Conducting a Miscue Analysis

Conducting a Miscue Analysis can help you determine exactly where your student's reading strengths and weakness lie. Different types of miscues occur for different reasons. Some indicate areas on which the student needs help, while others demonstrate his ability use contextual clues to decipher meaning. This article lists the different types of miscues that can help me write my essay and the possible significance of each miscue.

Correction
Correction occurs when your student recognizes he has made an error during oral reading and fixes it without being prompted. This is a good sign that he is engaged in the reading process. Sometimes a student will attempt to self-correct but will be unsuccessful. This is still a positive sign showing the student's effort, but he may need more help with his decoding skills. Your student might also make an Abandoning Correct miscue. This is where he reads the correct form the first time but repeats the word and makes a miscue. This could be an indication that the student isn't confident in his reading abilities.

Insertion
If your student includes a non-existing word while reading text, that's an Insertion miscue. If the inserted word does not change the meaning of the text, comprehension could still be high. Your student might be reading too fast and inserting words that make sense to him. If the inserted words change the meaning of the text, you should work on teaching him to slow down while he reads.

Omission
When your student leaves out words while reading, it's an Omission miscue. If the omission does not change the meaning of the text, it could simply be a matter of reading too fast. An omitted word could also be the result of poor visual tracking, lack of focus, or an underdeveloped sight vocabulary. Track the omissions to determine their cause and how you can help your student improve.