[AAACE-NLA] Announcement of Discussion on

[RKenyon721 at aol.com]

Hello,  
 



I am very pleased to  announce the Learning Disabilities Discussion List's 
next guest discussion  scheduled for September 22 and 23, 2008. The title of 
the discussion will be The Dyslexia Research Registry:  Making the Difference 
in Reading Research!  Dr. Megan (Dixon)  Bakan, Research Associate, Florida 
State University, will be our guest  speaker.  Please read the discussion 
information below. 

Guest's Bio: 
Megan (Dixon)  Bakan holds a Ph.D. from Florida State University in Cognitive 
Psychology.  Her research areas included reading, spelling, phonological and 
orthographic  processing and learning disabilities in adults and children. 
Megan obtained  her Master’s degree from Wright State University (Dayton, 
Ohio) in Applied  Behavioral Science. Her studies focused on teenage pregnancy 
and gerontology.  Her Bachelor’s degree is from Xavier University (Cincinnati, 
Ohio) in Psychology  with a Business minor. 


Megan became interested in  literacy and reading disabilities when working as 
the Volunteer Coordinator  at the Miami Valley Literacy Council in Dayton, 
OH. Through one-on-one tutoring  and assisting tutor-student pairs she became 
aware that many adult learners  appeared to have learning disabilities that 
impaired their ability to learn to  read and spell. During this time, she 
conducted research with Dr. Laura Weisel  using PowerPath and EMDR. 


Volunteering as a tutor and tutor  trainer in adult literacy has continued to 
be a passion of Megan’s  throughout her career. She has also created and 
conducted family literacy  workshops for Literacy Volunteers of Leon County 
(Tallahassee,  FL).

Currently, Megan is a  Research Associate for the Dyslexia Research Registry 
and Learning  Disability Center at Florida State University, funded by The 
National  Institutes of Child Health and Human Development. The Dyslexia 
Research Registry  operates in conjunction with the Florida Center for Reading 
Research. The  primary purpose of the Dyslexia Research Registry is to 
facilitate research in  the understanding of dyslexia by recruiting families who are 
interested in  volunteering for projects studying reading disabilities. 
Families are then  invited to participate in research studies. Current studies 
include Molecular  Genetic and Behavioral Studies of Profoundly-Impaired Readers.  


Outline for the Discussion  

I. What are the 4 regional  Learning Disability Centers (see below) 
funded by the National Institutes of  Health and what are they funded to do? 


Florida  Learning Disabilities Research Center 
Richard  Wagner, PhD, Florida State  University 

Northeast Learning Disabilities Research  Center 
    Laurie  Cutting, PhD, Kennedy Krieger Institute, Baltimore,  MD 

Colorado Learning Disabilities Research  Center 
    Richard  Olson, PhD, University of  Colorado 

Texas Learning Disabilities Research  Center 
    Jack  Fletcher, PhD, University of  Houston 

Questions for Consideration Leading Up to  the Discussion 

A. What is  the purpose of the regional Learning Disabilities  Centers? 
B. How do they  function? 
C. What specific services are offered  to adults and children with 
undiagnosed or diagnosed dyslexia through the  Learning Disabilities Centers?

II. What is the Dyslexia  Research Registry (DRR)? 


Questions for Consideration  Leading Up to the Discussion 

A. What is  the DRR’s relationship to the LD Center at Florida State  
University? 
B. How does the DRR facilitate  research in the understanding of dyslexia? 
C.  How does the DRR recruit families who have a child with severe 
reading  disabilities and who would like to participate in studies of  
dyslexia? 
D. What opportunities do families  receive to learn about each research 
project and then to  participate? 
E. What opportunities are there  for educators and other professionals to be 
involved in reading research and  assessing individual’s reading related 
skills? 
F. What  assessments are used by the DRR? 


III. What past research has come  out of the Dr. Richard Wagner’s Lab?

Questions Leading Up to  the Discussion 

A. Who is  Dr. Richard K. Wagner and what is his role with the  DRR? 
B. Why is more research needed to  understand dyslexia? 
C. What aspects of reading  development have been the focus for  research? 
D. What aspects of reading have been  researched by Dr. Wagner’s lab? 
E. What tests  have been developed to assess dyslexia? 
F. What  intensive remedial instruction for children with severe reading 
disabilities  is being provided? 
G. In the past decade, why  has there been a greater understanding of  how 
children and adults learn to read and why  some individuals have the 
difficulty learning  to read? 


IV. What are the current  research projects underway on genetics & dyslexia?  

Questions Leading Up to the  Discussion 

A. What  genetics research is now being done? 
B. How do  the family environment and heredity each play roles in  genetics? 
C. Is research looking for a  ‘dyslexia gene?” 


V. What resources are  available for your information? 

VI. Conclusion  


Please share this announcement  with your colleagues and those interested in 
this important topic. In order  to benefit and participate in the discussion, 
subscription to our free  Learning Disabilities Discussion List is required. 
Subscription can be  completed at 

_http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/Learningdisabilities_ 
(http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/Learningdisabilities)    

Thank you, 

Rochelle Kenyon,  Ed.D. 
Moderator, NIFL/LINCS Learning Disabilities Discussion List 
Center  for Literacy Studies at the University of Tennessee 
_RKenyon721 at aol.com_ (mailto:RKenyon721 at aol.com)  


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