Measuring Student Progress
One of the most important questions to ask when supporting struggling students is:
How will we measure student progress?
Progress monitoring is the proof that a plan is working. Without it, we can’t be sure students are truly on track to meet their goals.
Whether you’re a parent requesting updates or an educator responsible for delivering intervention, clear measurement is essential. But what exactly should we be looking for, and how do we measure it appropriately?
Step 1: Identify the Needs
Progress should always tie back to the student’s end goal. What’s the main skill we’re trying to improve?
If the goal is reading comprehension, then comprehension is the area to track.
But we can’t stop there; we also need to look at the skills that contribute to comprehension.
A student may struggle with comprehension for different reasons:
Decoding: They can’t sound out words accurately, so meaning is lost.
Vocabulary: They can read the words, but gaps in word knowledge block understanding.
Listening comprehension: Even when hearing information, they struggle to pull out key details (who, what, when, where, why, how).
Knowing both the primary area of need and the contributing factor causing it is what makes intervention effective.
Step 2: Write Measurable Goals
Observations alone aren’t enough. They can be influenced by student behavior, our own expectations, or even the energy of the day.
That’s why goals must be concrete and measurable.
Use rubrics, yes/no criteria, or percent accuracy.
Avoid vague language like “unfamiliar words” or “seems to understand.”
Make sure you can answer, in the moment: Was this correct or not?
Step 3: Collect & Monitor Data in Pre-established Intervals
Daily/Weekly: Informal progress through data tracking sheets. Even a few tallies during lessons provide valuable insight.
Every 4–6 Months: Formal progress monitoring through standardized or curriculum-based assessments.
The key is not to wait for formal monitoring alone. Informal checks help ensure you’re on track, so you don’t find out months later that the intervention wasn’t working.
Why Frequent Progress Checks Matter
Time is our most valuable resource. Every week a student spends in an ineffective intervention is a week of growth lost. Regular monitoring ensures we can course-correct quickly and keep students moving forward.
Step 4: Adjust Instruction
Now, it’s important to remember that progress monitoring isn’t just about data points or charts. It’s about paying attention (really paying attention) to what your students can do today that they couldn’t do last week.
That’s progress monitoring.
It’s not about the paperwork. It’s about staying connected to your students, your instruction, and the process of growth. So the most important piece of your progress monitoring process is making tweaks and adjustments when the data shows you that students have mastered a skill or need more support in a specific area.
This is what keeps the entire process worthwhile.
So, what’s next?
To make this process easier, we created a progress monitoring freebie for you. It’s designed to help you:
Identify student needs
Write SOR-aligned goals
Easily track data using a simple yes/no tracking system to keep everything simple and organized.
Because who doesn’t love that new planner energy?
And, if you want to go even deeper, we put together a professional development training called Progress Monitoring Made Simple: How to Set Effective Goals & Track What Matters.
Inside the training, not only do we walk through how to identify student needs and set effective goals, but we also have a comprehensive Progress Monitoring Toolkit with hundreds of progress monitoring probes you can easily integrate into any lesson to monitor:
Phonological awareness, phonics, vocabulary, fluency, comprehension, & writing
You seriously don’t want to miss it!!!