The School Board had the opportunity to discuss the Dyslexia program at GCISD during the April 27th Board meeting. We heard from 5 parents that faced many difficulties to get the School District to correctly diagnose and treat their children. We also heard from the GCISD Administration, where they stated their success in their reading intervention and Dyslexia programs, based on the performance of the students in the Reading TASK. The administration mentioned there are currently 44 students in their Dyslexia program, and over 1000 students receiving assistance through the reading intervention program.
I have to admit I am no expert in Dyslexia or Special Needs education. However, I love to analyze statistics, in order to compare our District performance with other districts, state and national levels. Many studies on this subject suggest the incidence of Dyslexia within school age children in the United States is between 5 - 10%, while other studies state a wider rate, falling in between 1% and 20%. This suggests the number of GCISD students in our Dyslexia program is too small (0.3% rate). This becomes more obvious when you look at other districts in DFW, like HEB, where they have 600 students in their program (3% incidence rate). HEB has a total of 20,000 students, while GCISD has close to 13,900. Using the incidence rate at HEB of 3%, our Dyslexia program should have over 400 students.
At the end of the discussion, the Board requested a review of this program, suggesting that we need to look at both its effectiveness and the process we use to diagnose our kids. I am looking forward to discussing the improvement plan for this program in the near future.
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Here are some experiences that I have had with interactions with my school, both postive and negative: 1. My teacher and reading specialist are fantastic and do all in their power to work with my student, but the teacher should be available to all her students and not have to focus on one or two students for Tier II or III intervention. The Reading Specialist should be given development opportunities to be trained as a Certified Language Specialist. 2. TAKS cannot be considered a mode of appropriate evaluation for dyslexia remediation. Researched-based evaluations exist for this purpose. 3. Early interventions like Reading Resource do not "fix" dyslexia or remediate enough. Only Certified Language Therapists can truly remediate. 4. Many students have dysgraphia associated with spelling and handwriting. Remediation for this learning difference is not met under any of the current instructional techniques offered at GCISD schools. This is why my student will be required to attend the Key School both this summer and next summer to remediate in Reading, Math, Spelling, and Handwriting. 5. With the dyslexia program couched under the English Language Arts, there is no consideration for dyslexia-related Math issues. Current use of Math "tutors" are not effective remediation. Thank you for this opportunity!
ReplyDeleteCorrect diagnosis and treatment effectiveness are areas the Board asked the GCISD administration to review in our last Board meeting. Your comment on the Math issue while having the dyslexia program under the English Language Arts is great feedback.
ReplyDeleteOne question for you and other readers that have experience with dyslexia is, what is the best source of information in terms of this condition, its diagnosis and treatment? I did some research before the last Board meeting, but I definitely would like to learn more. I know I can "Google it" and find tons of sources, but if you know of a good source, please let us know.
I must have for understanding the ins and outs of Dyslexia is Dr. Sally Shaywitz, "Overcoming Dyslexia." The book is well indexed and can be easily used as a reference or read cover to cover as time permits. You indicated to me you've already taken the next great step: you met with the Director of Dyslexia at Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children. They are too modest to claim to be the best; but, among their peers in professional circles, they are recognized as "the leader" in the field of Dyslexia research. This link is fairly old, but the information is still good, "Overcoming Dyslexia" a chat with Dr. Sally Shaywitz http://www.greatschools.net/cgi-bin/showarticle/2758 on the great schools page.
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