What is a Lexile Level?
Lexile level is a method used by academic institutions to measure a student’s reading ability. It is also called Lexile measure. Lexile measure stemmed from Lexile Framework which was developed by MetaMetrics©, an educational assessment and research team, funded originally by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.
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Lexile level is an indispensable tool which teachers, parents, tutors, students, educators can use in two unique ways to measure how difficult a text is or a student’s reading ability is.
What is a Lexile Score?
A Lexile Score is a student’s Lexile measure from taking a school-administered SRI (Scholastic Reading Inventory) test or by taking a standardized reading test.
The school-administered SRI (Scholastic Reading Inventory) test is specifically designed to measure Lexile or reading ability, while the standardized reading test converts the reader’s results to a Lexile measure
If for instance a student gets a 660L then he or she is a 660 level Lexile reader. 600L is the measure of his or her readability level. This grading though, is never called a score, so as to encourage the student’s achievement.
Lexile Level Chart or Lexile Score Chart
Below is a Lexile level chart or Lexile level score chat from scholarstic.com. You can use the chart below to compare Lexile Levels with other leveled reading systems.
Lexile Framework
Lexile Framework for Reading is an educational tool that uses a measure called a Lexile to match readers with books, articles and other leveled reading resources. Readers and books are assigned a score on the Lexile scale, in which lower scores reflect easier readability for books and lower reading ability for readers. The Lexile framework uses quantitative methods, based on individual words and sentence lengths, rather than qualitative analysis of content to produce scores.
How to Identify a Student’s Lexile Level and a Book’s Lexile Level
Lexile level score is shown as a number with an “L” after it. e.g. 600L = 600 Lexile. The higher the Lexile measure, the higher the student’s reading level. The reader’s Lexile Framework works in intervals of five with 5L being the lowest. The highest possible measure is 2000L. Anything below 5L is assessed as a BR or Beginning Reader.
On the other hand, a book’s Lexile measure is analyzed by MetaMetrics©. After a text is assessed, it is given a measure like that of a student’s readability level, 600L for example. In this measure, MetaMetrics© is assessing the text’s difficulty level. A book or magazine at a 500L has a Lexile Level of 500. MetaMetrics© predicts and assesses how difficult a text will be for a reader to comprehend. The two main criteria it tests are word frequency and sentence strength. A text’s Lexile Framework works in increments of 10 with 10L being the lowest. Measures below 10L are classified as BR or Beginning Reader.
It is encouraged that both reader and text match their assessed Lexile measures. For example matching a book with a 770L and a reader assessed at a Lexile level of 770.
You can shop recommended Lexile Level books by grade at The Scholastic Store
