Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 112 Part 4.djvu/421

 PUBLIC LAW 105-277—OCT. 21, 1998 112 STAT. 2681-392 "(A) as soon as the child is ready to read; or "(B) as soon as possible once the child enters school, but not later than 3d grade. "(3) To improve the reading skills of students, and the instructional practices for current teachers (and, as appropriate, other instructional stafD who teach reading, through the use of findings from scientifically based reading research, including findings relating to phonemic awareness, systematic phonics, fluency, and reading comprehension. "(4) To expand the number of high-quality family hteracy programs. "(5) To provide early literacy intervention to children who are experiencing reading difficulties in order to reduce the number of children who are incorrectly identified as a child with a disability and inappropriately referred to special education. "SEC. 2252. DEFINITIONS. 20 USC 6661a. "For piirposes of this part: "(1) ELIGIBLE PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT PROVIDER.— The term 'eligible professional development provider' means a provider of professional development in reading instruction to teachers tiiat is based on scientifically based reading research. "(2) FAMILY LITERACY SERVICES.—The term 'family literacy services' means services provided to participants on a voluntary basis that are of sufficient intensity in terms of hours, and of sufficient duration, to make sustainable changes in a family, and that integrate all of the following activities: "(A) Interactive literacy activities between parents and their children. "(B) Training for parents regarding how to be the primary teacher for their children and lull partners in the education of their children. "(C) Parent literacy training that leads to economic self-sufficiency. "(D) An age-appropriate education to prepare children for success in school and life experiences. "(3) INSTRUCTIONAL STAFF, —The term 'instructional staff*— "(A) means individuals who have responsibility for teaching children to read; and "(B) includes principals, teachers, supervisors of instruction, librarians, library school media specialists, teachers of academic subjects other than reading, and other individuals who have responsibility for assisting children to learn to read. "(4) READING. —The term 'reading' means a complex system of deriving meaning from print that requires all of the following: "(A) The skills and knowledge to understand how phonemes, or speech sounds, are connected to print. "(B) The ability to decode unfamiliar words. "(C) The ability to read fluently. "(D) Sufficient background information and vocabulary to foster reading comprehension. "(E) The development of appropriate active strategies to construct meaning from print. "(F) The development and maintenance of a motivation to read.

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