Understanding Dyslexia Guidance for Parents and Teachers: A Review of States' Handbooks

Abstract

Most U.S. states have laws related to supporting students with dyslexia, including dyslexia screening, intervention, and teacher training. Additionally, 40 states have published dyslexia handbooks that include information about defining dyslexia, screening, core instruction, intervention, and progress monitoring. This study utilized a qualitative content analysis to identify the major topics and themes included in these handbooks. Results showed that most of the handbooks included details about the intended audience, defining dyslexia, methods of assessment, types of instruction and intervention, information for parents, and additional resources. Dominant themes in the handbook content were translating research to practice, educator focus, intervention over instruction, and a lack of information related to multilingual learners. The findings suggest that the current handbooks offer consistent information about the definition and features of dyslexia but do not always include information from research-based practices to support students with dyslexia.

Keywords

dyslexia legislation handbook state guidance specific learning disability

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Al Otaiba

Petscher

(2020). Identifying and serving students with learning disabilities, including dyslexia in the context of multitiered supports and response to intervention. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 53(5), 327–31. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022219420943691

Anderson

(2021). Advancing school professionals’ dyslexia knowledge through neuroscience: Bridging the science-education gap through developmental psychology. Frontiers in Education, 5, https://doi.org/10.3389/feduc.2020.615791

Barnes

Z. T.

Peltier

T. K.

(2022). Translating the science of reading screening into practice: Policies and their implications. Perspectives on Language and Literacy, 48(1), 38–44.

Brown-Chidsey

Bickford

(2016). Practical handbook of multi-tiered systems of support: Building academic and behavioral success in schools. Guilford Press.

Burns

M. K.

VanDerHeyden

A. M.

Duesenberg-Marshall

M. D.

Romero

M. E.

Stevens

M. A.

Izumi

J. T.

McCollom

E. M.

(2023). Decision accuracy of commonly used dyslexia screeners among students who are potentially at-risk for Reading difficulties. Learning Disability Quarterly, 46(4), 306–316. https://doi.org/10.1177/07319487221096684

Catts

H. W.

Nielsen

D. C.

Bridges

M. S.

Liu

Y. S.

Bontempo

D. E.

(2015). Early identification of Reading disabilities within an RTI framework. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 48(3), 281–97. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022219413498115

Catts

H. W.

Petscher

(2022). A cumulative risk and resilience model of dyslexia. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 55(3), 171–84. https://doi.org/10.1177/00222194211037062

Cook

B. G.

Cook

S. C.

(2011). Unraveling evidence-based practices in special education. The Journal of Special Education, 47(2), 71–82. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022466911420877

Coyne

M. D.

Oldham

Leonard

Burns

Gage

(2016). Delving into the details: Implementing K-3 reading supports in high-priority schools. In Foorman

(Ed.), Challenges to implementing effective reading intervention in schools. New Directions for Child and Adolescent Development, 154 (pp. 67–85). Wiley. http://doi.org/10.1002/cad.20175

10.

Deno

S. L.

(2012). Problem solving assessment. In Brown-Chidsey

Andren

(Eds.), Assessment for intervention: A problem-solving approach (2^nd ed., pp. 10–36). Guilford Press.

11.

Donovan

S. L.

Odegard

T. N.

Farris

E. A.

Flipse

J. L.

(2022). Testing the impact of online training in areas of Reading instruction on educator knowledge. Reading & Writing, 35(1), 199–221. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11145-021-10179-w

12.

Ferrer

Shaywitz

B. A.

Holahan

J. M.

Shaywitz

S. E.

(2022). Family history is not useful in screening children for dyslexia. Journal of Pediatric Neuropsychology, 8(1), 15–21. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40817-021-00110-0

13.

Fletcher

J. M.

Francis

D. J.

Foorman

B. R.

Schatschneider

(2021). Early detection of dyslexia risk: Development of brief, teacher-administered screens. Learning Disability Quarterly, 44(3), 145–57. https://doi.org/10.1177/0731948720931870

14.

