A study of fourth grade students reading comprehension measures in short and long passages of an informal reading inventory

The current literature in reading reflects considerable controversy surrounding the informal reading inventory. Conflicting theories of the reading process have caused disagreements about recommended informal reading inventory procedures and evaluation criteria. The purposes of this study were to: 1. Test the use of a 70% comprehension score in short passages as the basis of determining the oral and silent instructional levels. 2. Investigate differences in comprehension performance of readers of varying proficiency in short oral and silent reading passages. 3. Compare results of oral and silent reading diagnostic methods with comprehension performance in long passages. 4. Compare students' comprehension performance in short and long passages of equivalent difficulty.