5  ROAR-Syntax

ROAR-Syntax measures students’ understanding of grammatical structures that are essential for comprehending spoken and written English. It examines language comprehension through listening so it is appropriate for all students, including those who are not yet able to read text.

Syntactic knowledge – understanding how words combine to form meaningful sentences – serves as a critical component of reading comprehension (Tong, Yu, and Deacon 2024; Van Dyke 2025). Research grounded in the Simple View of Reading (Gough and Tunmer 1986; Hoover and Gough 1990) and contemporary reading systems frameworks (Kim 2020; Perfetti and Stafura 2014) establish that linguistic comprehension, including syntax, directly and indirectly contributes to reading comprehension outcomes. Syntactic knowledge develops progressively throughout childhood and adolescence, with students mastering increasingly complex structures from preschool through secondary school (Tong and Deacon 2025). Including an assessment of syntactic knowledge in the ROAR suite enables identification and treatment of students who have adequate word reading but struggle in language comprehension.

In this assessment, students listen to spoken sentences and select pictures that accurately represent their meaning. ROAR-Syntax includes a digital adaptation of the Test for Reception of Grammar (TROG) (Bishop 1982), an individually-administered measure widely used in clinical and research settings. ROAR-Syntax builds on the TROG’s established theoretical framework with an expanded item bank, incorporates updated visual materials, extends measurement to include additional advanced grammatical structures, and enables efficient group administration in classroom settings. Like other ROAR assessments, instructions are delivered via headphones and practice trials ensure student understanding.

ROAR-Syntax provides educators and researchers with an efficient, developmentally sensitive measure to identify students who may benefit from targeted instruction and to monitor progress in syntactic knowledge development across elementary and secondary school years.

References

Bishop, D. V. M. 1982. “Test for Reception of Grammar (TROG).”

Gough, Philip B, and William E Tunmer. 1986. “Decoding, Reading, and Reading Disability.” Remedial and Special Education 7 (1): 6–10.

Hoover, W. A., and P. B. Gough. 1990. “The Simple View of Reading.” Reading and Writing 2 (2): 127–60. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00401799.

Kim, Young-Suk Grace. 2020. “Hierarchical and Dynamic Relations of Language and Cognitive Skills to Reading Comprehension: Testing the Direct and Indirect Effects Model of Reading (DIER).” Journal of Educational Psychology 112 (4): 667–84. https://doi.org/10.1037/edu0000407.

Perfetti, Charles, and Joseph Stafura. 2014. “Word Knowledge in a Theory of Reading Comprehension.” Scientific Studies of Reading 18 (1): 22–37.

Tong, Xiuhong, and S Helène Deacon. 2025. “The Linguistic Pathways Model: Capturing the Multiple Dimensions of Reading Development.” Reading Research Quarterly 60 (4): e70069.

Tong, Xiuhong, Liyan Yu, and S. Hélène Deacon. 2024. “A Meta-Analysis of the Relation Between Syntactic Skills and Reading Comprehension: A Cross-Linguistic and Developmental Investigation.” Review of Educational Research 95 (3): 385–426. https://doi.org/10.3102/00346543241228185.

Van Dyke, Julie A. 2025. “Language Comprehension One Word at a Time.” Perspectives on Language and Literacy 51 (1): 29–32. https://keystoliteracy.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Syntax-Part-1.pdf#page=29.