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Technical Assistance Bulletin MARYLAND STATE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

DIVISION OF SPECIAL EDUCATION/EARLY INTERVENTION SERVICES

Birth–4 Birth–K Three–5 Three–21 Birth–21

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Maryland State Department of Education, November 7, 2016 1

SPECIFIC LEARNING DISABILITY & SUPPLEMENT

(Focus On: Dyslexia, Dyscalculia, and Dysgraphia)

Issued:November7,2016Specificlearningdisability(SLD)isoneofthe13categoriesofdisabilityrecognizedbytheIndividualswithDisabilitiesEducationAct(IDEA),20U.S.C.§1400;34CFRPart300.SLDistheonlydisabilitycategoryforwhichtheIDEAestablishesspecialevaluationproceduresinadditiontothegeneralevaluationproceduresthatareusedforallstudentswithdisabilities.InordertoassistIndividualizedEducationProgram(IEP)teamswithevaluationofstudents,thisTechnicalAssistanceBulletinprovidesabriefoverviewoftherelevantevaluationprocedures,aswellasillustrativeexamplesofacademicdifficultiesthatmayformthebasisofaSLDdeterminationifastudentmeetsallothercriteriaundertheIDEAandrequirestheprovisionofspeciallydesignedinstruction.Inaddition,asupplement,FocusOnDyslexia,Dyscalculia,andDysgraphia,isincludedtohighlightthat,whereappropriate,theIEPteammayfindithelpfultoincludeinformationaboutaspecificconditionunderlyingastudent’sdisability.

1. What is a specific learning disability? Bydefinition,specificlearningdisabilitymeansadisorderinoneormoreofthebasicpsychologicalprocessesinvolvedinunderstandingorinusinglanguage,spokenorwritten,thatmaymanifestitselfintheimperfectabilitytolisten,think,speak,read,write,spell,ordomathematicalcalculations,consistentwithMarylandStateDepartmentofEducation(MSDE)criteria.AfullexplanationofthecriteriatobeusedforaSLDdeterminationiscontainedinATieredInstructionalApproachtoSupportAchievementforAllStudents:Maryland’sResponsetoInterventionFramework(June2008),whichcanbeaccessedonlineatthefollowinglink:

http://marylandpublicschools.org/NR/rdonlyres/D182E222-D84B-43D8-BB81-6F4C4F7E05F6/17125/Tiered_Instructional_ApproachRtI_June2008.pdf

SLDincludes,butisnotlimitedto,conditionssuchasperceptualdisabilities,braininjury,minimalbraindysfunction,dyslexia,anddevelopmentalaphasia.Giventhatthisisnotanexhaustivelist,otherconditionsmayalsoformthebasisforaSLDdeterminationifallothercriteriaundertheIDEAaremetandthestudentrequirestheprovisionofspeciallydesignedinstruction.Withregardtooneitemthatisonthelist,braininjury,pleasenotethat“traumaticbraininjury”isadistinctdisabilitycategoryundertheIDEA.Lastly,thedefinitionofSLDdoesnotincludelearningproblems,whichareprimarilytheresultofvisual,hearing,ormotorimpairments,intellectualdisability,emotionaldisability,orenvironmental,cultural,oreconomicdisadvantage.

Authority: 34 CFR § 300.8; COMAR 13A.05.01.03B(73)

2. Who determines that a student has a specific learning disability? TheIEPteamdetermineswhetherastudenthasaSLDbycompletingtheevaluationprocessandcarefullyconsideringtheeligibilitycriteriaundertheIDEA,withinputfromallmembersoftheteam.Asisthecasewithanyotherdisabilitydetermination,theIEPteamconsistsofvariousschoolpersonnel,thestudent’sparentorguardian,and,asappropriate,thestudent.Whencompilingthe

Division of Special Education/Early Intervention Services Technical Assistance Bulletin Specific Learning Disability & Supplement (Focus On Dyslexia, Dyscalculia, and Dysgraphia)

