4 Progress Monitoring Myths: Myth-Busting Progress Monitoring for Reading Teachers

Have you heard these common myths about progress monitoring: it is too time consuming, only use one data point to monitor student progress and only progress monitor the students below grade level? A lot of times, progress monitoring gets overlooked as another laborious task for teachers to complete. Well, I am here to set the record straight and BUST these myths. If implemented consistently, progress monitoring can provide insightful data that will allow you to gauge student growth or identify areas of concern. Continue reading to find out how you can put an effective plan in place to monitor student growth.

Myth #1

Progress monitoring is time consuming.

Fact

Progress monitoring does take time but if you have a plan in place, you can stress less. Try to set aside time to monitor your students during literacy centers. Instead of seeing a small group take one week and meet with 3-5 students per day during small group instruction time to administer your progress monitoring assessments. Keep in mind, when you progress monitor the assessments should be more of a quick check versus a full summative assessment. Select appropriate data points that will help to streamline your process and target your instruction. With the right tools and techniques progress monitoring can be efficient and insightful.

Myth #2

Progress monitoring is only administered by the district.

Fact

Yes, some districts hire interventionists to specifically handle interventions and monitor student performance. However, teachers must progress monitor their OWN students. This can be a touchy topic BUT it needs to be discussed. Teachers if your district has assigned an interventionist to help with interventions DO NOT rely on the interventionist to administer interventions to your students. Nothing against reading interventionists, I held that position years ago, just keep in mind that YOU must be aware of your students' areas of concern and target instruction accordingly.

A helpful hint is to schedule your classroom literacy centers during intervention time.  When your students return from working with the interventionist: they should go directly to a literacy center to independently review their deficit skills OR work with you in a small group on the targeted skills/standards for a double dose of intervention. REMEMBER, the end of the year assessments (EOY) are attached to YOUR name and you want to ensure that you are consistently involved in the intervention process. 

Myth #3

I only need to monitor progress 3 times per year.

Fact

Depending on your district’s intervention framework, most schools usually monitor student progress every 2-4 or 6-8 weeks. Progress monitoring will help inform your data and determine if the interventions are working. As a classroom teacher, please follow your district’s plan for progress monitoring; however, if your school does not implement the intervention framework then you MUST monitor your students’ progress at least once a month between each summative assessment. For instance, if your first benchmark assessment is scheduled for September and the second one in December, then you want to be sure you are monitoring progress at least once a month to ensure the interventions are working.

Progress monitoring allows you to adjust instructional strategies based on real-time student performance. You don’t want to solely focus on benchmark assessments that occur infrequently throughout the year. It is important to have multiple data points rather than relying on a single assessment or benchmark.

Myth #4

Only progress monitor students below grade level.

Fact

ALL student performance NEEDS to be monitored to ensure that they are on track to meet adequate yearly progress (AYP). In addition, consistent progress monitoring is your roadmap to creating a plan that truly addresses your students’ needs. I know a lot of focus is put on the students performing below grade level but let’s not forget about our students who are performing on or above grade level. We want to make sure they continue to stay at or above their current level and continue to meet with them during small group instruction time. 

There you have it, progress monitoring myths were just BUSTED! Monitoring student performance provides continuous insights allowing teachers to gauge student growth or identify areas of concern promptly. If you have a range of data points it can offer a more holistic view of student progress, strengths, and areas of concern. Be sure to Join my email list to gain access to exclusive tips, insights and strategies to enhance your progress monitoring practice.

Happy progress monitoring,

Shannon