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NARAP Update

July 2005

• Focus Groups
• PARA Technical Advisory Meeting
• Definition Panel Meeting
• GAC Meeting in October

Focus Groups

The focus group process to review the three draft definitions generated by the Definition Panel is coming to a close. During June and July, NARAP held teleconference focus groups with members of disability-specific organizations to gain feedback on how disability groups respond to the definitions. NARAP staff talked to members of TASH, The Arc, National Down Syndrome Society, Center for Applied Linguistics, and PACER. A final focus group will be held online with experts from the Gallaudet Research Institute. NARAP will produce a final report on the focus groups later in the summer, and the information garnered from the focus groups will help shape the final definition work in the fall.

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PARA Technical Advisory Meeting

The Partnership for Accessible Reading Assessment (PARA) project held its first Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) meeting on June 28 th in Washington, DC. Michael Kamil (Stanford University), Carina Wong (Pennsylvania), Lizanne DeStefano (University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign), and Scott Paris (University of Michigan) met in Washington with PARA staff, while Joanna Williams (Columbia University), Sharon Vaughn (University of Texas, Austin), and Paul Sandifer (South Carolina) joined the meeting via teleconference. Steve Sireci (University of Massachusetts) was unable to attend. The TAC reviewed PARA’s recent activities, including its reports on accommodations, state reading standards, and disabilities as they affect reading, and provided valuable input on the project’s research plans. The minutes and PowerPoint slides from the meeting will be available on PARA’s website.

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Definition Panel Meeting

The next meeting of the NARAP Definition Panel is scheduled for September 19–20 in Washington, DC. In advance of the meeting, NARAP staff will produce a draft document identifying reading proficiency statements for grades 4 and 8, as well as a synthesis document that will explain the research and decision-making behind the definition, discuss key terms, and review appropriate literature. The Panel will review both documents as it concludes its work on the project’s definition of reading.

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GAC Meeting in October

The NARAP General Advisory Committee will meet in Washington, DC on Monday, October 17. More details on the location and agenda of the meeting will be announced in early autumn.

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