Maryland State Department of Education–11/7/2016 2

membersoftheIEPteam,itisimportanttoconsidertheareasofsuspecteddisabilitysotheteamisknowledgeableaboutthestudent’sneeds.CertainqualifiedprofessionalsareexpresslyrequiredinorderfortheIEPteamtomakeaSLDdetermination.ForthepurposesofaSLDdetermination,theIEPteammustinclude:1)thestudent’sgeneraleducationteacher;2)ifthestudentdoesnothaveageneraleducationteacher,ageneraleducationclassroomteacherqualifiedtoteachastudentofthatage;or3)forachildoflessthanschoolage,anindividualqualifiedbytheMSDEtoteachachildofthatage.Inaddition,theIEPteammustincludeatleastonepersonqualifiedtoconductindividualdiagnosticexaminationsofstudents,suchasaschoolpsychologist,speech-languagepathologist,orreadingteacher.Thesamepersonmayconductmultiplediagnostics,providedheorsheisqualifiedtoconducteach.

Authority: 34CFR§300.308;COMAR13A.05.01.06D(7)

3. What area(s) of academic achievement may be impacted by a SLD? TheIEPteammaydeterminethatastudenthasaSLDifthestudentdoesnotachieveadequatelyforthestudent’sageormeetState-approvedgradelevelstandardswhenprovidedwithlearningexperiencesappropriateforthestudent’sageandabilitylevelsinoneormoreofthefollowingareas:1)oralexpression;2)listeningcomprehension;3)basicreadingskills;4)readingfluencyskills;5)readingcomprehension;6)writtenexpression;7)mathematicscalculation;or8)mathematicsproblemsolving.Inshort,theIEPteamislookingforinadequateachievement,despiteappropriateinstruction,inlistening,speaking,reading,writing,andmath.Authority: 34CFR§300.309;COMAR13A.05.01.06D(2)(a)

4. How does an IEP team determine that a student’s achievement has been inadequate? MarylandhasadoptedtwoprocessesthroughwhichanIEPteamcandeterminethatastudent’sachievementisinadequateandformsthebasisforaSLD.TheIEPteammayconsiderevaluativedataandappropriateassessmentstodeterminewhetherthestudent:

1) doesnotmakesufficientprogresstomeetageorState-approvedgrade-levelstandardsinoneormoreofthe8academicareaswhenusingaprocessbasedonthestudent’sresponsetoevidence-basedintervention;or

2) exhibitsapatternofstrengthsandweaknessesinperformance,achievement,orboth,relativetoage,State-approvedgrade-levelstandards,orintellectualdevelopment.

TheIDEAallowsforalternativeresearch-basedprocedurestoidentifyaSLD,buttheMSDEhasnotidentifiedanysuchalternativesatthistime.Thus,responsetointervention(RTI)orapatternofstrengthsandweaknessesarethetwooptionsthatareavailableinMaryland.TheIEPteammay,inconjunctionwithoneofthetwooptionsabove,alsolookforaseverediscrepancybetweenintellectualabilityandachievement.Severediscrepancybecamedisfavoredduringadoptionofthe2004IDEAamendments,inpartbecauseitdelaysinterventionuntilastudent’sachievementissufficientlylowforadiscrepancytobeidentified,unlikeRTI,whichisactivelylinkedtoinstruction.Whilealocalschoolsystem(LSS)maynotberequiredtouseaseverediscrepancy,itremainsavailable,andmaybeusefulforidentifyinggifted(twiceexceptional)studentsand/orolderstudentswithaSLD.



Ultimately,theIEPteamchooseswhichoftheavailableprocessesismostappropriatefortheevaluationofaparticularstudent.Consistentwith34CFR§300.304,however,theIEPteammustnotuseanysinglemeasureorassessmentasthesolecriterionfordeterminingwhetherastudenthasaSLD.Informationprovidedbytheparentorguardianisconsideredcriticaltothisdetermination,asitprovidesacomprehensivepictureofthestudent’sstrengthsandweaknessesacrosssettings.AfullerexplanationoftheprocessesaboveandhowtheyfitintoanintegratedtieredsystemofsupportsiscontainedinATieredInstructionalApproachtoSupportAchievementforAllStudents:Maryland’sResponsetoInterventionFramework(June2008),whichcanbeaccessedonlineatthefollowinglink:

http://marylandpublicschools.org/NR/rdonlyres/D182E222-D84B-43D8-BB81-6F4C4F7E05F6/17125/Tiered_Instructional_ApproachRtI_June2008.pdf

