Journal of Psychoeducational

Assessment
Volume 26 Number 2
June 2008 185-194
Gender and Language Issues © 2008 Sage Publications
10.1177/0734282908314105

in Assessing Early Literacy http://jpa.sagepub.com

hosted at
http://online.sagepub.com
Group Differences in Children’s Performance
on the Test of Early Reading Ability
Sarah N. Harper
Janette P. Pelletier
University of Toronto

The study investigated gender and language group differences in children’s performance on
two versions of the Test of Early Reading Ability (TERA-2 and TERA-3). Two groups of
children consisting of girls and boys and English first language (L1) and English language
learners (ELL) participated in the study. Children in Group 1 completed the TERA-2, in which
standard procedures involve obtaining a total score of children’s early reading ability.
Alternatively, children in Group 2 were administered the TERA-3, which yields measures of
children’s ability on three individual subtests (alphabet, conventions, and meaning). Results
showed that gender and language group differences on the TERA-2 were not evident. However,
L1 children outperformed ELL children on the meaning subtest of the TERA-3, while showing
no differences on either alphabet or conventions. The findings speak to the importance of
measuring individual components of early reading to assess children’s emergent literacy.

Keywords: emergent literacy; early reading; English language learners; gender; assessment

R esearch and practice commonly involve the use of standardized tests to obtain
measures of children’s early literacy development. The Test of Early Reading Ability
(TERA; Reid, Hresko & Hammill, 1981) is a widely used measure of emerging literacy
and is frequently implemented in research that examines developmental differences in
children’s English reading abilities (Haney & Hill, 2004; Kuby & Aldridge, 1997; Lynch,
2002; Sacks & Mergendoller, 1997). The TERA serves a variety of purposes; namely, to
measure children’s reading development, to identify special needs, to act as a measurement
tool in research, and to help improve reading instruction (Reid et al., 1981). Studies involving
ethnically diverse samples (Hammer, Miccio & Wagstaff, 2003; Lynch, 2003), children
from various socioeconomic backgrounds (Clark & Kragler, 2005; Tracey & Young, 2006)
and samples that include children with developmental disabilities (Brown, 1997; Reid &
Hresko, 1980) have employed the TERA.

Authors’ Note: Funding for this research was provided by grants from the Ontario Ministry of Education and
the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (Grant File 410-2002-1625), awarded to
Janette Pelletier. Correspondence should be addressed to Sarah N. Harper, MA, Doctoral Candidate,
Department of Human Development and Applied Psychology, Ontario Institute for Studies in Education,
University of Toronto; sarah.harper@utoronto.ca.

185

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186 Journal of Psychoeducational Assessment

The TERA has been extensively revised since its first edition in 1981. Revisions of the
TERA-2 (Reid, Hresko, & Hammill, 1989) included dividing test items into three subtests
using factor analysis. The alphabet subtest measures children’s knowledge of the alphabet,
including letter recognition, names, and sounds, as well as syllables. The second subtest
measures children’s understanding of the conventions of print, including spelling, punctu-
ation, and capitalization, and children’s familiarity with books and other printed materials.
The third subtest evaluates children’s ability to infer meaning from printed letters, words,
sentences, and paragraphs. Individually administered subtests produce measures of chil-
dren’s early literacy in specific areas and provide more precise assessments of children’s
early reading ability.
The authors of the TERA-3 claimed that this version of the test was “valid for a wide
variety of subgroups as well as for a general population” (Reid, Hresko, & Hammill, 2001,
p. xi), as the normative sample included girls and boys of varied socioeconomic and ethnic
backgrounds, with and without disabilities. Although the normative sample included a
diverse group of children, there are no reported findings on whether groups of children,
sharing common demographic characteristics (such as gender, ethnicity, or a disability),
perform similarly on any of the three subtests of the TERA-3. Specifically, it is unclear
whether diverse groups of children differ on individual components of early reading (alpha-
bet, conventions, or meaning), as measured by the TERA-3.
Reid et al. (2001) report that the applicability of the TERA-3 may involve combining
standard scores from each of the three subtests to produce a Reading Quotient, or compos-
ite score of children’s overall reading ability. For simplicity, the composite score is often
used to evaluate children’s overall reading abilities (e.g., Register, 2004). Furthermore, in
previous research that employed the TERA or the TERA-2, conclusions about children’s
overall reading ability were based on one total standard score that accounted for all items
on the test (Hammer et al., 2003; Reid & Hresko, 1980; Sacks & Mergendoller, 1997). If
group differences exist in children’s performance on one or two (but not all) subtests of the
TERA, using a total (or composite) score of children’s early reading ability may be prob-
lematic, as group differences may not be visible when scores are collapsed.
Children’s early literacy development may vary according to their gender. Previous
research has documented gender differences in young children’s reading development. For
example, Soderman, Chhikara, Hsiu-Ching and Kuo (1999) measured the reading abilities
of first-grade children and discovered that the reading scores of girls were significantly
higher than those of boys. In addition, Halpern (1997) concluded that girls tend to outper-
form boys on tasks that rely on reading processes such as phonological and semantic skills
and reading comprehension, and suggested that there may be a biological component that
accounts for girls’ superiority in reading. There is also some evidence that differences in
girls’ and boys’ reading achievement are most observable in young children, and are less
often exhibited among older children (MacFarlane, 2001).
Evidence from the TERA indicates that gender differences exist in children’s early read-
ing development. For example, Lynch (2002) grouped TERA-2 test items according to
component areas (alphabet, conventions, and meaning), and found that among elementary
school children, girls had significantly higher scores on the items that measured children’s
alphabet knowledge. Gambell and Hunter (1999) reported findings from the Saskatchewan

