The PIRLS 2016 Reading Framework and the instruments developed to assess this framework reflect IEA’s commitment to be forward thinking and incorporate the latest approaches to measuring the reading achievement of young students in their fourth year of schooling. PIRLS is based on the broad notion of what the ability to read means—a notion that includes the ability to reflect on written texts and to use these texts as tools for attaining individual and societal goals, also known as “reading to do” (Stiggins, 1982). This view is increasingly relevant in today’s society, where greater emphasis continues to be placed on students’ ability to use the information they gain from reading (Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, 1995; 1997; 2000; 2001; 2005; 2010). Emphasis is shifting from demonstrating fluency and basic comprehension to demonstrating the ability to apply what is read to new situations or projects (Coulombe, Trembly, & Marchand, 2004; Smith, Mikulecky, Kibby, & Dreher, 2000; see also PIRLS 2011 Encyclopedia).
The PIRLS framework for assessing reading achievement was initially developed for the first assessment in 2001, using IEA’s 1991 Reading Literacy Study (Elley, 1992; 1994; Wolf, 1995) as the basis for the PIRLS definition of reading literacy and for establishing the aspects of reading comprehension to be assessed. Since then, the PIRLS assessment framework has been updated for each subsequent assessment cycle (Campbell, Kelly, Mullis, Martin, & Sainsbury, 2001; Mullis, Kennedy, Martin, & Sainsbury, 2006; Mullis, Martin, Kennedy, Trong, & Sainsbury, 2009).