Authority: 34CFR§300.307;34CFR§300.309;COMAR13A.05.01.06D(1);COMAR13A.05.01.06D(3)

5. How does an IEP team determine that a student received appropriate instruction? TheIEPteamisrequiredtoconsiderboth:1)datademonstratingthatpriorto,oraspartof,thereferralprocess,thestudentwasprovidedappropriateinstructioningeneraleducationsettings,deliveredbyqualifiedpersonnel;and2)data-baseddocumentationofrepeatedassessmentsofachievementatreasonableintervals,reflectingformalassessmentofstudentprogressduringinstruction,thatwasprovidedtothestudent’sparent.Inotherwords,theIEPteammustreviewthestudent’sgeneraleducationrecordwithregardtobothinstructionandassessmentintheareasofreading,math,andwrittenexpression.OneimportantconsiderationwhenevaluatingdataisthatatimelyevaluationmustnotbedelayedordeniedonthebasisthataLSSisimplementingaRTIstrategy.AdditionalguidanceonthistopiciscontainedinMemorandum11-07,issuedbytheUnitedStatesDepartmentofEducation,OfficeofSpecialEducationandRehabilitativeServices(OSERS),whichcanbeaccessedonlineatthefollowinglink:

https://www2.ed.gov/policy/speced/guid/idea/memosdcltrs/osep11-07rtimemo.pdfAuthority: 34CFR§300.309;COMAR13A.05.01.06D(4)

6. Is observation of the student required for a SLD determination? Yes.TheIEPteammustensurethatthestudenthasbeenobservedinthestudent’slearningenvironment(includingthegeneraleducationclassroomsetting)todocumentacademicperformanceandbehaviorintheareasofdifficulty.TheIEPteammay:1)useinformationfromanobservationbeforethestudentwasreferredforanevaluation;or2)haveatleastonememberoftheIEPteam,otherthanthestudent’sgeneraleducationteacher,conductanobservationafterthereferralwasmade.Inthecaseofachildoflessthanschoolageoroutofschool,anIEPteammembermustobservethechildinanenvironmentappropriateforachildofthatage.Authority: 34CFR§300.310;COMAR13A.05.01.05B(5)

7. What factors must not be considered when making a SLD determination? TheIEPteamshallnotdetermineastudenthasaSLDifthestudent’slackofachievementisprimarilytheresultof:1)avisual,hearing,ormotorimpairment;2)intellectualdisability;3)emotional



disability;4)culturalfactors;5)environmental,cultural,oreconomicdisadvantage;or6)limitedEnglishproficiency.WhilethefirstthreeitemsinthislistmayindicateeligibilityunderadisabilitycategoryotherthanSLD,theIEPteammustbeparticularlycarefulwhenconsideringthelastthreeitems.Failuretodistinguishadisabilityfromotherfactorsthatmayimpactastudent’sachievementcanleadtoinappropriateoveridentificationbyraceandethnicity,andmayresultinafindingofdisproportionalityunder34CFR§300.646.Authority: 34CFR§300.309;COMAR13A.05.01.06D(2)(b)

8. What documentation must be completed by the IEP team for a SLD determination? WhenastudentissuspectedofhavingaSLD,theIEPteammustprepareawrittenreportthatincludes:1) AstatementofwhetherthestudenthasaSLD;2) Thebasisformakingthedetermination;3) Therelevantbehaviors,ifany,notedduringtheobservationofthestudent;4) Therelationshipofthebehaviorstothestudent’sacademicfunctioning;5) Theeducationallyrelevantmedicalfindings,ifany;6) ThedeterminationoftheIEPteamconcerningtheeffectsofvisual,hearing,ormotordisability,

intellectualdisability,emotionaldisability,culturalfactors,environmentaloreconomicdisadvantage,orlimitedEnglishproficiencyonthestudent’sachievementlevel;and

7) ThewrittencertificationofeachIEPteammemberastowhetherthewrittenreportreflectsthemember’sconclusion.IfthewrittenreportdoesnotreflectanIEPteammember’sconclusion,theteammembermustsubmitaseparatestatementpresentingtheteammember’sconclusions.

