A Cloze Reading activity can be used to help students construct meaning from a text and evaluate their comprehension of the text content. Delete words using a word count formula such as every fifth word (or other criteria) from a portion of the text and replace the deleted words with blanks. Students fill in the blanks with the word they think fits the meaning of the sentence. This strategy can be used with or without a word bank.
How to Use the Cloze Test (Cloze Deletion Test) to Score Readability
Using the Cloze Test Procedure to Score Material:
Wilson L. Taylor introduced the term “cloze procedure” in 1953 and thoroughly researched the value of closure tasks as predictors of reading comprehension. Basic to the procedure is the idea of closure wherein the reader must use the surrounding context to restore omitted words. Comprehension of the total unit and its available parts (including the emerging cloze write-ins) is essential to the task.
To use the Cloze Test Procedure to score material, follow this protocol:
Administration
1. Omit every 5th word, replacing it with a blank space for the student to write in the answer.
2. Instruct students to write only one word in each blank and to try to fill in every blank.
3. Guessing is encouraged.
4. Advise students that you will not count misspellings as errors.
Scoring
1. In most instances, the exact word must be restored.
2. Misspellings are counted as correct when the response is deemed correct in a meaning sense.
Sample Cloze Activity with a Word Bank (from the West Virginia Department of Education)
Read the following passage and fill in the blanks so that the passage makes sense.
As American colonists got word of the battles in Lexington, Concord, and Bunker Hill, they faced a major decision. Should they join the ________ or remain loyal to _______? Those who chose to ______ with Britain, the Loyalists, ______ not consider unfair taxes _______ regulations good reason for ______. Some remained faithful to ______ king because they were ______ who would lose their ______ as a result of ______ Revolution. Others were people ______ had not been part ______ the movement of discontent ______ turned so many Colonists ______ Britain. The Patriots were determined to battle the British to the end – until American Independence was won!
Answers
| rebels Britain stay did |
and rebellion the officeholders |
positions the who of |
that against |