Key Considerations in Reading Fluency Assessments for English Language Learners (Ells): A Scoping Review

Reading fluency (RF) assessments are essential tools for evaluating students’ academic progress and readiness for advanced reading skills. However, the accuracy of RF measures in English Language Learners (ELLs) coming from diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds has not been systematically examined. This scoping review aimed to synthesize research on RF in ELLs and evaluate current assessment tools. 560 articles were identified, and 17 studies were included after database and citation searches. Findings revealed that while difficulty level is often considered in RF assessments for ELLs, the relevance of passages and student engagement are frequently overlooked. Besides language proficiency and linguistic distance between students’ first and second languages, background knowledge may contribute to RF differences between ELLs and native English speakers. Although existing RF measures address essential skills, results for ELLs should be interpreted cautiously when using published test norms. This review identified potential factors affecting the validity of RF assessments in ELLs and highlighted the need for further investigation.