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Retooling Literacy Education for the 21st Century: Key Findings of the Reading for Understanding Initiative and Their Implications Retooling Literacy Education for the Twenty-First Century: Key Findings of the Reading for Understanding Initiative and Their Implications RfU

Author(s):
Sabatini, John P.; O'Reilly, Tenaha; Doorey, Nancy A.
Publication Year:
2018
Source:
Policy Report of the ETS Center for Research on Human Capital and Education working with the Council of Chief State School Officers, June 2018
Document Type:
Report
Page Count:
40
Subject/Key Words:
Reading for Understanding (RfU), Literacy Education, Reading Comprehension, Reading Proficiency, Reading Instruction, Workforce Readiness, Scenario-Based Assessments, Component Assessments, Elementary Secondary Education, Pre-Kindergarten Education, Collaboration, Recommendations, Curriculum

Abstract

In May 2016, an invitational symposium on the Reading for Understanding (RfU) initiative was held in Alexandria, VA. Co-hosted by ETS and the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO), the symposium brought together some 160 state and local education leaders to examine the results of the Reading for Understanding Initiative. The goal of the U.S. Department of Education-sponsored initiative was to accelerate the research on reading across grades preK-12. In 2010, five grant projects were awarded to focus on learning and instruction, and one project on assessment. In this policy report, the authors begin by framing the need for a focused, national effort to achieve universal, advanced reading literacy, arguing that it is an issue of equity as well as individual and national prosperity. The second portion presents a discussion of practical recommendations for lead practitioners, summarizing key insights from the RfU Research Initiative, remaining research challenges, and policy and practice recommendations for enhancing reading achievement across the educational developmental span from pre-K to secondary school graduation. The presentations of the research teams and videos of concluding panel discussions from the symposium can be found here: https://www.ets.org/research/events/reading_for_understanding_symposium.

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