What assessment method would provide valuable insights into a student's reading proficiency, as demonstrated by Cody?

An oral retell of a story is particularly valuable in assessing a student's reading proficiency because it allows the educator to gauge multiple facets of comprehension. When a student retells a story, the teacher can evaluate not only the student's recall of key events and details but also their ability to understand and interpret the narrative structure, characters, and themes. This method reveals how well the student engaged with the text and can illuminate their higher-order thinking skills, such as inference and analysis.

In contrast, other assessment methods may not provide the same depth of information. Standardized testing can give a general overview of a student’s performance relative to peers but may not capture specific comprehension capabilities or individual nuances. A written comprehension test similarly focuses on certain aspects of understanding, often limiting the student’s expression and interpretation to written form alone. Reading fluency assessments typically measure speed and accuracy rather than deep comprehension, missing the richness that an oral retell can offer. Thus, an oral retell is an effective tool for revealing both understanding and the student’s ability to communicate that understanding effectively.