2009 CELLA FUNCTIONAL LEVEL TESTING
DECISION-MAKING RUBRIC

A student in Grades K-12 should take LEVEL A Reading and Writing IF that student:

A student in Grades 3-12 should take LEVEL B Reading and Writing IF that student:

A student in Grades 6-12 should take LEVEL C Reading and Writing IF that student:

A student in Grades 9-12 should take LEVEL D Reading and Writing IF that student:

English

Reading

Vocabulary*

has an extremely limited Reading vocabulary in English

recognizes only high frequency words when reading

recognizes most high frequency words when reading but possesses a vocabulary that is well below high school level

has gaps in vocabulary but is largely able to use context strategies to guess meanings of new words

English

Reading

Ability

struggles to decode words or simple sentences

can usually decode words and simple sentences but has difficulty reading and comprehending texts that contain complex sentences

is an independent reader of simple paragraph-level texts but struggles to read and comprehend across paragraphs

is able to read and comprehend most texts written at an 8th-grade level but may have difficulty with some sections of the text

English

Writing

Ability

is just developing the ability to write simple sentences

can write simple sentences but struggles to write complex sentences or paragraphs

can write multiple related sentences, but the writing lacks coherence and organization

can write paragraphs with topic sentences and supporting details although they may be lacking in coherence or organization

Knowledge of English

Grammar

demonstrates little understanding of how to apply even the most common rules of grammar

demonstrates some understanding of only the most common rules of grammar; mistakes in writing often impede communication

demonstrates understanding of the most common rules of grammar; mistakes in writing generally do not impede communication

Total Number of Check Marks