--- Do you wish you had a fast, easy, reliable way to screen students for language and literacy disorders? Your solution is here! The Student Language Scale (SLS) is a new and better way to screen students ages 6–18 years for language and literacy disorders, including dyslexia. Filled out by parents, teachers, and students, the SLS quickly uncovers how students are performing on academic tasks as compared to their same-age peers. ### The SLS helps you - screen for language/literacy disorders by gathering teachers’ and parents’ ratings of students - gather input about a struggling student’s strengths and needs from multiple sources - enhance home–school communication by gaining new insight into the student’s performance and the parent’s perspective, whether or not everyone agrees and whether or not there are concerns ### Why use the SLS? - **Expert-developed.** The SLS developers are highly respected for their test-building skills and evidence-based work in the fields of language and literacy assessment and school social work. - **Fast and easy.** The three-part SLS can be completed in just three minutes or less. Administration and scoring are simple—a pencil and paper are all you need. - **Strong sensitivity and specificity.** Sensitivity of the SLS to risk of language/literacy disorder is .92 for teachers and .85 for parents, and specificity (correct identification of typical learners) is .90 for teachers and .83 for parents. - **Perfect for use with TILLS!** Look inside the SLS! The SLS is an ideal companion to the groundbreaking TILLS™ test, which assesses students’ oral and written language skills. Screen students with the SLS, and if results indicate that a student is at risk, follow up with TILLS. - **Cost effective.** The SLS helps you screen effectively at a lower cost than comparable tools on the market. --- ### WHAT’S IN THE SLS KIT This concise manual gives you reader-friendly guidance on how to administer the SLS; a complete guide to SLS technical data; and three case examples that show how the SLS can help you make sound decisions about follow-up for students who need it. The quick and easy 12-question screener is filled out by parents, teachers, and students to show each party's perspective on how the student is performing on academic tasks as compared to their same-age peers. - One gummed tablet of 50 TILLS™ Student Language Scale forms - One SLS Quick Start Guide Keep this one-page guide at your fingertips for basic instructions on administering and scoring and quick answers to six frequently asked questions. ### HOW THE SLS WORKS 1. **STUDENT LANGUAGE SCALE USER’S MANUAL** The SLS is just one page, divided into four sections: - Basic information about the student and the teacher or parent filling out the SLS. - Student Language Scale - SLS Student - Nickola Wolf Nelson, Ph.D., CCC-SLP - Language Scale - Barbara Howes, Ph.D., M.S.W. - Michele A. Anderson, Ph.D., CCC-SLP - Language Scale SLS This Student Language Scale may be used with the Test of Integrated Language and Literacy Skills™, other assessment tests, or as a stand-alone measure to gather multiple perspectives on a student's language/literacy abilities and other skills. **Student's name:** Justin **Grade:** 5th **Date:** 1/20/16 **Person responding:** General education teacher **Student:** 2. **A 12-item rating scale.** Rate the student on each item using a 7-point Likert scale, comparing their performance with that of their same-age peers. 3. **Compared with other students of the same age,** circle the number to show how good this student is at... | Ability checklist, RATING SCALE | Not good | | | | | | Very good | | -------------------------------- | -------- | - | - | - | - | - | --------- | | 1. Understanding school vocabulary words | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | | 2. Using school vocabulary words when talking | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | | 3. Figuring out new words when reading | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | | 4. Spelling words correctly when writing | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | | 5. Understanding a story when listening | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | | 6. Telling a story that makes sense | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | | 7. Understanding a story when reading | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | | 8. Writing a story that makes sense | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | | 9. Following spoken directions | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | | 10. Being organized about schoolwork | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | | 11. Paying attention in school | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | | 12. Interacting socially with other students | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | --- "I can truly recommend the SLS. It provides a quick and easy way to obtain qualitative information about a child’s speech and language abilities from multiple sources. I use the SLS both to screen for language disorders and plan effective therapy; it’s an integral part of my assessment toolkit." —Carrie Goodwiler, MA, CCC-SLP, San Diego State University "As an enthusiastic user of the TILLS, I am very happy to have the SLS as an additional tool...The SLS offers an even stronger view of the student's profile of strengths and needs with a clear and manageable rating scale that can easily be incorporated into assessment with TILLS." —Beverly Barkon, MSL, Ph.D., Nationally Certified Educational Diagnostician (#0244), Carlow University ### Order the SLS kit One SLS User’s Manual, one gummed tablet of TILLS™ Student Language Scale forms, one SLS Quick Start Guide with basic instructions on administering and scoring --- **Brookes Publishing Co.** **P.O. Box 10624** **Baltimore, MD 21285-0624** Screen for language & literacy disorders— including dyslexia—quickly and reliably!