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Professionals, advocates and families from all over Texas are encouraging the State Board of Education to improve on the systems that public school boards use to identify, evaluate and assist students with literacy differences and dyslexia.
The state has faced criticism from the public for a number of years for not providing what are seen as adequate resources for students who struggle with literacy. During the past legislative session, a grassroots movement comprised of families, educators and dyslexia advocates entreated lawmakers to pass a bill that would have set in stone what criteria school districts would have to meet when it came to evaluating students who were suspected to have dyslexia.
School districts in Texas have a choice of two routes to follow when faced with a child who looks like they might have dyslexia. There’s a full special education evaluation enacted through the federal Individual With Disabilities Education Act (ADEA), or a programme called Section 504. IDEA is preferred by many industry professions as it provides a more comprehensive overview of an individual’s abilities, and opens up access to a much broader range of support services for students. Had the bill passed, it would have bought Texas into alignment with federal law, however the proposed legislation faltered and was not progressed when the House and the Senate weren’t able to agree on terms and changes before the end of the session.
But one 11-year-old with dyslexia isn’t giving up.
After watching children her own age testify in from of seasoned lawmakers in an attempt to get the bill passed, Olivia Traynor looked on with disappointment as it became apparent that children just like her weren’t going to benefit from the widespread implementation of IDEA. By the time she was in fifth grade, Olivia was able to read at only a second grade level - and although both her mom had recommended additional services and her teachers recommended her for an evaluation, no support ever appeared on the horizon.
It was only when her parents pulled her from public grade education and enrolled her in a paid private school that her reading and writing skills began catching up with her peers. After ten weeks of private education that gave her the support and the strategies that she needed, Olivia was reading at grade level – and they had a major impact on her mental health too. “It makes me feel like I’m actually smart,” she said, speaking to Spectrum News. “Because I didn’t really think I was.”
Olivia has decided to share her story in front of the State Board of Education in the hopes that it’ll make them more aware of the struggles that the 250,000 students with dyslexia in the state of Texas face when it comes to being supported as they learn. The board is currently in the process of revising the state’s guidelines for screening, evaluating and providing services for students who have dyslexia, and both Olivia and her family hope that they’ll see positive change happen.
“The things that we’ve had to do would be near impossible for most kids,” said Amy Traynor, Olivia’s mom, speaking about their decision to pay for Olivia’s education privately. “Expecting our schools to teach kids how to read is not asking too much.”
