A reading teacher is assessing an eighth grader to determine her reading level. Timed at a minute, the student reads with 93% accuracy. She misreads an average of seven words out of 100. What is her reading level?

• A. Frustration level
• B. Independent level
• C. Instructional level
• D. Advanced level

Answer: (C)

Understanding reading levels often comes down to how accurately a student can read with or without support. A common guideline is: independent level means high accuracy (roughly 95%–100%), instructional level means some support is helpful (about 90%–94%), and frustration level is below 90%.

Here, the student reads with 93% accuracy, which means about 7 words out of 100 are read incorrectly. That accuracy falls in the instructional range—she can handle the text but benefits from guidance and targeted instruction rather than reading completely on her own. The timed element shows fluency, but the level designation mainly reflects accuracy and the need for support. So the best label is instructional level.