Dyslexia
The Dyslexia Program Awareness overview provides information for educators and parents about dyslexia in the State of Texas.
What is Dyslexia?
The current definition from the International Dyslexia Association states: Dyslexia is a specific learning disability that is neurobiological in origin. It is characterized by difficulties with accurate and/or fluent word recognition and by poor spelling and decoding abilities. These difficulties typically result from a deficit in the phonological component of language that is often unexpected in relation to other cognitive abilities and the provision of effective classroom instruction. Secondary consequences may include problems in reading comprehension and reduced reading experience that can impede growth of vocabulary and background knowledge.
Questions for Determining Dyslexia
Do the data show the following characteristics of dyslexia?
Difficulty with accurate and/or fluent word reading
Poor spelling skills
Poor decoding ability
Do these difficulties (typically) result from a deficit in the phonological component of language?
Are these difficulties unexpected for the student’s age in relation to the student’s other cognitive abilities and provision of effective classroom instruction?
Common Risk Factors of Dyslexia
Preschool – 3rd Grade
Failure to understand that words are made up of parts or individual sounds
Difficulty learning the letter names and their corresponding sounds
Difficulty reading single words in isolation
Difficulty reading fluently
Difficulty spelling phonetically
Fourth Grade – High School
History of reading and spelling difficulties
Difficulty reading aloud
Avoids reading for pleasure
Difficulty learning a foreign language
Postsecondary
Difficulty with spoken vocabulary
Difficulty completing the reading demands for multiple course requirements
IDEA/ 504 / RTL
IDEA: Ensures that all children with disabilities have available to them a free appropriate public education. Provides individual supplemental educational services and supports in addition to what is provided to students in the general curriculum to ensure that the child has access to and benefits from the general curriculum.
Section 504: Provides equal opportunity eligible students with disabilities when compared to their non-disabled peers. Provides support and interventions through general education.
Response to Intervention (RTI): A multistep or tiered approach to providing services and interventions at increasing levels of intensity to students who struggle with learning.
School District/ Charter School Requirements
Texas Education Code §38.003: Students enrolling in public schools shall be screened or tested for dyslexia at appropriate times. The board of trustees of each school district or charter school shall provide for the treatment (i.e., instruction) of any student determined to have dyslexia.
Texas Administrative Code §74.28:
A school district or charter school shall purchase or develop its own reading program for students with dyslexia, as long as the program is characterized by the descriptors found in The State Dyslexia Handbook ~ Revised 2018.
Who Delivers Instruction?
A certified teacher who has been trained in dyslexia and related disorders and the curriculum of instruction.
Possible Accommodations to be Determined by Committee
Copies of notes (e.g., teacher- or peer provided)
Note-taking assistance
Additional time on class assignments and tests
Reduced/shortened assignments (e.g., chunking assignments into manageable units, fewer items given on a classroom test or homework assignment without eliminating concepts, or student planner to assist with assignments)
Alternative test location that provides a quiet environment and reduces distractions
Priority seating assignment
Oral reading of directions or written material
Adaptive learning tools and features in software programs
Electronic dictionaries
Word banks
Audiobooks
Text to speech
Speech to text
Electronic spellers
Formula charts
Additional Resources