Oral Reading Fluency (WCPM): how to measure IEP goals

When to use it

• Reading fluency goals on passages at the student's instructional level
• Progress monitoring for decoding growth once the student reads connected text
• Not for comprehension, sight word lists, or math facts, which use other measures

How to record it

1. Choose an unpracticed passage at the goal's level from a set of equal-difficulty passages.
2. Give the standard directions and time the student reading aloud for one minute.
3. Mark errors such as skipped, misread, or wrong words; self-corrections within a few seconds count as correct.
4. Subtract errors from words attempted to get WCPM.
5. Record WCPM and accuracy, and note the passage level.

Writing the criterion and mastery rule

• Write the criterion as "at a rate of at least N words correct per minute".
• Name the passage level and that passages are unpracticed.
• Set the target from the median of three baseline probes and a realistic weekly growth rate.
• Use a mastery rule such as "in 3 of 4 consecutive weekly probes".

Common mistakes

• Using passages the student has practiced, which overstates growth.
• Changing the passage level often, so scores do not compare.
• Using WCPM alone when accuracy is still low; record accuracy too.
• Writing a fluency goal as percent accuracy.