The purpose of the assessment strategies was to assess the literacy performance of boys and girls in a natural, authentic environment (the classroom) and to investigate the differences in literacy development. The first area of focus was to measure individual student's reading grade levels through a reading inventory. The reading inventory assessment was administered three times over a fourteen in school month period while the students were in grades four and five. The second area investigated was reading attitude. This tool examined the student's recreational and academic attitudes toward reading. This was administered during the initial and final assessment periods during the fourteen in school months of the study.
The assessment strategies proposed in the Boys' and Girls' Literacy: Closing the Gap project addressed literacy gender differences viewed as problematic in New Brunswick schools. Figure 4 identifies this issue from the 2002 School District 18 Report Card (District 18, 2002).