Completing the Triangle of Reading Fluency Assessment: Accuracy, Speed, and Prosody

In response to a mismatch between the definition and assessment practices of reading fluency, this chapter aims to draw L2 educators’ and researchers’ attention to a comprehensive approach to reading fluency assessment derived from a complete conceptualization of the construct. The traditional view of reading fluency focuses on accurate decoding of a text at a sufficient rate. In line with this view, reading fluency is commonly assessed by having students read aloud a given text for one minute and recording their words correct per minute (WCPM), which measures accuracy and speed. However, reading fluency has evolved into a more multifaceted concept which now includes reading speed, accuracy, and prosody as its components. Despite the recognition of reading prosody as another critical aspect of reading fluency, prosody is often neglected in assessment, resulting in a discrepancy between the depiction of reading fluency and its assessment. This discrepancy in turn leads to a series of issues such as potentially reducing the construct of reading fluency and placing an overemphasis on reading accuracy and speed, hindering informed assessment and instruction. It also becomes particularly problematic in L2 contexts where students may decode without comprehending what is read. In support of incorporating prosody into reading fluency assessment, the chapter draws upon the ongoing discussions surrounding reading fluency to address the negative consequences of using WCPM alone as a reading fluency measure and presents existing rating scales for measuring prosody.