Classification in context: An alternative approach to identifying early reading disability.

This study evaluated an alternative method of identifying early reading difficulty. L. S. Fuchs and D. Fuchs (1998) proposed that academic problems could be indexed by a dual discrepancy on level and slope of performance, relative to classmates, on curriculum-based measurement tasks. From a sample of 694 1st- and 2nd-grade children, we identified 47 children as dually discrepant in reading and compared them with 17 children identified as IQ-reading achievement discrepant and 28 children identified as low achieving. The dually discrepant children were younger and more impaired on phonological processes and teacher ratings of academic competence and social behaviors. This group also reflected the gender and racial distributions of the population. Single-point measures of fluency and phonological awareness were not sensitive indicators of reading problems, suggesting that ongoing assessment and evaluation may be necessary for valid identification.