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 Harper, Pelletier / Assessing Early Literacy 187

Department of Education, showing that for measures of students’ ability to infer meaning
from text, girls’ scores are higher than those of boys of the same age (Saskatchewan
Education, Training and Employment, 1996, cited in Gambell & Hunter, 1999). These findings
provide some evidence that gender differences may also exist in children’s ability to extract
meaning.
Reading acquisition can be particularly problematic for children who are learning to read
in another language. Although components of early reading are similar for English first lan-
guage children (L1) and children who are English language learners (ELL) when both lan-
guages employ the same code (e.g., alphabetic), it may be particularly difficult to teach
reading to students who are not proficient in the target language (Pang & Kamil, 2004).
One study that included a culturally and linguistically diverse sample of children (although
all were proficient in English) showed that children’s total scores on the TERA-2 were sig-
nificantly and positively related to their language scores on the Kindergarten Language
Screening Test–2nd Edition (KLST-2; Gauthier & Madison, 1998). This suggests that chil-
dren who are more fluent in English show increased performance in early English reading
(Lynch, 2003). Research involving the TERA-2 or total scores on the TERA-3 may be
unable to determine whether children’s reading performance in a particular component of
early reading is related to their English language abilities. Other research has documented
differences in L1 and ELL children’s reading scores on the TERA. Pelletier and Corter
(2005) investigated the effects of a school readiness parent involvement program on L1 and
ELL families. Preschool children’s early reading development was measured using the
TERA-2, and results showed that L1 children had significantly higher scores than ELLs.
However, this study did not report results for individual language groups, which may have
masked underlying differences between L1 and various ELL groups. Some evidence sug-
gests that a particular area of reading is more difficult for children learning to read in an
additional language. For example, Sen and Blatchford (2001) administered the Neale
Analysis of Reading Ability (NARA; Neale, 1989) and the word reading subtest of the
British Ability Scales (BAS; Elliott, Murray, & Pearson, 1979) to a group of ELL kinder-
garten children. The study showed that compared to their scores on the reading rate, accu-
racy, and spelling subtests of the NARA and scores on the word reading subtest of the BAS,
ELL children had much lower scores on the comprehension subtest of the NARA. It was
concluded that although ELL children have adequate scores in other areas of early literacy,
many ELL children are lacking an essential component of English reading—their ability to
comprehend written text. Verhoeven (1990) likewise found that ELL children had lower
scores on tasks that involved comprehension. During their first two years of primary school,
L1 and ELL children completed three reading comprehension tasks and a measure of oral
proficiency. L1 children outperformed ELL children on all comprehension tasks at both
times. These findings suggest that ELL children may lag behind their L1 peers in this par-
ticular area of reading acquisition.
Although it is clear that gender and language group differences exist in children’s read-
ing abilities, it is unclear how these group differences may affect children’s performance on
each subtest (alphabet, conventions, and meaning) of the TERA-3. Presently, there is no
available research on how children’s performance in these subtest areas of early literacy
varies as a function of their gender or language status (L1 or ELL). Based on the literature,

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188 Journal of Psychoeducational Assessment

it was hypothesized that gender and language group differences would be observed in
children’s performance on the TERA. Although the study provides evidence for a particular
component of early literacy that varies across language groups, gender differences could
not be confirmed.

