(OPUS) Oral Passage Understanding Scale

Benefit

Assesses listening comprehension, a skill that is essential for classroom learning

Norms

Based on a stratified sample of 1,517 individuals that is representative of the U.S. population in terms of gender, race/ethnicity, parent education level, and geographic region

Scores

Age- and grade-based standard scores and percentiles, test-age and grade equivalents

Format

Individually administered; the examiner reads a passage and related questions aloud from a self-standing easel and the examinee responds orally—no reading or writing required

Admin Time

10 to 20 minutes

Ages

5 to 21 years

Publish Date

2016

Qualifications

Level C required.

Oral Passage Understanding Scale is a new measure of listening (auditory) comprehension. It evaluates a person’s ability to listen to passages that are read aloud and recall information about them. This ability is key to success in the classroom, as well as in social and occupational settings. The OPUS also measures memory skills, which are integral to listening comprehension.

The OPUS shares the same underlying theory as the new Comprehensive Assessment of Spoken Language, Second Edition (CASL-2) and the Oral and Written Language Scales, Second Edition (OWLS-II). Since all three tests are based on the author’s Integrative Language Theory, they provide a cohesive  evaluation across a broad range of language areas. While the OWLS-II provides an evaluation of oral and written language abilities, the CASL-2 offers a more in-depth picture of 14 spoken language skills. The new OPUS takes this a step further and tells you how well a person can integrate and apply many of these skills. Although it’s an excellent companion test to the CASL-2, you can also use it on its own anytime you need to quickly measure listening comprehension.

Audio Files

To help show correct pace and tone when administering a test, digital audio recordings of each OPUS passage are provided (see link below). These audio files are for examiner training only and should never be used during administration. OPUS purchase is required for access.

The required password is located on page 5 of the OPUS Manual (W-686M) and the OPUS Online Manual (W-686MP).

Please click here to access the OPUS Audio Files.

Applications and Uses

A versatile instrument, the OPUS can be used by speech–language pathologists and other professionals in a variety of settings, including schools, clinics, hospitals, private practices, and intervention programs When you need to evaluate response to intervention (RTI), you can use the OPUS to track improvement over time. It can also help you answer a variety of referral questions. For example:

- Can a student sufficiently understand and retain information heard in class?

- Are listening difficulties contributing to a child’s social skill challenges?

- Does this college student need someone to take notes in class for him?

The OPUS can be used on its own anytime you need to measure how well an individual understands orally presented information. It provides important evidence for everyone involved in treatment, so you can help children and young adults reach their potential at school, at home, at work, and in the community.

What It Measures

The OPUS is designed to assess the comprehension of spoken language in a natural context, a skill that is fundamental to classroom learning. It evaluates the ability to integrate and apply knowledge in three structural categories of language:

- Lexical/Semantic: Knowledge and use of words and word combinations

- Syntactic: Knowledge and use of grammar

- Supralinguistic: Knowledge and use of language in which meaning is not directly available from the surface lexical and syntactic information

Measuring higher-level comprehension skills, including inference and prediction, yields more detailed information beyond simply whether or not the individual can comprehend. These skills require deeper processing abilities and thus differentiate typically developing individuals from those with language and learning delays or disorders.

The OPUS also measures memory skills, which are integral to listening comprehension. While the CASL-2 attempts to remove memory as much as possible in order to isolate the specific skill being tested, the OPUS includes memory because it’s an important part of listening comprehension in everyday life.

How It Works

The OPUS consists of 17 passages, each with 7 to 10 associated questions. These passages are divided into six Item Sets to allow for a brief administration time of just 10 to 20 minutes. Each Item Set has 5 passages and up to 44 items. Selecting the appropriate Item Set, based on the examinee’s age and ability, ensure that developmentally appropriate items are administered. Please see the table (below) for a visual representation of the overlapping Item Sets and passages.

Item Set A

Ages: 5 to 6

Passages: 1 to 5

Item Set B

Ages: 7 to 8

Passages: 4 to 8

Item Set C

Ages: 9 to 10

Passages: 7 to 11

Item Set D

Ages: 11 to 13

Passages: 9 to 13

Item Set E

Ages: 14 to 16

Passages: 11 to 15

Item Set F

Ages: 17 to 21

Passages: 13 to 17