About
the National Reading Panel (NRP)
Congressional
Charge to the National Reading Panel
Calendar No. 125
105th Congress lst Session
SENATE Report 105-58
Departments of Labor,
Health and Human Services, and Education and Related
Agencies Appropriation Bill, 1998
July 24, 1997.-Ordered
to be printed.
Mr. Specter, from the
Committee on Appropriations, submitted the following
REPORT
(To accompany S. 1061)
The Committee on Appropriations reports
the bill (S. 1061) making appropriations for Departments
of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education and
related agencies for the fiscal year ending September
30, 1998, and for other purposes, reports favorably
thereon and recommends that the bill do pass.
86
Reading development and disability.-The
Committee is impressed with the important accomplishments
reported from the NICHD research program on reading
development and disability, and is eager to have this
information brought to the attention of educators, policymakers,
and parents. Noting the fact that the NICHD is already
collaborating with the Department of Education, the
Committee urges the Director of the NICHD in consultation
with the Secretary of Education, to convene a national
panel to assess the status of research-based knowledge,
including the effectiveness of various approaches to
teaching children to read. The Committee recommends
that the panel be comprised of 15 individuals, who are
not officers or employees of the Federal Government
and include leading scientists in reading research,
representatives of colleges of education, reading teachers,
educational administrators, and parents. Based on its
findings, the panel should present a report to the Secretary
of Health and Human Services, the Secretary of Education,
and the appropriate congressional committees. The report
should present the panel's conclusions, an indication
of the readiness for application in the classroom of
the results of this research, and, if appropriate, a
strategy for rapidly disseminating this information
to facilitate effective reading instruction in the schools.
If found warranted, the panel should also recommend
a plan for additional research regarding early reading
development and instruction. The Committee looks forward
to discussing the findings of the report during the
hearing on the fiscal year 1999 budget.
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