OxEd literacy assessment & intervention

What is LanguageScreen?

LanguageScreen is an easy-to-use, scientifically proven app that accurately assesses oral language skills of every student in the class, identifying students aged 3 to 11 years old who may require intervention or additional support. It can be administered by teachers, teacher aides or any adult. The LanguageScreen assessment consists of:

• a test less than 10 minutes in duration
• instant assessment results in detailed reports
• colourful and fun graphics
• Australian versioned audio

How does LanguageScreen work?

There are three age-based versions of the LanguageScreen assessment to ensure the appropriate level is delivered to every student. When starting an assessment, the app will automatically run the appropriate version from the following, based on the age of the student being assessed:

• 3 years to 4.5 years
• 4.5 to 8 years
• 9 to 11 years

With the age-appropriate assessment selected, the app assesses four key areas of language:

• expressive vocabulary
• listening comprehension
• receptive vocabulary
• sentence repetition

While the app can be used from a smartphone or tablet, it is recommended for use with a tablet. Results can be instantly viewed in the school’s OxEd account.

When should schools assess with LanguageScreen?

LanguageScreen is an excellent tool to track changes in students’ oral language skills over time. For the greatest impact, we recommend that schools assess with LanguageScreen at the start of the year in Term 1 and then again in Term 4. LanguageScreen will provide accurate progress data on the effectiveness of classroom learning or intervention to inform reporting.

What is ReadingScreen?

ReadingScreen is a quick and easy-to-use app that accurately assesses word and nonword reading, identifying students aged 4.5 to 12 years old who may require intervention and extra support to develop decoding skills. ReadingScreen can be administered by teachers, teacher aides or any adult. The ReadingScreen assessment consists of:

• a test 2 to 10 minutes in duration
• instant assessment results in detailed reports
• Australian versioned audio and pronunciation guide

How does ReadingScreen work?

The ReadingScreen assessment combines the scores from two tests: Words (single word recognition) and Nonwords (decoding) to give an estimate of a student’s overall reading ability. The word reading test consists of:

• up to 60 common words of increasing difficulty
• each word must be spoken correctly by the student to score
• the test ends after four consecutive incorrect answers

The nonword reading test consist of:

• up to 34 nonwords of increasing difficulty to test decoding skills
• each word must be spoken correctly by the student to score
• guidance on acceptable pronunciation for the facilitator
• the test ends after four consecutive incorrect answers.

While the app can be used from a smartphone or tablet, it is recommended for use with a tablet. Results can be instantly viewed in the school’s OxEd account.

When should schools assess with ReadingScreen?

ReadingScreen is an excellent tool to measure the reading progress of students over time. For the greatest impact, we recommend that schools assess with ReadingScreen in Term 1 and then again in Term 4, providing accurate progress data to inform reporting and reflect on the effectiveness of classroom learning or intervention. ReadingScreen is a useful tool to check students’ reading skills ahead of the Year 1 phonics screening check and to assess the reading abilities of students joining mid-year of school.

What is the Simple View of Reading?

The Simple View of Reading is a well-established model for determining the best way to support a student who is struggling to read using word recognition or decoding and language comprehension. This model closely aligns with the science of reading, which emphasises evidence-based practices such as explicitly teaching phonological awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension.

How does the Simple View of Reading Report work?

When a school assesses students with both the LanguageScreen and ReadingScreen apps, every student’s results are automatically plotted on a graph representing the Simple View of Reading. The graph immediately highlights whether students may have problems with decoding, comprehension or both, ensuring educators can make data-informed decisions on the additional support students may need.

To learn more about the assessments and to request a quote for your school, please complete the form below.

Schools seeking oral language intervention are encouraged to complement the Assessment Bundle with the NELI and NELI Whole Class programs.

What is the Nuffield Early Language Intervention program?

The Nuffield Early Language Intervention (NELI) Program is a research-backed 20-week oral language intervention program which has been proven to improve students’ oral language and early literacy skills. It is delivered by teachers or teacher aides to students in Foundation to Year 2 who have been identified as having oral language difficulties after LanguageScreen testing. The program consists of:

• three 30-minute group sessions per week (suitable for three to six students)
• two 15-minute individual sessions per week

Each NELI Kit contains:

• two Teaching Handbooks (Part 1 and Part 2) filled with fully scripted and resourced lessons to make intervention delivery as easy as possible
• topics aligned to the Australian and New Zealand curricula covering: My Body, Things We Wear, People Who Help Us, Growing, Journey and Time
• colourful flashcards to support key vocabulary and story cards for narrative activities
• Ted, the cute puppet to aid teaching by engaging students

How does NELI work?

NELI is delivered by the teacher or teacher aide to individuals and groups of three to six students.

Group sessions include:

• a three-minute introduction
• a five-minute reinforcement of learnings
• a five-minute vocabulary learning section
• a 10-minute narrative learning section
• a two-minute plenary activity

Individual sessions include:

• a two-minute introduction
• a five-minute vocabulary learning section
• a five-minute narrative learning section
• a three-minute plenary activity

When should schools implement NELI?

Schools should ideally start implementing NELI at the start of Term 2, after using LanguageScreen to identify students in need of intervention in Term 1 and following completion of NELI Training by those who will be delivering the intervention program. This means that schools will have completed NELI by the end of Term 3, but it is also possible to continue the 20-week program into Term 4. Following intervention, schools are recommended to assess students’ progress by repeating the LanguageScreen assessment.

What is the NELI Training?

