Rate of Reading Test: its reliability, and its validity in the assessment of the effects of coloured overlays.

A simple reading test that can be undertaken by disabled readers is described. The test is suitable for use in the optometric clinic, taking less than 2 minutes to administer per passage. Test-retest scores are acceptably reliable. The test reveals increases in the speed of reading when coloured overlays are used both (1) in children who have made long-term use of coloured overlays for reading, and (2) in children who will subsequently do so.