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Email ShareThis  What Do Reading Comprehension Tests Mainly
Measure? Knowledge  By E. D. Hirsch, Jr.  I want to outline some
facts about reading comprehension tests that are not widely
known, yet need to be familiar to any parent, teacher, or
citizen who is interested in educational improvement. Let's
begin by considering the fourth-grade guidelines for teaching
and testing reading comprehension, as published by two
representative states (all states issue these kinds of
guidelines).  New York   • interpret and analyze information
from textbooks and nonfiction books for young adults, as well as
reference materials, audio and media presentations, oral
interviews, graphs, charts, diagrams, and electronic databases
intended for a general audience;  • compare and synthesize
information from different sources;  • use a wide variety of
strategies for selecting, organizing, and categorizing
information;  • distinguish between relevant and irrelevant
informat