Comprehensive Test of Phonological Processing (CTOPP)
by Richard Wagner, Joseph Torgesen, and Carol Rashotte

The CTOPP assesses phonological awareness, phonological memory, and rapid naming, quickly identifying individuals who may have reading problems due to weak phonological skills.

There are two versions of the test, one for 5- and 6-year-olds, the other for individuals from 7 to 24 years of age. The first version contains seven subtests and one supplemental test; the second contains six subtests and eight supplemental tests.  (The supplemental tests permit more detailed assessment of phonological strengths and weaknesses.) Both versions can be individually administered in just 30 minutes. Subtests included are:

• Elision
• Blending Words
• Sound Matching
• Memory for Digits
• Nonword Repetition
• Rapid Color Naming
• Rapid Digit Naming
• Rapid Letter Naming
• Rapid Object Naming
• Blending Nonwords
• Phoneme Reversal
• Segmenting Words
• Segmenting Nonwords

The CTOPP generates three composite scores:

• Phonological Awareness
  Awareness and access to the phonological structure of oral language
  
• Phonological Memory
  Ability to code information phonologically for temporary storage in working or short-term memory
  
• Rapid Naming
  Ability to retrieve phonological information from long-term or permanent memory and to execute a sequence of operations quickly and repeatedly

Subtest scores are also provided--as standard scores, percentiles, and age and grade equivalents. 

Normed on a nationally representative sample of more than 1,600 individuals from 5 to 24 years of age, the CTOPP is an excellent way to identify students who are significantly below their peers in phonological abilities.