Method

Participants
The study involved a total of 240 kindergarten children, 168 of whom participated in
Year 1 of the study (Group 1), and 72 of whom participated the following year (Group 2).
Group 1 included 89 females and 79 males, and 88 of these children were ELL, whereas
the remaining children (n = 72) were L1. Group 2 consisted of 39 females and 33 males,
22 of whom were ELL and 33 of whom were L1. Among ELL children, 69 (62.7%) spoke
an East Indian language in their home, 18 (16.4%) spoke an Asian language, 10 (9.1%)
spoke a European language, 3 (2.7%) spoke Arabic, 8 (7.2%) spoke a language that does
not fit into one of these categories, and 2 (1.8%) families did not provide their home lan-
guage. Eight children from Group 1 and 17 children from Group 2 were not included in the
language analyses because the language status of the child was not provided. Among both
groups, children ranged in age from 45 to 72 months (M = 56.92, SD = 6.22 for Group 1;
M = 55.76, SD = 6.64 for Group 2), and all were enrolled in either junior (4-year-old) or
senior (5-year-old) kindergarten at the time of data collection. Results indicated that
Groups 1 and 2 included approximately equal ratios of girls and boys (Group 1, 53% girls;
Group 2, 54% girls; χ²(1) = .03, ns) and of L1 and ELL children (Group 1, 55% ELL;
Group 2, 40% ELL, χ²(1) = 3.69, ns). There were no significant differences in terms of age,
t(238) = 1.30, ns, or parents’ education, t(212) = −.29, ns. Within Group 1, significant dif-
ferences in parents’ education did not exist between girls (M = 3.38, SD = 1.38) and boys
(M = 3.42, SD = 1.45), t(156) = −.16, ns, or between L1 (M = 3.45, SD = 1.16) and ELL
(M = 3.35, SD = 1.55) children, t(152) = .44, ns. Similarly, within Group 2, there were no
significant differences in parents’ education between girls (M = 3.38, SD = 1.38) and boys
(M = 3.42, SD = 1.45), t(156) = −.16, ns, or between L1 (M = 3.87, SD = 1.44) and ELL
(M = 3.00, SD = 1.65) children, t(50) = 2.01, ns.

Measures
Parent Questionnaire. Parents provided demographic information about their child
(name, gender, date of birth, grade, and teacher) and about themselves (parent/guardian
name, mother’s and father’s education, etc.). Parents were asked to indicate for both the
child’s mother and father (if applicable) their highest level of education attained.

TERA-2. The TERA-2 (Reid et al., 1989) was used to measure the early reading abilities
of children in Group 1. This is a standardized and nationally normed measure, often used
for testing young children’s emerging literacy. Children begin the test with the appropriate
question according to their age (e.g., 5-year-olds start with Item 10) and continue through

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 Harper, Pelletier / Assessing Early Literacy 189

the items until they make 5 consecutive errors. Each test item measures a component of
early literacy (alphabet knowledge, conventions of print, or meaning), and items are pre-
sented in a sequence of increasing difficulty, but are not grouped according to their cate-
gory (i.e., alphabet, conventions, and meaning). Children in Group 1 were administered the
TERA-2 as it was the most recently published version at the time of data collection. The
authors of the test have reported sufficient content, construct, and criterion-predictive valid-
ity, and have also indicated strong reliability scores of .91 and .90 for Form A and B,
respectively, of the TERA-2 (Reid et al., 1989).