Ifthestudentparticipatedinaprocesstoassessthestudent’sresponsetoevidence-basedintervention,thewrittenreportmustalsoinclude:1) Theinstructionalstrategiesusedandthestudent-centereddatacollected;2) Documentationthatthestudent’sparentswerenotifiedoftheMSDE’spoliciesregardingthe

amountandnatureofstudentperformancedatathatwouldbecollectedandthegeneraleducationservicesthatwouldbeprovided;

3) Strategiesforincreasingthestudent’srateoflearning;and4) Theparents’righttorequestanevaluation.

Authority: 34CFR§300.311;COMAR13A.05.01.06D(5)&(6)

9. Does a SLD determination guarantee any specific items on the student’s IEP? No.TheIEPteammustdeterminewhatspecialeducationandrelatedservices,supplementaryaidsandservices,modifications,andaccommodationsareappropriatebasedontheindividualstudent’sneeds.ASLD,regardlessoftheunderlyingcondition(e.g.perceptualdisability,braininjury,minimalbraindysfunction,dyslexia,ordevelopmentalaphasia),maymanifestitselfinanumberofways,withvaryingdegreesofseverity.Therefore,theIEPteammustrelyuponmultiplesourcesofinformationanddata,andplanforspeciallydesignedinstructionthattargetstheidentifiedneedsofthestudent.Adeterminationthatastudentfitsintoaparticulardisabilitycategory–SLDorotherwise–doesnotdictateaparticularplacement,nordoesitguaranteeaparticularsetofservices.Nosinglemeasureorassessmentcanbeusedasthesolecriterionfordetermininganappropriateeducationalprogramforastudent.Authority: 34CFR§300.304;COMAR13A.05.01.05B(3)



SPECIFIC LEARNING DISABILITY

SUPPLEMENT (Focus On: Dyslexia, Dyscalculia, and Dysgraphia)

Specificlearningdisability(SLD)isthelargestdisabilitycategory,representingnearlythirty(30)percentofstudentswithdisabilitiesinMaryland.Thepurposeofthissupplementistoaffirmthatdyslexia,dyscalculia,anddysgraphiaarerecognizedasconditionsthatmayunderlieastudent’sspecificlearningdisability,providedthatallcriteriaaremetundertheIndividualswithDisabilitiesEducationAct(IDEA)asdescribedinthisSLDTechnicalAssistanceBulletin.

ThereisnothinginMarylandlaw,policy,procedures,orpracticesthatprohibitsuseoftheseterms–dyslexia,dyscalculia,anddysgraphia–byIndividualizedEducationProgram(IEP)teamsasitrelatestoevaluations,eligibility,andIEPdocuments.Indeed,theIEPteammayfindithelpfultoincludeinformationaboutthespecificconditionunderlyingthestudent’sdisabilityforthepurposeofinstructionalplanningandappropriateIEPimplementation.

Foradditionalguidanceonthistopic,youmaywishtoconsulttheDearColleagueLetterthatwasissuedbytheU.S.DepartmentofEducation,OfficeofSpecialEducationandRehabilitativeServices(OSERS)onOctober23,2015.Itcanbeaccessedonlineatthefollowinglink:

https://www2.ed.gov/policy/speced/guid/idea/memosdcltrs/guidance-on-dyslexia-10-2015.pdf

Definitions • Dyslexia:AccordingtotheInternationalDyslexiaAssociation,dyslexiaisaspecificlearning

disabilitythatisneurobiologicalinorigin.Itischaracterizedbydifficultieswithaccurateand/orfluentwordrecognitionandbypoorspellinganddecodingabilities.Thesedifficultiestypicallyresultfromadeficitinthephonologicalcomponentoflanguagethatisoftenunexpectedinrelationtoothercognitiveabilitiesandtheprovisionofeffectiveclassroominstruction.Secondaryconsequencesmayincludeproblemsinreadingcomprehensionandreducedreadingexperiencethatcanimpedegrowthofvocabularyandbackgroundknowledge.1

• Dyscalculia:Aneurologicallybasedspecificlearningdisability,dyscalculiaischaracterizedbyunusualdifficultysolvingarithmeticproblemsandgraspingmathconcepts.Themostcommonproblemiswith“numbersense.”Thisisanintuitiveunderstandingofhownumbersworkandhowtocompareandestimatequantities.Studentsmayknowwhattodoinmathclass,butnotunderstandwhytheyaredoingitbecausethelogicbehindthecalculationismissing.2

