| Abstract: | Over the past decade in the United States, levelled texts, or ‘little books’ with finely graduated levelling of text difficulty, have regained their status as a literacy staple for beginning readers. Despite their resurgence, questions remain regarding the reliability and quality of these books. In this study, we conducted a detailed analysis of 20 sample texts at levels 5, 10, 15 and 20, from one series of levelled books published in the United States. We found that the levelling system used in this series is not a particularly reliable indicator of text difficulty and that the quality of these books varies considerably between and within levels. We suggest that close attention to text levels could be detrimental in the reader–text matching process. We further recommend that in order to judge and select quality books that answer the needs of their students, teachers become more aware of the various factors influencing text comprehensibility and quality. |