TERA-3. One year later, a more recent version of the TERA had been published, and pro-
vided a measure of early reading ability for children in Group 2. The TERA-3 (Reid et al.,
2001), includes items that measure the same three components of early reading measured
by the TERA-2. However, the TERA-3 provides individual scores of children’s early liter-
acy in each of the three areas, as three individual subtests are administered individually to
each child. For each subtest, children start with the appropriate test item according to their
age (e.g., for the Alphabet subtest 5-year-olds start with Item 1) and continue through each
subtest until they either complete all items in the subtest or until three consecutive ques-
tions (within a subtest) are answered incorrectly. If a child fails to complete all items in a
subtest, he or she moves on to the next subtest, starting with the appropriate item number
for his or her age. The authors of the TERA-3 have reported sufficient content, construct,
and criterion-predictive validity, and strong reliability of .91, .83, and .90 for the alphabet,
conventions, and meaning subtests, respectively (Reid et al., 2001). There is also evidence
of the concurrent validity between the two versions of the TERA. When comparing the
TERA-2 and TERA-3, correlation coefficients range from .85 to .98 and are significant for
both Forms A and B, and for all subtests of the TERA-3 (Reid et al., 2001).

Procedures
The families were recruited through kindergarten classes in a Toronto area school board.
Parents who agreed to participate were asked to sign the consent form and complete the
Parent Questionnaire (described above). During year one, trained researchers individually
administered the TERA-2 (Reid et al., 1989) to child participants (Group 1). The following
year, researchers administered the TERA-3 (Reid et al., 2001) to a different group of chil-
dren (Group 2). All children were tested in the fall, shortly after they started kindergarten.

Results
A series of independent samples t tests involving the TERA-2 and TERA-3 was conducted
and a Bonferroni correction to account for multiple t tests was applied to each analysis.

Group 1: TERA-2
Children’s scores on the TERA-2 were analyzed to determine whether gender and/or lan-
guage group differences exist in children’s mean standard scores when alphabet, conventions,

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190 Journal of Psychoeducational Assessment

and meaning items were compiled to produce a total standard score for each child. As
stated, this version of the test does not divide test items into different subtests, but rather, one
total standard score is produced and is typically reported as a measure of children’s overall
reading ability. The results of an independent samples t test indicated that boys (M = 99.33,
SD = 17.49) did not significantly differ from girls (M = 103.33, SD = 14.79), t(166) = 1.60, ns,
in their standard scores on the TERA-2. The eta square index indicated that 2% of the vari-
ance was accounted for by a child’s gender.
Results indicated that ELL children (M = 101.66, SD = 15.27) did not differ from their
L1 peers (M = 101.72, SD = 17.10), t(158) = .03, ns, when scores from all items of the
TERA-2 were combined, and total scores were compared across language groups. The eta
square index indicated that 0% of the variance on the TERA-2 was accounted for by a
child’s language status.

Group 2: TERA-3
Children’s scores on the TERA-3 were analyzed to determine whether gender and/or
language group differences exist in children’s mean standard scores, on each of the three
subtests of the TERA-3. For the alphabet subtest, the results indicated that boys (M = 10.18,
SD = 3.54) did not significantly differ from girls (M = 11.15, SD = 3.04), t(70) = 1.25, ns.
Similarly, for the conventions subtest, boys’ scores (M = 9.12, SD = 2.46) were not signif-
icantly different from those of girls (M = 9.08, SD = 3.06), t(70) = −.07, ns. Although girls’
scores (M = 9.15, SD = 2.05) were higher than boys (M = 7.79, SD = 2.78) on the meaning
subtest of the TERA-3, this finding was not significant after employing the Bonferroni cor-
rection, t(70) = 2.40, ns. The eta square index indicated that 2%, 0%, and 8% of the vari-
ance on the alphabet, conventions, and meaning subtests, respectively, was accounted for
by a child’s gender.
Further analyses investigated whether L1 and ELL children differed in their standard
scores on any of the three subtests of the TERA-3. Results showed that ELL children (M =
11.27, SD = 3.28) did not significantly differ from their L1 peers (M = 10.79, SD = 3.18),
t(53) = −.55, ns, on the alphabet subtest. ELL (M = 8.95, SD = 3.09) and L1 (M = 9.24,
SD = 2.68) children did not differ in their scores on the conventions subtest, t(53) = .37,
ns. However, L1 children (M = 9.55, SD = 2.43) outperformed ELL children (M = 7.36,
SD = 1.89) on the meaning subtest of the TERA-3, t(53) = 3.56, p < .01, and this finding
remained significant after employing the Bonferroni correction. The eta square index indi-
cated that 1%, 0%, and 19% of the variance on the alphabet, conventions, and meaning
subtests, respectively, was accounted for by a child’s language status (L1 or ELL). See
Table 1 for all relevant means and standard deviations.
A final set of analyses involved comparing girls and boys and L1 and ELL children’s
Reading Quotient (RQ) scores, to ensure that differences could not be attributed to test
characteristics or different samples. The RQ from the TERA-3 represents each child’s aver-
age performance across the three subtests, and all children from Group 2 were included in
these analyses. Results indicated that significant differences did not exist between girls
(M = 98.64, SD = 13.40) and boys (M = 93.73, SD = 15.26), t(70) = 1.46, ns, or between
L1 (M = 99.06, SD = 14.60) and ELL (M = 94.82, SD = 14.33) children, t(53) = 1.06, ns.