The NELI program is supported by CPD-certified online training courses which deepen teachers' and teacher aides' understanding of the importance of oral language and equip them with the essential skills and knowledge to deliver the NELI program effectively. The NELI training courses are available on-demand via FutureLearn and must be completed by all teachers or teacher aides who will be implementing the NELI program. The courses cover:

• the importance of oral language and how NELI supports students’ development
• the practicalities of implementing NELI
• the structure and content of letter sounds and phonological awareness.

How does the NELI Training work?

The NELI Training consists of three courses completed before NELI teaching starts. On completion, you will become a fully trained NELI practitioner. The NELI courses are:

• Course 1: Language Fundamentals for NELI practitioners and classroom teachers (five hours)
• Course 2: Delivering the Nuffield Early Language Intervention (five hours)
• Course 3: Delivering Part 2 of the Nuffield Early Language Intervention (two hours)

Trained educators implementing NELI also have access to ongoing support including:

• a learning community to share and reflect on experiences of delivering NELI
• access to additional resources and support team guidance via the Delivery Support Hub
• a NELI refresher course
• a program of webinars

Schools using NELI must use LanguageScreen to establish a benchmark for language skills before using the program. Every educator delivering NELI must complete the NELI training to support effective delivery of the program.

It is recommended that schools purchase one NELI kit for each teacher who will be implementing the program.

To learn more about NELI and NELI training, and to request a quote for your school, please complete the form below.

What is the Nuffield Early Language Intervention Whole Class program?

The Nuffield Early Language Intervention (NELI) Whole Class program has been developed as a companion to the NELI program for students in Foundation to Year 2. It supports classroom teachers to deliver oral language enrichment to the entire class, as well as further boosting the skills of those students participating in NELI. The program consists of three 20 to 30-minute sessions per week over 20 weeks. NELI Whole Class contains:

• a printed Teaching Handbook with activity sheets
• six sets of digital slides for the same six topics as NELI
• digital narrative sequencing cards
• 11 songs in mp3 format
• six audio stories in mp3 format

How does NELI Whole Class work?

NELI Whole Class was developed directly as a result of the feedback from schools using NELI as many educators wanted a way of bringing NELI activities into the wider classroom. NELI Whole Class is delivered by the classroom teacher to the entire class and provides intervention students with additional opportunities to consolidate their knowledge and skills. The sessions follow a similar structure to NELI and include:

• a three-minute introduction
• a 15-minute learning section on narrative or vocabulary
• a two-minute plenary activity

When should schools implement NELI Whole Class?

Schools should start implementing NELI Whole Class ideally at the start of Term 2 together with NELI, after using LanguageScreen in Term 1 and completing the NELI Whole Class Training. Schools should have completed NELI Whole Class and NELI by the end of Term 3, but it is possible to continue the 20-week program into Term 4. Following intervention and whole class teaching, schools are recommended to assess students’ progress and results by repeating the LanguageScreen assessment in Term 4.

What is the NELI Whole Class Training?

The NELI Whole Class program is supported by CPD-certified online training courses which equip classroom teachers with the essential skills and knowledge to deliver the NELI Whole Class program effectively. The NELI Whole Class Training courses are available on-demand via FutureLearn and must be completed by all teachers implementing the NELI Whole Class program. The courses cover:

• the importance of oral language and how NELI Whole Class supports students’ development
• the practicalities of implementing NELI Whole Class.

How does the NELI Whole Class Training work?

The NELI Whole Class Training consists of two courses which are completed before NELI Whole Class teaching commences. On completion, you will become a fully-trained NELI Whole Class practitioner. The courses are:

• Course 1: Language Fundamentals (five hours)
• Course 2: Delivering NELI Whole Class (five hours)

Trained educators implementing NELI Whole Class will also have access to ongoing support including:

• a learning community to share and reflect on experiences of delivering NELI Whole Class
• access to additional resources and support team guidance via the Delivery Support Hub
• a program of webinars

Schools using NELI Whole Class must use LanguageScreen to establish a benchmark for language skills before using the program.  Every educator delivering NELI Whole Class must complete the NELI Whole Class training to support effective delivery of the program. NELI Whole Class must be used in tandem with NELI but is delivered by classroom teachers while NELI can be delivered by teachers or teacher aides.

It is recommended that schools purchase one NELI Whole Class kit for each teacher who will be implementing the program.

To learn more about NELI Whole Class and request a quote for your school, please complete the form below.

Schools using OxEd resources together can implement them by:

• Step 1: Assess with LanguageScreen and ReadingScreen to measure the language and reading skills of all students and identify those who would benefit from targeted language intervention. Begin NELI and NELI Whole Class Training. 
• Step 2: Begin to deliver weekly NELI group and individual sessions for those students who require targeted intervention. Alongside these targeted sessions, schools also deliver NELI Whole Class. As NELI runs over a 20 week cycle you can start intervention at any time of the year and continue it into the following year if need be.
• Step 3: Reassess all students at the end of the year to measure progress.

OxEd resources are based on the Science of Learning research and can be used to support schools with oral language assessment and intervention at Tier 1 and Tier 2 of the Multi-Tiered System of Support (MTSS) framework.

• Tier 3: Specialist support 
• Tier 2: LanguageScreen and Nuffield Early Language Intervention (NELI) Program
• Tier 1: LanguageScreen and NELI Whole Class Program

Proven to improve students’ educational outcomes in independent evaluations, these resources help schools follow best-practice intervention practices, further supporting the aims of the MTSS framework.