LibraryThing the First Social Networking Site to Offer Lexile Measures

Popular Reading Metric Helps Users Pick the Right Books and Organize Online Catalogs


DURHAM, NC--(Marketwire - Aug 31, 2011) - MetaMetrics®, developer of The Lexile® Framework for Reading, and LibraryThing are adding Lexile measures to the LibraryThing website and LibraryThing for Libraries.

Often described as "Facebook for Books," LibraryThing is an online cataloging and social networking site that connects users with the same books, allows them to share reading recommendations and offers suggestions for which books to read next. The addition of Lexile measures allows users to view books and build lists by reading level in LibraryThing, as well as in LibraryThing for Libraries through open public access catalog systems.

"Our users appreciate the unique value that Lexile measures offer in helping them pick the right books to read," said Tim Spalding, founder and developer of LibraryThing. MetaMetrics President and co-founder Malbert Smith III, Ph.D. added, "The real power of Lexile measures is in selecting books and building reading lists that support an individual's ability level and overall goals for reading growth. They provide LibraryThing users with important information about a book's overall complexity that will help them pick appropriately challenging titles to read, as well as make recommendations for others."

A book receives a Lexile measure when MetaMetrics analyzes the complete text using propriety software that evaluates its various dimensions. Lexile measures range from below 200L for beginning-reader text to above 1700L for more advanced text.

The Lexile Framework is a unique tool for accurately matching readers with text. Unlike other measurement systems, the Lexile Framework evaluates an individual's reading ability and growth based on actual assessments, rather than generalized age or grade levels. Lexile measures help teachers, librarians and parents find books, articles and other materials that are within a reader's recommended Lexile range: 100L below to 50L above his or her Lexile measure. Reading materials within this optimal Lexile range will challenge the individual's reading ability, while still maintaining interest and learning.

Recognized as the most widely used reading metric, more than 30 million Lexile measures are reported annually from reading assessments and programs, representing over half of U.S. students. For more information on the Lexile Framework and to search for books by Lexile measure, visit www.Lexile.com.

Launched in 2005, LibraryThing started as a personal book-cataloging tool. It now has nearly 1.4 million users with more than 66 million books and 79 million added book tags. Book data comes from Amazon.com and more than 690 libraries worldwide, including the Library of Congress. For more information and to register, visit www.librarything.com.

About LibraryThing
LibraryThing is a powerful tool to catalog a personal library. Users add books to their catalog by entering titles, authors or ISBN numbers. LibraryThing then searches the Library of Congress, all five national Amazon sites and more than 690 world libraries, and returns precise book data. Users can then edit the books in their catalog, tag them with their own keywords, and use the Library of Congress and Dewey Decimal systems to organize their collections.

LibraryThing is also an amazing social space. Because users catalog together, they can find other users with similar libraries and receive reading suggestions on common interests. LibraryThing also makes book recommendations based on the collective intelligence of other libraries. For more information, visit www.librarything.com.

About MetaMetrics
MetaMetrics (www.MetaMetricsInc.com), an educational measurement and research organization, develops scientific measures of student achievement and complementary technologies that link assessment with targeted instruction to improve learning. Our renowned psychometric team created the widely adopted Lexile Framework for Reading (www.Lexile.com); El Sistema Lexile para Leer, the Spanish-language version of the reading framework; The Quantile® Framework for Mathematics (www.Quantiles.com); and The Lexile Framework for Writing. In addition to licensing Lexile and Quantile measures to state departments of education, testing and instructional companies, and publishers, we offer professional development, resource measurement and customized consulting services. Connect with us at http://blog.lexile.com.

Contact Information:

For more information:
Eric Zurowski

919-547-3453