Achieve3000 Literacy - Understanding and Adjusting Lexiles

Learn more about Lexile levels and how they're used within Achieve3000 Literacy.

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What is the Lexile Framework for Reading?

The Lexile Framework for Reading is a scientific approach to reading and text measurement that has become the most widely adopted reading measure in use today. Developed by MetaMetrics, beginning with a grant from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development in 1984, Lexile measures are the result of more than 40 years of ongoing research.

The Lexile Framework for Reading is unique because it measures text difficulty and reader ability on the same scale. This makes for an exceptionally effective matching of readers to appropriate texts. The Lexile Framework has been aligned to many national and state norm-referenced assessments, including the NWEA MAP Growth Assessment, the PSAT/SAT, ACT, and various state assessments. In 2003, the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) chose the Lexile Framework as its own measure of text difficulty. For more information, visit The Lexile & Quantile Hub site.

Lexile measures are based on the relationship between two well-established predictors of how difficult a text is to comprehend: semantic difficulty and syntactic complexity. In the Lexile system, semantic difficulty is measured using the mean log word frequency, which is the logarithm of the number of times a word from the text appears in each five-million words of a corpus of nearly 600-million words. Syntactic difficulty is a measure of the length of the sentences in a passage. Long sentences are likely to contain more clauses and therefore communicate not only more information and ideas, but also an interrelationship between them. Researchers also speculate that longer sentences require the reader to retain more information in short-term memory. The Lexile equation takes into account both the measurement of word frequency and sentence length, resulting in a measure of reading difficulty expressed as a Lexile. For more information, visit the MetaMetrics® website.

Why did Achieve3000 Literacy choose the Lexile Framework for Reading?

Achieve3000 Literacy chose to use the Lexile Framework after an intensive study of many readability measures. A key advantage to using the Lexile scales, as opposed to other readability measures, is that the Lexile Framework evaluates both text difficulty and reader ability using the same scale. This means the ability to comprehend, and the material being read are evaluated using the same criteria, lending it greater effectiveness in terms of matching readers with appropriate texts. Since the Lexile Framework has been extensively validated by research— including a 15-year study funded by the National Institute of Health—Achieve3000 Literacy and the education community are confident in its superior ability to match readers to text.

How does Achieve3000 use students’ Lexile levels?

Achieve3000 Literacy uses Lexile levels to scientifically match students to an appropriately leveled passage. Students receive a Lexile measure initially from the LevelSet Pre-test assessment. From that point on, their Lexile levels are adjusted by the system on the 1st of each month as they work through the program.

In much the same way as Achieve3000 Literacy measures each student’s Lexile level, each reading passage is assigned a discrete Lexile measure, thereby placing students and text on the same Lexile scale.

Achieve3000 Literacy then uses this information to match readers to text. When a student logs in, the system automatically finds the content that most closely matches the student’s Lexile level. Students read about the same topics as their classmates, but the difficulty level of the passage is tailored to their individual Lexile levels. For example, in a 6th grade class, Frances has a Lexile level of 960L, while her classmate has a Lexile level of 770L. Their reading selections will be about the same grade- appropriate topic, but the level of the passage presented will be at different Lexile levels. Both students read a “tailor-made” article.

This method leads to an expected 75% comprehension rate—the content is not too difficult to be frustrating, but difficult enough to be challenging and to encourage reading progress. We encourage you to monitor student performance to ensure that students are scoring 75% and higher on activities.

How are Lexile levels reviewed and updated throughout the school year?

Student Lexile levels are reviewed by the system at the end of each month. Students needs to complete at least four sets of multiple-choice questions in the Respond step of lessons since the last time their Lexile was updated. This provides the system has enough information to evaluate student’s Lexile level to ensure students are properly placed. The system examines students’ responses to these multiple-choice questions and combines that with information it already knows about the student to yield an updated Lexile score. Sometimes the Lexile score stays the same, suggesting the student is properly placed. An increase in Lexile suggests the student has gained reading skills. This might result in more difficult content being delivered to the student to match the progressing reading level.

Why wasn't the student Lexile level not adjusted?

On occasion, it may be difficult to understand why the system adjusted some students and not others. If your student did not receive an automatic Lexile adjustment, it's possible that they did not meet the monthly adjustment requirements. Each month, the system evaluates students' performance on multiple-choice activities to determine if they are eligible for more rigorous content. This calculation is done on the last day of each month and teachers are notified of any Lexile changes in their notifications. There are a couple of reasons why a student's Lexile score may not change each month.

Students must complete a minimum of four valid multiple-choice activities during Supervised Student Work Time in order for the Bayesian algorithm to have enough data to review their scores.

Please know that completion of four or more activities does not guarantee that the Lexile will change - only that the score will be reviewed to determine if any change is needed. Since reading ability does not progress linearly, there will be some months where students’ Lexiles do not change (or even decrease).

Students that consistently score at or below 75% on activities may not be ready for more rigorous text. This is normal, especially for older students. Just have them do their best work and keep completing activity questions! Although the formula primarily relies on activity performance, other factors are considered as well. These include the student’s particular Lexile level, the difficulty of the passage, and the rate of growth of students at that Lexile level nationally.

