Assessing Reading in the 21st Century Conference: Aligning and Applying Advances in the Reading and Measurement Sciences

What is reading comprehension? How do we define it? How do we measure it? How do we improve it? Educators, researchers, and policymakers across the United States are grappling with these questions. To tackle these issues around reading, the Educational Testing Service organized a conference that examined these questions by bringing together scholars from different research traditions, who often do not communicate directly, to present emerging research and models of reading and reading assessment. The primary questions addressed at this conference concerned how to align advances in reading science and measurement with the applied assessment practices that govern school and policy level decision-making.