National Reading Panel Reports of the Subgroups

Congressional Charge 1997 Congress asked NICHD to convene a national panel to assess the status of research-based knowledge, including the effectiveness of various approaches to teaching reading.

National Panel The National Reading Panel was composed of 14 individuals, including as specified by Congress, leading scientists in reading research, representatives of colleges of education, reading teachers, administrators and parents.

The panels initial task involved selection of the set of topics to be addressed. The work of the National Research Council Committee was considered. Subgroups were formed and panel members assigned to a research group.

Topics to Be Studied Alphabetics –Phonemic Awareness –Phonics Instruction

Fluency Comprehension –Vocabulary Instruction –Text Comprehension

Teacher Preparation and Comprehension Strategies Instruction Teacher Education and Reading Instruction Computer Technology and Reading Instruction

Format Executive Summary Introduction Methodology Results and Discussion Implications for Reading Instruction Directions for Further Research

Following the Executive Summary is the full report of the committee which basically follows the same format as the summary.

Findings Phonemic Awareness –Phonemic awareness can/should be taught –Phonemic awareness aids in spelling –PA training contributes significantly to beginning reading and spelling instruction but it is not a program in itself

Phonics Systematic phonics is most effective Phonics taught early is more effective than introduced after 1 st grade Phonics proved beneficial for at risk readers

Fluency Fluency can be taught via repeated oral reading with feedback Children who do not develop fluency will continue to be slow readers Independent silent reading was not found to increase fluency

Vocabulary Vocabulary should be taught directly and indirectly Multiple exposures to vocabulary are most effective Learning in rich contexts contributes to vocabulary Active engagement contributes to vocabulary growth

Text Comprehension Strategy instruction is effective when teachers demonstrate, explain, model, and implement interaction with students in teaching them how to comprehend text. Pages through list effective strategies

Minority Report Narrow conceptualization of the field excluding language and literature Insufficient time and personnel to cover the assignment Limited usefulness to teachers/administrators/parents

The research on language development, pre-reading literary knowledge, understanding of the conventions of print, and all other early experiences of children should have been addressed.

Implications for practice were not fully assessed. Outside teacher reviewers should have been brought in to critique the work.

Finally………………… The work of the NRP was not of poor quality; it is just unbalanced and to some extent, irrelevant. Unfortunately, because of these deficiencies, bad things will happen. Policy will be made based on small bites of the report. Joanne Yatvin, Oregon Trail Schools