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 Harper, Pelletier / Assessing Early Literacy 191

Table 1
Means (and Standard Deviations) for TERA-2 Total Standard Scores
and TERA-3 Subtest Standard Scores
Gender Language

Test/Subtest Girls Boys L1 ELL

TERA-2 total 103.33 (14.79) 99.33 (17.49) 101.72 (17.10) 101.66 (15.27)
TERA-3 alphabet 11.15 (3.04) 10.18 (3.54) 10.79 (3.18) 11.27 (3.28)
TERA-3 conventions 9.08 (3.06) 9.12 (2.46) 9.24 (2.68) 8.95 (3.09)
TERA-3 meaning 9.15 (2.05) 7.79 (2.78) 9.55 (2.43) 7.36 (1.89)

Note: TERA-2 = The Test of Early Reading Ability–2nd Edition; TERA-3 = The Test of Early Reading Ability–3rd
Edition; L1 = English first language children; ELL = English language learners.

The eta square index indicated that 3% of the variance in RQ scores was accounted for by
a child’s gender, and 2% was accounted for by language status.

Discussion
Gender and language group differences were investigated on the TERA-2 and TERA-3.
In phase one, children’s total standard scores on the TERA-2 represented their combined
abilities in alphabet knowledge, conventions of print, and meaning. Results showed no gen-
der or language group differences in children’s total scores on the TERA-2 or on children’s
RQ scores on the TERA-3. In phase two of the study, children were administered the
TERA-3, and individual scores on each of the three subtests were obtained. Findings
revealed that L1 children scored significantly higher than ELL children on the meaning
subtest; although girls outperformed boys on this subtest as well, this finding was no longer
statistically significant after employing the Bonferroni correction. Thus, although neither
language nor gender group differences were evident when using composite scores of early
literacy abilities, language group differences in children’s comprehension were observed
when this component was measured individually.
Although previous research has suggested gender differences in children’s early reading
scores (Clark & Kragler, 2005; Kermode, Rawlinson, & Tuck, 2003; Lynch, 2002), studies
are inconsistent in explaining exactly how girls and boys differ in their early reading abil-
ities (e.g., Gambell & Hunter, 1999; Lynch, 2002). The results of the current study suggest
that we cannot confirm nor rule out children’s ability to infer meaning as an explanation for
the roots of gender differences that other studies have found in early reading. It is note-
worthy that after employing the Bonferroni adjustment, the gender difference was no
longer significant, suggesting an inaccurate finding as a result of a Type I error. Therefore,
future research should further examine gender differences on the TERA, to provide evi-
dence that either confirms or disconfirms the role of gender in children’s ability to infer
meaning from print.
Why might girls outperform boys in tests of reading comprehension? Gambell and
Hunter (1999) suggest that these differences may be attributed to gender socialization in

