionals can administer the test. |
Where to Obtain: Address:http://www.fastbridge.org/
FastBridge Learning
520 Nicollet Mall, Suite 910
Minneapolis, MN 55402-1057
Phone: 612-254-2534 Website: http://www.fastbridge.org/ Training materials are included in the cost of the tool. Additional, optional on-site and webinar-based training services are available for a fee. Ongoing technical support is available by calling 612-424-3710 or emailing fast1@umn.edu |
The Formative Assessment System for Teachers (FAST) earlyReading measure is designed to assess both unified and component skills associated with kindergarten and first grade reading achievement. earlyReading is intended to enable screening and progress monitoring across four domains of reading (Concepts of Print, Phonemic Awareness, Phonics, and Decoding) and provide domain specific assessments of these specific component skills and a general estimate of overall reading achievement. The objective of the Letter Sounds measure is to assess the student’s ability and automaticity with saying the sounds of uppercase and lowercase letters in isolation. All 26 letters in the English alphabet are used. The letters c, g, and all vowels are included in a separate section of the measure (not within the automaticity portion of the measure). |
The tool is intended for use in Kindergarten or with ages 5-6. Administration is computerized and is 1-2 minutes per student. Scoring is done automatically within the software and does not require any additional time. Available scores include: raw scores, percentile scores, developmental benchmarks and cut points, subscale/subtest scores, composite scores, and error analysis. |
Classification Accuracy
Classification Accuracy in Predicting Proficiency on GRADE for Kindergarten |
||
|
15th Percentile n = 214 |
40th Percentile n = 195 |
False Positive Rate |
0.20 |
0.27 |
False Negative Rate |
0.18 |
0.25 |
Sensitivity |
0.82 |
0.75 |
Specificity |
0.80 |
0.73 |
Positive Predictive Power |
0.26 |
0.53 |
Negative Predictive Power |
0.98 |
0.88 |
Overall Classification Rate |
0.80 |
0.74 |
AUC (ROC) |
0.85 |
0.82 |
Base Rate |
0.08 |
0.29 |
Cut Points: |
34 |
28 |
At XX% Sensitivity, Specificity equals |
88% sensitivity, 0.74 specificity |
88% sensitivity, 0.53 specificity |
At XX% Sensitivity, Specificity equals |
82% sensitivity, 0.80 specificity |
79% sensitivity, 0.71 specificity |
At XX% Sensitivity, Specificity equals |
71% sensitivity, 0.82 specificity |
70% sensitivity, 0.83 specificity |
Generalizability
Description of study sample:
· Number of States: 1 (Minnesota)
· Regions: 1
· Gender
o 47% Male
o 53% Female
· Race/Ethnicity:
o 65% White, Non-Hispanic
o 0% American Indian/Alaska Native
o 23% Black, Non-Hispanic
o 0% Asian, Pacific Islander
o 6% Hispanic
o 3% Other
· Disability status: approximately 11% SWDs
· First language: approximately 90% English
· Language proficiency status: 100% English proficient
Reliability
Type of Reliability |
Age or Grade |
n (range) |
Coefficient |
SEM |
Information (including normative data)/Subjects |
|
range |
median |
|||||
Alternate Form Correlation |
K |
34-36 |
0.85-0.94 |
0.89 |
5.56(4.89) |
|
Test Retest |
K |
36 |
|
0.91* |
|
Collected in Fall 2012, ~2-3 week delay |
Delayed Test-Retest |
K |
1,241 |
|
0.51 |
|
Fall-Winter. |
Delayed Test-Retest |
K |
1,282 |
|
0.61 |
|
Winter-Spring. |
Delayed Test-Retest |
K |
1,600 |
|
0.35 |
|
Fall-Spring. |
Coefficient alpha |
K |
683 |
|
0.93 for first 10 items
0.98 for first 30 items
0.98 for first 50 items |
|
Coefficients was derived from a random sample of students from the FAST database from the 2012-2013 academic year. Approximately 52.1% of students were female, and 47.9% of students were male. Approximately 55.1% of the sample was White, 17.4% Hispanic, 14.6% Black, 5.1% Multiracial, 4.5% Asian, and 3.2% American Indian or Alaska Native. |
Split-half |
K |
683 |
|
0.93 for first 10 items
0.98 for first 30 items
0.99 for first 50 items |
|
Coefficients was derived from a random sample of students from the FAST database from the 2012-2013 academic year. Approximately 52.1% of students were female, and 47.9% of students were male. Approximately 55.1% of the sample was White, 17.4% Hispanic, 14.6% Black, 5.1% Multiracial, 4.5% Asian, and 3.2% American Indian or Alaska Native. |
*Outliers that were +/- 2 standard deviations from the mean were removed from the test-retest reliability sample. In this case 2 cases, making up 3% of the sample, were removed.