How does the system combine Respond step performance and past information about the student to arrive at an updated Lexile level?

The formula used to update student Lexile levels in between LevelSet assessments is known as a Bayesian Algorithm. Bayesian methodology is a statistical approach for controlling the level of uncertainty in predicting a student’s score by incorporating the student’s prior scores into an adjustment to the current score. The more confident we are about the prior information, the lower the uncertainty and the smaller is the standard deviation of the prior information (Yen and Fitzpatrick, 2006). The result is that the adjusted score is a more accurate measure of the student’s “true” ability level. Because it is a complex algorithm that relies on statistical probabilities, it may be difficult to understand why the system makes adjustments for some students and not others. As a general rule of thumb, students need to score routinely above 75% on the Lexile-level activities to increase their Lexile level in any given month.

Since the activities connected to lessons are only available down to a Lexile-level of 100L to 150L, Emerging Readers will often be matched to lessons that are above their reading ability. As such, Emerging Readers may experience an increase in their Lexile measure even if they routinely score below 75% on the activities assigned to them because the monthly auto-adjustments accounts not only for their performance on the activities, but also that the activities are above their reading level.

When I look at the Respond report, one of my students has a superscript number next to an activity score. What does this mean?

Achieve3000 Literacy informs teachers when sets of multiple-choice questions are completed in one of three potentially invalid ways: too fast, too slow, or with a patterned response (e.g., all A’s). Sets for which students answer less than 75% correct on the items and are completed in either less than two minutes, more than 13 minutes, or with a patterned response will result in an alert. Students assigned to Support and/or Language Scaffolds receive double time (26 minutes) before a set of multiple-choice questions is considered invalid. Any set identified as potentially invalid will not count toward the monthly review of students’ Lexiles. You should have a follow-up conversation with students after seeing an alert to ensure best efforts on the multiple-choice questions.

How long will I have each month to review Lexile levels that are suggested to decline and decide how to handle them?

You have one week to review Lexile levels that are suggested to decline. If you do not review and act on levels that are suggested to decline, the student’s Lexile will remain the same as the previous month.

Additionally, there will be a superscript next to the student’s Lexile on the How Has Lexile Reading Measure Performance Changed Over Time? report and the student’s Lexile will not be eligible for a Lexile adjustment for four weeks and the completion of eight sets of multiple-choice questions from the Respond step.

Reference
Yen, W.M. & Fitzpatrick, A.R. (2006). “Item Response Theory.” In R.L. Brennan (Ed.), Educational Measurement (Fourth Edition, pp. 111-154). Sponsored jointly by National Council on Measurement in Education and American Council on Education. Westport, CT: Praeger Publishers.

