Investigation of alternative administration strategies for curriculum -based measurement: Maximizing cost -effectiveness

The present study investigated the use of two alternative administration strategies for curriculum-based measurement (CBM) reading probes. This study expanded upon research by McCurdy and Shapiro (1992) that compared peer- and self-administration of CBM probes to typical teacher-administration procedures. Research has supported not only the reliability but also the positive intervention effects of peer- and self-directed assessment (Gettinger, 1985, 1995; Reid, 1996; Shapiro, 1996; Topping & Ehly, 1998). CBM implementation procedures in this study were selected to circumvent known CBM implementation barriers (Yell, Deno, & Marston, 1992) and maximize the benefits associated with peer-assisted learning and self-management strategies (Topping & Ehly, 1998; Shapiro, 1996). Results were used to answer questions regarding each strategy's (a) cost-effectiveness, (b) acceptability, and (c) ability to promote academic and self-efficacious growth. Findings supported the use of peer-administration based on comparable levels of administration accuracy, time requirements, teacher and student acceptability, student preference, oral reading fluency gains, reading comprehension gains, reading fluency rates of growth, teacher skill ratings, student attitude towards reading, and teacher perceptions of benefits compared to teacher-administration. Students spent a similar amount of time completing CBM using peer-administration as they did using teacher-administration with similar academic and self-efficacy gains. Peer-administration also has the potential to reduce time requirements to an even greater extent because it is not limited by direct teacher involvement. Based on this study, peer-administration is a viable alternative CBM administration strategy with the ability to maximize CBM's effectiveness.