What essential skill is assessed in the teaching of reading endorsement on the WEST-E?

The essential skill assessed in the teaching of reading endorsement on the WEST-E is phonemic awareness and phonics. This is fundamental to reading instruction as it involves the ability to recognize and manipulate the sounds in spoken words (phonemic awareness) and understanding the relationship between these sounds and their corresponding letters (phonics). Mastery of these components is crucial for developing effective reading skills in students, as it lays the groundwork for their ability to decode words, understand spelling patterns, and ultimately achieve fluency in reading.

In contrast to phonemic awareness and phonics, classroom behavior management focuses on maintaining a conducive learning environment, which, while important, does not directly pertain to the mechanics of reading itself. Writing skills and grammar relate more to composition and language use rather than reading, and mathematical computation is unrelated to reading instruction altogether. Thus, phonemic awareness and phonics clearly align with the core competencies required for the teaching of reading endorsement.