What is the Lexile Framework for Reading? The Lexile Framework for Reading is a scientific approach to reading and text measurement that has become the most widely adopted reading measure in use today. Developed by MetaMetrics, beginning with a grant from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development in 1984, Lexile measures are the result of more than 40 years of ongoing research. The Lexile Framework for Reading is unique because it measures text difficulty and reader ability on the same scale. This makes for an exceptionally effective matching of readers to appropriate texts. The Lexile Framework has been aligned to many national and state norm-referenced assessments, including the NWEA MAP Growth Assessment, the PSAT/SAT, ACT, and various state assessments. In 2003, the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) chose the Lexile Framework as its own measure of text difficulty. For more information, visit The Lexile & Quantile Hub site. Lexile measures are based on the relationship between two well-established predictors of how difficult a text is to comprehend: semantic difficulty and syntactic complexity. In the Lexile system, semantic difficulty is measured using the mean log word frequency, which is the logarithm of the number of times a word from the text appears in each five-million words of a corpus of nearly 600-million words. Syntactic difficulty is a measure of the length of the sentences in a passage. Long sentences are likely to contain more clauses and therefore communicate not only more information and ideas, but also an interrelationship between them. Researchers also speculate that longer sentences require the reader to retain more information in short-term memory. The Lexile equation takes into account both the measurement of word frequency and sentence length, resulting in a measure of reading difficulty expressed as a Lexile. For more information, visit the MetaMetrics® website. Why did Achieve3000 Literacy choose the Lexile Framework for Reading? Achieve3000 Literacy chose to use the Lexile Framework after an intensive study of many readability measures. A key advantage to using the Lexile scales, as opposed to other readability measures, is that the Lexile Framework evaluates both text difficulty and reader ability using the same scale. This means the ability to comprehend, and the material being read are evaluated using the same criteria, lending it greater effectiveness in terms of matching readers with appropriate texts. Since the Lexile Framework has been extensively validated by research— including a 15-year study funded by the National Institute of Health—Achieve3000 Literacy and the education community are confident in its superior ability to match readers to text. How does Achieve3000 use students’ Lexile levels? Achieve3000 Literacy uses Lexile levels to scientifically match students to an appropriately leveled passage. Students receive a Lexile measure initially from the LevelSet Pre-test assessment. From that point on, their Lexile levels are adjusted by the system on the 1st of each month as they work through the program. In much the same way as Achieve3000 Literacy measures each student’s Lexile level, each reading passage is assigned a discrete Lexile measure, thereby placing students and text on the same Lexile scale. Achieve3000 Literacy then uses this information to match readers to text. When a student logs in, the system automatically finds the content that most closely matches the student’s Lexile level. Students read about the same topics as their classmates, but the difficulty level of the passage is tailored to their individual Lexile levels. For example, in a 6th grade class, Frances has a Lexile level of 960L, while her classmate has a Lexile level of 770L. Their reading selections will be about the same grade- appropriate topic, but the level of the passage presented will be at different Lexile levels. Both students read a “tailor-made” article. This method leads to an expected 75% comprehension rate—the content is not too difficult to be frustrating, but difficult enough to be challenging and to encourage reading progress. We encourage you to monitor student performance to ensure that students are scoring 75% and higher on activities. How are Lexile levels reviewed and updated throughout the school year? Student Lexile levels are reviewed by the system at the end of each month. Students needs to complete at least four sets of multiple-choice questions in the Respond step of lessons since the last time their Lexile was updated. This provides the system has enough information to evaluate student’s Lexile level to ensure students are properly placed. The system examines students’ responses to these multiple-choice questions and combines that with information it already knows about the student to yield an updated Lexile score. Sometimes the Lexile score stays the same, suggesting the student is properly placed. An increase in Lexile suggests the student has gained reading skills. This might result in more difficult content being delivered to the student to match the progressing reading level. Why wasn't the student Lexile level not adjusted? On occasion, it may be difficult to understand why the system adjusted some students and not others. If your student did not receive an automatic Lexile adjustment, it's possible that they did not meet the monthly adjustment requirements. Each month, the system evaluates students' performance on multiple-choice activities to determine if they are eligible for more rigorous content. This calculation is done on the last day of each month and teachers are notified of any Lexile changes in their notifications. There are a couple of reasons why a student's Lexile score may not change each month. Students must complete a minimum of four valid multiple-choice activities during Supervised Student Work Time in order for the Bayesian algorithm to have enough data to review their scores. Please know that completion of four or more activities does not guarantee that the Lexile will change - only that the score will be reviewed to determine if any change is needed. Since reading ability does not progress linearly, there will be some months where students’ Lexiles do not change (or even decrease). Students that consistently score at or below 75% on activities may not be ready for more rigorous text. This is normal, especially for older students. Just have them do their best work and keep completing activity questions! Although the formula primarily relies on activity performance, other factors are considered as well. These include the student’s particular Lexile level, the difficulty of the passage, and the rate of growth of students at that Lexile level nationally. How does the system combine Respond step performance and past information about the student to arrive at an updated Lexile level? The formula used to update student Lexile levels in between LevelSet assessments is known as a Bayesian Algorithm. Bayesian methodology is a statistical approach for controlling the level of uncertainty in predicting a student’s score by incorporating the student’s prior scores into an adjustment to the current score. The more confident we are about the prior information, the lower the uncertainty and the smaller is the standard deviation of the prior information (Yen and Fitzpatrick, 2006). The result is that the adjusted score is a more accurate measure of the student’s “true” ability level. Because it is a complex algorithm that relies on statistical probabilities, it may be difficult to understand why the system makes adjustments for some students and not others. As a general rule of thumb, students need to score routinely above 75% on the Lexile-level activities to increase their Lexile level in any given month. Since the activities connected to lessons are only available down to a Lexile-level of 100L to 150L, Emerging Readers will often be matched to lessons that are above their reading ability. As such, Emerging Readers may experience an increase in their Lexile measure even if they routinely score below 75% on the activities assigned to them because the monthly auto-adjustments accounts not only for their performance on the activities, but also that the activities are above their reading level. When I look at the Respond report, one of my students has a superscript number next to an activity score. What does this mean? Achieve3000 Literacy informs teachers when sets of multiple-choice questions are completed in one of three potentially invalid ways: too fast, too slow, or with a patterned response (e.g., all A’s). Sets for which students answer less than 75% correct on the items and are completed in either less than two minutes, more than 13 minutes, or with a patterned response will result in an alert. Students assigned to Support and/or Language Scaffolds receive double time (26 minutes) before a set of multiple-choice questions is considered invalid. Any set identified as potentially invalid will not count toward the monthly review of students’ Lexiles. You should have a follow-up conversation with students after seeing an alert to ensure best efforts on the multiple-choice questions. How long will I have each month to review Lexile levels that are suggested to decline and decide how to handle them? You have one week to review Lexile levels that are suggested to decline. If you do not review and act on levels that are suggested to decline, the student’s Lexile will remain the same as the previous month. Additionally, there will be a superscript next to the student’s Lexile on the How Has Lexile Reading Measure Performance Changed Over Time? report and the student’s Lexile will not be eligible for a Lexile adjustment for four weeks and the completion of eight sets of multiple-choice questions from the Respond step. Reference Yen, W.M. & Fitzpatrick, A.R. (2006). “Item Response Theory.” In R.L. Brennan (Ed.), Educational Measurement (Fourth Edition, pp. 111-154). Sponsored jointly by National Council on Measurement in Education and American Council on Education. Westport, CT: Praeger Publishers.

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