Gaab

Petscher

(2022). Screening for early literacy milestones and reading disabilities: The why, when, whom, how, and where. Perspectives on Language and Literacy, 48(1), 11–8.

15.

Gearin

Turtura

Kame’enui

E. J.

Nelson

N. J.

Fein

(2020). A multiple streams analysis of recent changes to state-level dyslexia education law. Educational Policy, 34(7), 1036–68. https://doi.org/10.1177/0895904818807328

16.

Georgiou

G. K.

Parrila

McArthur

(2024). Dyslexia and mental health problems: introduction to the special issue. Annals of Dyslexia, 74, 1–3. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11881-024-00300-3

17.

Glaser

B. G.

Strauss

A. L.

(1967). The discovery of grounded theory: Strategies for qualitative research. Aldine Press.

18.

Grote-Garcia

Ortlieb

(2023). What’s hot in literacy: The duality of explicit instruction & cultural and linguistic considerations. Literacy Research and Instruction, 62(1), 1–15. https://doi.org/10.1080/19388071.2023.2162207

19.

Hall

Dahl-Leonard

Cho

Solari

E. J.

Capin

Conner

C. L.

Henry

A. R.

Cook

Hayes

Vargas

Richmond

C. L.

Kehoe

K. F.

(2023). Forty years of reading intervention research for elementary students with or at risk for dyslexia: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Reading Research Quarterly, 58, 285–312. https://doi.org/10.1002/rrq.477

20.

Hanford

(2022). Sold a story: How teaching kids to read went so wrong [Audio podcast]. American Public Media. https://features.apmreports.org/sold-a-story/

21.

International Dyslexia Association. (2023). Knowledge and practice standards for teachers of reading. https://dyslexiaida.org/knowledge-and-practices/

22.

Kaye

E. L.

Lozada

Briggs

(2022). Early identification of and intervention for children with and without dyslexia characteristics: A comparison study. Literacy Research and Instruction, 61(3), 298–313. https://doi.org/10.1080/19388071.2022.2059418

23.

Komesidou

Feller

M. J.

Wolter

J. A.

Ricketts

Rasner

M. G.

Putman

C. A.

Hogan

T. P.

(2022). Educators’ perceptions of barriers and facilitators to the implementation of screeners for developmental language disorder and dyslexia. Journal of Research in Reading, 45(3), 277–98. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-9817.12381

24.

Linan-Thompson

Ortiz

Cavazos

(2022). An examination of MTSS assessment and decision making practices for English learners. School Psychology Review, 51(4), 484–97. https://doi.org/10.1080/2372966X.2021.2001690

25.

Miciak

Fletcher

J. M.

(2020). The critical role of instructional response for identifying dyslexia and other learning disabilities. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 53(5), 343–53. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022219420906801

26.

Middleton

A. E.

Farris

E. A.

Ring

J. J.

Odegard

T. N.

(2022). Predicting and evaluating treatment response: Evidence toward protracted response patterns for severely impacted students with dyslexia. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 55(4), 272–91. https://doi.org/10.1177/00222194211047633

27.

Miles

M. B.

Huberman

A. M.

Saldana

(2019). Qualitative data analysis: A methods sourcebook (4th ed.). Sage publications.

28.

Morrison

J. Q.

Hawkins

R. O.

Collins

T. A.

(2019). Evaluating the cost-effectiveness of the dyslexia pilot project: A multitiered system of supports for early literacy. Psychology in the Schools, 57, 522–39. https://doi.org/10.1002/pits.22343

29.

Mullikin

Stransky

Tendulkar

Casey

Kosinski

(2021). Informal preparation and years of experience: Key correlates of dyslexia knowledge among Massachusetts early elementary teachers. Dyslexia, 27(4), 510–24. https://doi.org/10.1002/dys.1701

30.

National Center for Education Statistics. (2023). English Learners in public schools. In Condition of education. U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences. https://nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/indicator/cgf

31.

