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WIAT-4 Data Demonstrates Groves Students’ Growth

Lower and Middle school students at Groves Academy are assessed twice a year using the WIAT-4 (Wechsler Individual Achievement Test-Fourth Edition). The WIAT-4 is nationally normed and measures individual academic achievement compared to their grade-level peers.

Students are assessed using six subtests that measure specific components of reading: phonemic awareness, word reading accuracy and fluency, decoding accuracy*, reading connected text fluently, and reading comprehension. Groves Academy faculty use the WIAT-4 data to understand each student’s unique learning profile, measure individual growth, and tailor instruction. 

Students are assessed in the following subtests:

wiat-4 subtests descriptions

Students at Groves Academy are instructed using the Wilson Reading System, which is an Orton-Gillingham-based reading curriculum. Literacy instruction is based on the science of reading, applying Orton-Gillingham principles of teaching literacy in a direct, explicit, multisensory, structured, sequential, and diagnostic manner. Students are taught in small groups of students assigned by reading level.

Based on data provided by WIAT-4 testing across four screening periods obtained during a two-year period, statistical analyses were conducted to provide information about the efficacy of instruction at Groves Academy. These students, many of whom are diagnosed with reading disorders such as dyslexia, demonstrated growth in percentiles across various measures, most prominently in terms of reading comprehension and phonemic proficiency. These are the areas in which the largest rate of growth is expected.

*Pseudoword decoding accuracy results were not statistically significant and therefore not included in these results.

wiat-4 line graph

The data demonstrated that national percentiles across the sample of Lower and Middle School students consistently increased, which demonstrates that student growth was greater than what is expected for same-grade, typically-developing, national peers. Students at Groves Academy have worked to reduce the gap between their skills and the skills of their typically-developing peers.

Key Takeaways:

On average, students demonstrated growth in reading skills, most prominently in manipulating sounds (phonemic awareness) and comprehending connected text.

 

On average, student growth was greater than typical learning trajectories, helping students reduce the gap between their skills and that of their typically-developing peers.

 

reading icon

Given that WIAT-4 testing took place across two school years, this indicates that reading skill growth was sustained over the summer months.

 

 


Contact us to speak with a Groves Family Navigator.

They’re well-versed in the curriculum, instruction, and extracurricular activities offered at Groves Academy and services at Groves Learning Center. They’re also knowledgeable about learning disabilities and attention and executive function disorders. They can provide guidance regarding our school, diagnostic evaluations, adhd & executive functioning coaching, tutoring, speech-language services, and other resources.

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Beck Ellingson | School Psychologist
Beck earned her MA and Ph.D. degrees in School Psychology at the University of Minnesota. Prior to that, Beck attended Bethel University and earned a BA in Psychology, with minors in math and music. Beck started her career as a school psychologist with Minneapolis Public Schools before joining the team at Groves in 2022. Beck is committed to being a calming, non-judgmental presence in school settings. She has expertise in the use of assessment in a hypothesis testing framework, reliability and validity of the interpretation and use of assessments, and identifying alternative forms of assessment. Beck finds joy in observing what children are able to do and the learning that takes place during the small moments of the school day.
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