Scene set for 51st Annual Convention

Two days of preconvention activities have set the stage for the official opening on Monday of IRA's 51st Annual Convention, with large numbers of conferees attending the Reading Research 2006 conference on Saturday and the Institutes on Sunday.

Michael Pressley delivered his keynote speech for the research conference via videotape because he is seriously ill, and it was received by the assembled researchers as a poignant professional farewell from a respected colleague. But his talk focused on the future of the reading field. He reviewed his own research on the characteristics of schools that teach reading effectively, and repeatedly stressed the need for more such work and the importance of professional development. "Good teachers," he said, "believe they have to continue to learn."

Some 700 conferees attended the research conference. Many more arrived on Sunday for the Institutes, in which day-long sessions focus on a variety of particular subjects. Another popular convention feature that opened on Sunday was the IRA Marketplace.