National Center on Improving Literacy. (2024). State of dyslexia . https://improvingliteracy.org/state-of-dyslexia

32.

Odegard

T. N.

Farris

E. A.

Middleton

A. E.

Oslund

Rimrodt-Frierson

(2020). Characteristics of students identified with dyslexia within the context of state legislation. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 53(5), 366–79. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022219420914551

33.

Petscher

Fien

Stanley

Gearin

Gaab

Fletcher

J. M.

Johnson

(2019). Screening for dyslexia. U.S. Department of Education, Office of Elementary and Secondary Education, Office of Special Education Programs, National Center on Improving Literacy. https://improvingliteracy.org/sites/improvingliteracy2.uoregon.edu/files/whitepaper/screening-for-dyslexia.pdf

34.

Reading League. (n.d.). What is the science of reading? https://www.thereadingleague.org/what-is-the-science-of-reading/

35.

Sadusky

Berger

E. P.

Reupert

A. E.

Freeman

N. C.

(2022). Methods used by psychologists for identifying dyslexia: A systematic review. Dyslexia, 28(2), 132–48. https://doi.org/10.1002/dys.1706

36.

Savin-Baden

Major

C. H.

(2013). Qualitative research: The essential guide to theory and practice. Routledge.

37.

Schraeder

Fox

Mohn

(2021). K-2 principal knowledge (not leadership) matters for dyslexia intervention. Dyslexia, 27(4), 525–47. https://doi.org/10.1002/dys.1690

38.

Shanahan

(2020). What constitutes a science of Reading instruction? Reading Research Quarterly, 55(S1), S235–47. https://doi.org/10.1002/rrq.349

39.

Shaywitz

S. E.

Shaywitz

J. E.

Shaywitz

B. A.

(2021). Dyslexia in the 21st century. Current Opinion in Psychiatry, 34(2), 80. https://journals.lww.com/co-psychiatry/Abstract/2021/03000/Dyslexia_in_the_21st_century.3.aspx https://doi.org/10.1097/YCO.0000000000000670

40.

Silverman

(1993). Interpreting qualitative data: Methods for analysing talk, text, and interaction. Sage Publications.

41.

Stemler

(2001). An overview of content analysis. Practical Assessment, Research & Evaluation, 7(17), 1–6.

42.

Sullivan

A. L.

(2011). Disproportionality in special education identification and placement of English language learners. Exceptional Children, 77(3), 317–34. https://doi.org/10.1177/001440291107700304

43.

U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs. (2015, October). OSEP dear colleague letter on IDEA/IEP terms. https://sites.ed.gov/idea/idea-files/osep-dear-colleague-letter-on-ideaiep-terms/

44.

Wagner

R. K.

Lonigan

C. J.

(2023). Early identification of children with dyslexia: Variables differentially predict poor reading versus unexpected poor reading. Reading Research Quarterly, 58(2), 188–202. https://doi.org/10.1002/rrq.480

45.

Wilmot

Pizzey

Leitão

Hasking

Boyes

(2023). Growing up with dyslexia: Child and parent perspectives on school struggles, self-esteem, and mental health. Dyslexia, 29(1), 40–54. https://doi.org/10.1002/dys.1729

46.

Wolcott

H. F.

(1994). Transforming qualitative data: Description, analysis, and interpretation. Sage Publications.

47.

Zirkel

P. A.

(2020). Legal developments for students with dyslexia. Learning Disability Quarterly, 43(3), 127–39. https://doi.org/10.1177/0731948720931538

48.

Zuk

Dunstan

Norton

Ozernov-Palchik

Wang

Hogan

T. P.

Gabrieli

J. D. E.

Gaab

(2021). Multifactorial pathways facilitate resilience among kindergarteners at risk for dyslexia: A longitudinal behavioral and neuroimaging study. Developmental Science, 24(1), e12983. https://doi.org/10.1111/desc.12983