Determining an instructional level for early writing skills

The instructional level is helpful when identifying an intervention for math or reading, but researchers have yet to investigate whether the instructionallevel concept can be applied to early writing. The purpose of this study was to replicate and extend previous research by examining technical features of potential instructional-level criteria for writing. Weekly writing performance was assessed with 85 first-graders over 12 weeks using Picture-Word and Sentence Copying prompts. Data from the students with the highest slopes were used to derive instructional level criteria. Several scoring procedures across Picture-Word and Sentence Copying prompts produced reliable alternate-form correlations and statistically significant relationships with a standardized writing assessment. Determining an instructional level in writing appears feasible; however, further research is needed to examine the instructional utility of this approach.