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192 Journal of Psychoeducational Assessment

and out of the home. They argue that girls may more frequently engage in literacy activi-
ties with their parents during the early years, prior to starting school, perhaps because of
gender socialization that portrays reading as a female activity. The authors also suggest that
evolving societal expectations for females to become well educated, and to achieve profes-
sionally, may contribute to girls’ engagement in educational activities at a young age.
Finally, it is suggested that young boys often prefer active and group activities, as opposed
to passive and solitary activities such as reading. Although boys may receive comparable
instruction from parents and teachers who assist them in learning the alphabet, or under-
standing conventions of print, their engagement in intensive reading, involving discussion
of characters and plot, may be limited, compared to girls. As a result, boys’ comprehension
may be reduced, even though their knowledge of the alphabet and conventions of print is
similar to that of girls.
In addition, children of varying English language abilities show differences in their per-
formance on tests of early reading ability, such as the TERA-2 (Lynch, 2003; Pelletier &
Corter, 2005). More specifically, ELL children receive lower scores on reading tests that
specifically measure comprehension (Sen & Blatchford, 2001; Verhoeven, 1990). Some
researchers have suggested that perhaps ELL children’s reading comprehension suffers as
a result of the teaching methods employed in many ELL programs. For example, Sen and
Blatchford (2001) report that for the ELL class involved in their study, the curriculum
focused on phonics and word recognition, whereas there was limited focus on reading com-
prehension. Therefore, weaker reading comprehension skills of ELL students may be a
result of ELL teaching approaches that neglect to incorporate reading comprehension as a
focus of instruction. The results of the current study are consistent with Sen and
Blatchford’s (2001) conclusions, suggesting that there is a need for ELL teachers to adjust
ELL instruction to promote both word recognition and reading comprehension.
The authors of the TERA-3 have stated that the development of their test was based on a
normative sample that well represented the general population of children in the United
States (Reid et al., 2001). They argue that the normative sample included equal proportions
of girls and boys and children from various ethnic backgrounds. However, the sample may
not have included children who were at varying stages of English language fluency.
Furthermore, this normative sample was drawn from the United States, whereas the current
sample included only Canadian children, who may represent different ethnic and linguistic
backgrounds. For example, a large proportion (63%) of the ELL children in the current sam-
ple spoke an East Indian language at home. U.S. samples may predominantly include other
language groups that are more similar to English (i.e., same alphabet), which may lead to
smaller gaps in English reading among U.S. L1 and ELL children. In developing the test, it
is unclear whether the authors tested for gender or language differences in each of the three
subtests of the TERA-3. However, potential differences should be acknowledged and, fur-
thermore, considered in developing normative samples for future versions of the test.
The findings of the current study point to the importance of evaluating children’s early
reading development using measures of children’s abilities in individual components of
early literacy. Recent research examining children’s early reading abilities has continued to
report either findings from the TERA or TERA-2 (Clark & Kragler, 2005; Reid & Hresko,
1980; Tracey & Young, 2006), or children’s total scores (RQ) from the TERA-3 (Register,

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 Harper, Pelletier / Assessing Early Literacy 193

2004). In using these scores, children’s abilities in different areas of early literacy may go
unrecognized. The present study speaks to the importance of evaluating children’s scores
in all three subtests of the TERA-3, particularly if comparison groups include diverse samples
of children.
The current study has identified language differences in children’s early reading devel-
opment by showing that when children’s scores on each individual component of early
reading are considered separately (as measured by each of the three subtests of the TERA-3),
L1 children outperform ELL children on the subtest measuring children’s ability to infer
meaning from text. Similar effects are not observed when reading ability is measured using
the TERA-2. Based on Cohen’s (1968) criteria, the observed effect size of 19% for lan-
guage is considered large, suggesting that there is a high likelihood that the language group
difference would be replicated in future studies. Alternatively, the result related to gender
showed a medium effect size (8%) and was not significant. Therefore, findings from the
current study could not confirm that girls and boys differ in their abilities in this area, but
future research should further investigate potential gender differences.
Future research should also involve random assignment of children to different testing
groups, to ensure that observed differences are in fact related to test characteristics, as
opposed to sample characteristics. In addition, future research should examine these and
other group differences in children’s abilities in all areas of early literacy, and should
attempt to investigate these differences using other measures of early reading. Only then
will we fully understand how children’s reading development varies as a function of these
characteristics. These findings will assist researchers, educators, and practitioners in devel-
oping programs that focus on areas in which specific groups of children are most in need of
instruction, and will attempt to provide all children with reading programs that most suitably
foster their individual reading development.

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