Validity
Type of Validity |
Age or Grade |
Test or Criterion |
n (range) |
Coefficient (if applicable) |
Information (including normative data)/Subjects |
|
range |
Median |
|||||
Concurrent
|
K |
GRADE Level P |
85 |
|
0.53 |
The majority of students within the school district were White (78%), with the remaining students identified as either African American (19%), or other (3%). In school District 2, the majority of students within the school district are White (53%), with the remaining students identified as African American (26%), Hispanic (11%), Asian (8%), or other (2%). |
Predictive |
K |
GRADE Level K |
230 |
|
0.44 |
See above |
Predictive |
K |
GRADE Level K |
210 |
|
0.63 |
See above |
Concurrent |
K |
GRADE Level K |
214 |
|
0.19 |
See above |
Discriminant Validity (beginning) |
K |
Letter Sounds |
187 |
|
Difference Stats: t = 25.33 d = 2.41 |
|
Discriminant Validity (middle) |
K |
Letter Sounds |
173 |
|
t = 27.66 d = 2.69 |
|
Discriminant Validity (end) |
K |
Letter Sounds |
212 |
|
t = 25.59 d = 2.38 |
|
Type of Validity |
Age or Grade |
Test or Criterion |
n (range) |
Coefficient |
Information (including normative data)/Subjects |
Predictive Validity |
1st |
aReading |
78 |
0.69 |
Winter to Spring prediction |
Predictive Validity |
K |
aReading |
482 |
0.62 |
Winter to Spring prediction |
Predictive Validity |
1st |
aReading |
17 |
0.71 |
Winter to End of School Year prediction |
Concurrent validity |
1st |
aReading |
18 |
0.71 |
Spring data collection |
Concurrent validity |
1st |
CBMreading |
27 |
0.72 |
Spring data collection |
Concurrent validity |
K |
aReading |
461 |
0.70 |
Winter data collection |
Concurrent validity |
K |
aReading |
1,301 |
0.62 |
Fall data collection |
Predictive validity |
K |
aReading |
453 |
0.62 |
Fall to Winter |
Concurrent |
K |
AIMSweb Letter Names |
141 |
0.86 |
See below. |
Concurrent |
K |
AIMSweb Letter Sounds |
141 |
0.96 |
See below. |
Concurrent |
K |
AIMSweb Nonsense Words |
141 |
0.86 |
See below. |
Concurrent |
1 |
AIMSweb Letter Sounds |
140 |
0.81 |
See below. |
*Correlations disattenuated based on reported reliabilities.
AIMSweb Letter Names requires students to read letter names aloud for one minute. The score is the correct number of letter names a student can read per minute.
AIMSweb phoneme segmentation requires students to listen to a word and respond with all of the sounds, or phonemes, in the word. The score is the correct number of sounds identified per minute.
AIMSweb Letter Sounds requires students to read letter sounds aloud for one minute. The score is the correct number of letter sounds a student can read per minute.
AIMSweb Nonsense Word Fluency requires students to read short CVC or VC non-words. The two scores are the correct number of sounds per minute and the correct number of words per minute.
DIBELS Next First Sound Fluency requires students to listen to words and provide the initial sound in the word. The score is the number of correct sounds per minute.
The earlyReading validity evidence study coefficients were derived from a sample of approximately 140 students each in Kindergarten and First Grade. Approximately 47% of students were female. Reported races of students were White (59%), Hispanic (9%), Black (12%), American Indian (1%), and Asian/Pacific Islander (18%). Approximately 21% of students were English Language Learners, 32% were eligible for free or reduced lunch, and 9% received special education services.
Disaggregated Reliability, Validity, and Classification Data for Diverse Populations
Disaggregated Classification Accuracy
Classification Accuracy in Kindergarten (15th Percentile – Fall earlyReading Letter Sounds to Fall aReading)
|
White Students |
False Positive Rate |
0.12 |
False Negative Rate |
0.78 |
Sensitivity |
0.22 |
Specificity |
0.88 |
Positive Predictive Power |
0.63 |
Negative Predictive Power |
0.56 |
Overall Classification Rate |
0.57 |
AUC (ROC) |
0.80 |
Base Rate |
0.47 |
Cut Points: |
22.5 |
At 71% Sensitivity, Specificity equals |
73% |
At 81% Sensitivity, Specificity equals |
60% |
Disaggregated Reliability
Type of Reliability |
Age or Grade |
n (range) |
Coefficient |
Information (including normative data)/Subjects |
Delayed test-retest Reliability |
1st |
50 |
0.70 |
Fall to Winter; Non-white students |
Delayed test-retest Reliability |
1st |
17 |
0.71 |
Fall to Winter; White students |
|
Ethnicity |
|
Test-Retest Coefficient (N) F to W |
Test-Retest Coefficient (N) F to S |
Letter Sounds |
Black |
K |
0.53 (409) |
0.45 (408) |
Letter Sounds |
Hispanic |
K |
0.46 (270) |
0.29 (292) |
Letter Sounds |
White |
K |
0.50 (1,410) |
0.31 (1,687) |
Disaggregated Validity
Type of Validity |
Age or Grade |
Test or Criterion |
n (range) |
Coefficient |
Information (including normative data)/Subjects |
Concurrent Validity |
K |
aReading |
98 |
0.70 |
Asian students; Winter data collection |
Predictive validity |
K |
aReading |
141 |
0.70 |
Asian students; Winter to Spring |
Concurrent validity |
K |
aReading |
53 |
0.71 |
African American students; Winter data collection |
Concurrent validity |
K |
aReading |
39 |
0.76 |
Hispanic students; Winter data collection |
Predictive validity |
K |
aReading |
123 |
0.73 |
Asian students; Fall to Spring prediction |
Concurrent validity |
K |
aReading |
70 |
0.78 |
Asian students; Fall data collection |