How to Understand the DIBELS Assessment

DIBELS stands for Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills

The DIBELS assessment measures basic early literacy skills. Many schools throughout the U.S. use the DIBELS assessment to measure the reading success of their students; and identify those who need more help and attention. DIBELS is given three times a year to students in kindergarten through sixth grade: once in the fall, once in the winter and once in the spring. The fall test is a beginning measurement and students are expected to improve with each assessment.

Instructions

1. Recognize what DIBELS assesses. There are five categories that DIBELS measures: phonological awareness, alphabetic principle, accuracy and fluency in grade-level reading, comprehension and vocabulary and oral language. Measuring these categories together can predict a child's future reading success.

2. Appreciate DIBELS as an indicator. DIBELS is not a comprehensive assessment. Instead, it focuses on assessing reading skills that can be indicators of future success or failure of a student's long-term goal of phonemic awareness and the ability to segment words.

3. Identify at-risk students with DIBELS Benchmark. DIBELS scores student assessments based on the minimum skills the child should have at their current grade level in order to be considered on track for reading success. Any students that scores below this minimum are not considered on track and would benefit from additional instructional support. Progress can then be monitored through future DIBELS assessments.

References

• DIBELS: DIBELS
• DIBELS: Which Skills Do the DIBELS Measures Assess?
• DIBELS: DIBELS as Indicators