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LexilesA Way to
Determine Text
Complexity
How do we know if the reading selections
we are offering are challenging our
students?
LexilesA rating score called a Lexile has been
created by a company named MetaMetrics. MetaMetrics has partnered with the Common Core movement as a
way to ensure that our students are being challenged by the reading materials we give to them in the
classroom.
In order for us to meet the criteria of the CCSS, we must give students regular access to challenging texts. Just like
anything else in life, reading growth only comes through being challenged.
Three Research Findings from MetaMetrics
• The text complexity of K-12 textbooks has become increasingly "easier" over the
last 50 years. The Common Core Standards quote research showing steep declines in
average sentence length and vocabulary level in reading textbooks.
• The text demands of college and careers have remained consistent or increased
over the same time period. College students are expected to read complex text with greater independence than high school
students.
• There is a significant gap between students' reading abilities and the text
demands of their postsecondary pursuits.
Lexile scores will determine:
• The reading level of where our students
are/should be functioning
• The reading complexity of the texts we are using
Moving away from grade level scores to Lexile scores…
Text Complexity Grade Band
in the Standards
Old Lexile Ranges
Lexile Ranges
Aligned to Common
Core expectation
sK-1 N/A N/A2-3 450 - 725 450 - 7904-5 645 – 845 770 - 9806-8 860 – 1010 955 - 1155
9-10 960 – 1115 1080 - 130511-CCR
(College and Career Readiness)
1070 – 1220 1215 - 1355
Lexile Challenge Level
Less Challeng
ing Lexile
“Average”
Lexile
More Challeng
ing Lexile
Grade 6 >700 700-975 975-1220
Grade 7 >780 780-10401040-1270
Grade 8 >830 830-10901090-1330
Grade Level Lexile RangesAccording to the “Find a Book” section on
lexile.com…
Quoted from MetaMetrics“Today’s students take many
different types of assessments and receive many different
scores. These scores provide important measures of student
proficiency in content areas, but they are often static. The data
can’t be used to inform instruction or to help educators and parents select appropriate
reading materials based on each child’s ability.
The Lexile Framework for Reading changes that. When an assessment is linked with the Lexile Framework, students’ test scores immediately
become actionable. A Lexile measure is the most widely adopted
reading metric, measuring both reader ability and text difficulty on the same scale. Lexile measures
are powerful tools for linking assessment with instruction across the curriculum, at home, and in the library, by taking the guesswork out of selecting materials that can help to improve student reading ability.”
Rationale for us as teachers across the curriculum
• The annual exams our students will be taking will offer reading
passages that are within the challenging range for our students.
• Since we do not yet know how we as teachers will all be assessed by APPR, using Lexile measures across
all subject areas when choosing reading materials will increase our students’ reading skills and better prepare them for success on those
exams…and our success as professionals.
A disclaimer…There are some limitations to Lexiles to be
noted. “A Lexile text measure is based on two strong predictors of how difficult a text is to
comprehend: word frequency and sentence length. Many other factors affect the relationship between a reader and a book, including its content, the age and interests of the reader, and the design of the actual book.
The Lexile text measure is a good starting point in the book-selection process, with these
other factors then being considered.” A Lexile measure does not take into account such items as vocabulary, thematic ideas,
difficulties of concepts found in the passage, etc.
A note about the CCSS movement:
In terms of non-fiction informational reading, textbooks are not considered
to be “challenging” due to the fact that textbooks do not contain real-
world writing. Reading from genuine texts is where the Common Core
wants us to spend our time…not in the interpretation of facts from a textbook.
The Common Core movement contends that career and college-ready reading comes from primary
sources.
A word from Mrs. Borgeest…
Library and LexilesWhat your Library Media Specialist can do for you:
Databases and LexilesLexiles provided Primary Sources:
American History Online Evaluating Sources Works Cited – Noodletools
Three Tasks to Complete:Under the Lexile Tools tab…
1. Try out the Find a Book feature for the grade level you teach to get a sense of what books
they suggest for that Lexile range.
2. Click on Lexile Analyzer and register an account. Then, examine the Lexile of your
textbook. Type in some text from the textbook, save it as a PLAIN TEXT file, and
upload it to get a Lexile score.
3. Choose a non-fiction informational article (from databases, yahoo news, etc.) you can use in your current unit between now and
Christmas vacation as an ancillary resource within your unit. Do a Lexile analysis of it to
determine the reading level.
