In 1995, the Mico CARE Centre developed and produced the Mico Diagnostic Reading Test (MDRT), a standardized tool for assessing the reading levels of children in grades 1–6 at the primary level and struggling readers up to grade 10 at the secondary level. The test was developed to address the need for relevant content when testing students in the Caribbean. The MDRT was field tested in five Caribbean territories, in addition to Jamaica, and is used throughout the English-speaking Caribbean. A second edition of the Test was introduced to the market in 2021, MDRT-II. This new edition of the MDRT-II used contemporary research on reading development to guide the test format.
The MDRT-II has two versions, MDRT-II Form C (classroom version) and MDRT-II Form A and Form B (diagnostician version). The former is appropriate for use by reading specialists, resource room teachers or reading teachers, while the latter is designed for use in a clinical setting by diagnosticians. The Centre conducts ongoing training for teachers and other practitioners across the Caribbean region in the use of these tools. The Mico Diagnostic Reading Test 2nd Edition is a revised version of the original test and is one of the first locally developed standardized assessment tools in the region.
Designed to provide a locally based test which can identify not only the level at which the individual child is reading, this revised version of the MDRT-II will also equip examiners with more capability to assess the nature of a student’s reading abilities and need for intervention with greater precision.
The MDRT-II also features an increase in the assessment level up to Grade 10, and measures additional areas of phonemic awareness and phonics, as well as reading fluency.
The test examines student achievement in areas of reading including:
To use the test effectively, formal training is necessary. The MDRT II has two formats that are appropriate for use in different contexts. MDRT II Form A and Form B is designed to be used by diagnosticians who are evaluating children with potential exceptional deficits or strengths. In addition to the subtests on the Classroom version, Forms A and B assess phonemic awareness and fluency. Administration of Form A and Form B requires graduate coursework in assessment and an understanding of reading development.The MDRT II Classroom version (form C) can be used by teachers and other staff in schools to evaluate students’ reading performance at their grade level. The Classroom version assesses sight word knowledge, non-word decoding, reading accuracy and reading comprehension.
At Mico CARE Centre, we provide quality psycho-educational and related assessment, therapeutic and academic intervention, resources and training to support students with learning challenges.
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