Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 122.djvu/3522

 12 2 STA T .349 9 PUBLIC LA W 11 0– 31 5— AU G .14 , 200 8SEC.1 11 5 .S TUDYOF T H E IMPA CT OF STUDE N T L OAN DE B T ON PUBLIC SE RV ICE. (a)STUDY.—The Se cr e t ar yofEdu cat i o n, in con s u l tation w ith the O ffice of M ana g e m ent and B udget, is authori z ed to coordinate with an organization with e xp ertise in the field of pu b lic ser v ice, such as the N ational A cademy of P ublic Administrators or the American Society for Public Administration, to coordinate with interested parties to conduct a study of how student loan debt levels impact the decisions of graduates of postsecondary and grad - uate education programs to enter into public service careers. Such study shall include— ( 1 ) an assessment of the challenges to recruiting and retaining well- q ualified public servants, including the impact of student loan debt ( 2 ) an evaluation of existing F ederal programs to recruit and retain well-qualified public servants; ( 3 ) an evaluation of whether additional Federal programs could increase the number of graduates of postsecondary and graduate education programs who enter careers in public service; and ( 4 ) recommendations for programs that could encourage new graduates of postsecondary and graduate education pro- grams to enter public service careers. (b) REPOR T.—Not later than one year after the date of enact- ment of this Act, the Secretary of Education, in consultation with the Office of Management and Budget, shall submit to the author- izing committees a report related to the findings of the study conducted under subsection (a). SEC. 111 6 . STUDY ON TEACHIN G STUDENTS W ITH READING DISABIL - ITIES. (a) IN DEPENDENT E VAL UAT I ON.—The Secretary of Education shall enter into an agreement with the C enter for Education of the National Academies for a scientifically-based study of the quality of teacher education programs— (1) to determine if teachers are adequately prepared to meet the needs of students with reading and language proc- essing disabilities, including dyslexia; and (2) to determine the extent to which teacher education programs are based on the essential components of reading instruction and scientifically valid research. (b) CO M PONENT S .—The study conducted under subsection (a) shall be designed to provide statistically reliable information on— (1) the number, type of courses, and credit hours required to meet the requirements of reading degree programs of teacher education programs; and (2) the extent to which the content of the reading degree programs are based on— (A) the essential components of reading instruction and scientifically valid research, including phonemic aware- ness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension; and (B) early intervention strategies based on scientific evidence concerning challenges to the development of lan- guage processing capacity, including dyslexia, and the extent to which such strategies are effective in preventing reading failure before it occurs. Contrac t s.De a dli ne.

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