TILLS Examiner's Manual

Essential for effective use of the Test of Integrated Language and Literacy Skills™ (TILLS™), this in-depth Examiner’s Manual walks professionals through administration and scoring of the assessment. With this start-to-finish manual, TILLS examiners will:

• review the purposes, uses, background, and components of TILLS
• get comprehensive instructions on administering all 15 TILLS subtests
• find answers to frequently asked questions about TILLS
• learn specific considerations for testing students with previously identified special needs
• get the normative data tables needed to complete TILLS scoring
• understand how to interpret scores with the help of sample profiles for different types of students

The manual also includes the detailed instructions examiners need to complete the four charts of the Examiner Record Form:

• Scoring Chart. Calculate subtest scores and enter corresponding standard scores and percentile ranks, four composites based on subtest standard scores, and the student’s identification core score.
• Identification Chart. Identify when a student’s score is consistent with a language/literacy disorder.
• Profile Chart. Produce a visual display of patterns of relative strengths and weaknesses based on standard scores and graph your selected confidence interval.
• Tracking Chart. Document changes in language and literacy skills over time.

Clear and comprehensive, this indispensable guide helps professionals administer and score TILLS accurately and use the results to inform next steps.

For every subtest, TILLS examiners get:

• explicit, precise instructions on how to orally administer the test
• guidelines for following start rules, basal rules, ceiling rules, and probe rules
• detailed directions for recording and scoring student responses
• a tip box for helping them score the subtest and resolve challenging issues
• helpful completed examples with explanatory narratives

Table of Contents

Overview of the Test of Integrated Language and Literacy Skills (TILLS)

The TILLS Model of Language and Literacy Skills

Purpose

Target Population

Examiners

Administration Time

Overview of the Subtests

Subtest 1: Vocabulary Awareness (VA)

Subtest 2: Phonemic Awareness (PA)

Subtest 3: Story Retelling (SR)

Subtest 4: Nonword Repetition (NWRep)

Subtest 5: Nonword Spelling (NWSpell)

Subtest 6: Listening Comprehension (LC)

Subtest 7: Reading Comprehension (RC)

Subtest 8: Following Directions (FD)

Subtest 9: Delayed Story Retelling (DSR)

Subtest 10: Nonword Reading (NWRead)

Subtest 11: Reading Fluency (RF)

Subtest 12: Written Expression (WE)

Subtest 13: Social Communication (SC)

Subtest 14: Digit Span Forward (DSF)

Subtest 15: Digit Span Backward (DSB)

The TILLS Conceptual Model

Test Materials

Examiner’s Manual

Technical Manual

Quick Start Guide

Stimulus Book

Digital Audio Files

Examiner Record Form

Student Response Form

Examiner’s Practice Workbook

Easy-Score™

Student Language Scale (SLS)

Items to be Supplied by the Examiner

Frequently Asked Questions

Administering the TILLS Subtests

Individual TILLS Subtests

SUBTEST 1: Vocabulary Awareness (VA)

SUBTEST 2: Phonemic Awareness (PA)

SUBTEST 3: Story Retelling (SR)

SUBTEST 4: Nonword Repetition (NWRep)

SUBTEST 5: Nonword Spelling (NWSpell)

SUBTEST 6: Listening Comprehension (LC)

SUBTEST 7: Reading Comprehension (RC)

SUBTEST 8: Following Directions (FD)

SUBTEST 9: Delayed Story Retelling (DSR)

SUBTEST 10: Nonword Reading (NWRead)

SUBTEST 11: Reading Fluency (RF)

SUBTEST 12: Written Expression (WE)

SUBTEST 13: Social Communication (SC)

SUBTEST 14: Digit Span Forward (DSF)

SUBTEST 15: Digit Span Backward (DSB)

Considerations for Testing Students with Previously Identified Special Needs

Modifying Start and Stop Rules when Testing Students with Special Needs

Testing Students with Hearing Loss

Signs that a Student with Special Needs May Need to Take a Break or to

Stop Testing

Frequently Asked Questions

Scoring the TILLS and Using the Scores for Its Three Purposes

Steps for Calculating Standard Scores

Transforming TILLS Subtest Raw Scores to Standard Scores

Percentile Ranks

TILLS Identification Core Scores

TILLS Sound/Word, Sentence/Discourse, Oral, and Written Composite Scores

TILLS Total Standard Score

Confidence Intervals

How to Use TILLS Scores to Achieve the Test’s Three Purposes

Purpose 1: To Identify Language and Literacy Disorders

Purpose 2: To Document Patterns of Relative Strengths and Weaknesses

Purpose 3: To Track Changes in Language and Literacy Skills over Time

Frequently Asked Questions

Considering TILLS Profiles in Relation to Curricular Demands and Student Needs

Students with Primary Language and Literacy Disorders

Example 1: Dawn

Example 2: Adam

Example 3: Calli

Example 4: Shaquela

Example 5: Robert

Students Who Are Deaf or Hard of Hearing

Example 6: Molly

Example 7: Jason

Students with Autism Spectrum Disorder

Example 8: Randy

Students with Intellectual Disability

Example 9: Ruth

References

Appendix Normative Tables

Subtest Standard Scores

Subtest Percentile Ranks

Standard Scores for the TILLS Total, Composite, and Identification Core Scores

Percentile Ranks for the TILLS Total, Composite, and Identification Core Scores

True Change Interval