• Dysgraphia:Aneurologicallybasedspecificlearningdisability,dysgraphiacanpresentasdifficultieswithspelling,poorhandwriting,andtroubleputtingthoughtsonpaper.Itcanbealanguagebasedand/ornon-languagebaseddisorder.Whenitislanguagebased,astudentmayhavedifficultlyconvertingthesoundsoflanguageintowrittenform,orknowingwhichalternatespellingtouseforeachsound.Whenitisnon-languagebased,astudentmayhavedifficultyperformingthecontrolledfinemotorskillsrequiredtowrite.Studentswithdysgraphiamayspeakmoreeasilyandfluentlythantheywrite.3

1 https://dyslexiaida.org/definition-of-dyslexia/ 2 https://www.understood.org/en/learning-attention-issues/child-learning-disabilities/dyscalculia/understanding-dyscalculia 2 https://www.understood.org/en/learning-attention-issues/child-learning-disabilities/dyscalculia/understanding-dyscalculia 3 https://dsf.net.au/what-is-dysgraphia/



Identification 1. DoMarylandpublicschoolsscreenallstudentsfortheseconditions?

No.Theuseofuniversalscreenersfordyslexia,dyscalculia,anddysgraphiaisnotrequiredinMaryland;however,itisrecognizedthatscreeningisacriticalcomponentofaneducationsystemdesignedtoprovideearlyintervention.Screeningtoolsaredesignedtoidentifyorpredictstudentswhomaybeatriskforlearningdifferences.Deliveredtoallstudents,universalscreenersarebriefassessmentsthatdonotdiagnoseaparticularcondition,butratherflagcertainstudentsforfurtherevaluation.Inadditionaltoscreeningtools,observationandotherinformalassessmentsmayprovidethefirstindicationthatastudentisstrugglingwithreading,writing,ormathematics.Notonlyisitimportanttopickupontheearlywarningsignsofstudentswhoareatriskofacademicfailure,butalsotofocusonappropriateinstructionanduseofevidence-basedinterventions.

2. Whocanidentifyoneoftheseconditions?Dyslexia,dyscalculia,anddysgraphiamaybeidentifiedthroughtheIEPteamprocessorbyanoutsidesource.TheIEPteam’sresponsibilityistodeterminewhetherastudentqualifiesasastudentwithadisabilityundertheIDEA.Tothatend,theIEPteamdecides,aspartofitscomprehensiveevaluation,thevariousassessmentsneededtoaddressallareasrelatedtothesuspecteddisabilityandtodetermineeligibility.

TheIEPteamisrequiredtoincludeatleastoneperson,suchasaschoolpsychologist,speech-languagepathologist,orreadingteacher,qualifiedtoconductindividualdiagnosticexaminationswhenconsideringaSLDdetermination.ApersonisqualifiedifheorshehasmettheStateapprovedcertificationorlicensingrequirementstoconductandinterprettherelevantdiagnosticexaminations.Onceanexaminationhasbeenconducted,thequalifiedpersonwillinterprettheresultsfortheIEPteamandmay,asappropriate,identifythatcertaindataisconsistentwithsomeonepresentingwithdyslexia,dyscalculia,ordysgraphia.UponconsideringallavailableinformationandtheapplicablecriteriaundertheIDEA,theIEPteammustthenmakeitsSLDdetermination.

OutsideoftheIEPteamprocess,astudentmaybeidentifiedwithdyslexia,dyscalculia,ordysgraphiabyalicensedpsychologistorotherprofessionalqualifiedtoassessintellectualandeducationalfunctioning.Theabilitytoissueadiagnosisofoneoftheseconditionsmaydependuponthescopeofaperson’spracticeandwhetherheorsheislicensedorcertified.AnysuchidentificationordiagnosisbyanoutsidesourceshouldbesharedwiththeIEPteamastheteamconsiderswhateducationalassessmentsareappropriateandnecessarytobeordered.Thedeterminationofeligibilityforspecialeducationandrelatedservices,asastudentwithaSLD,ultimatelyfollowstheIEPteam’sapplicationoftheevaluationproceduresundertheIDEA.

3. DoeshavingoneoftheseconditionsqualifyastudentforservicesundertheIDEA?Whileastudentwithdyslexia,dyscalculia,ordysgraphiamayqualifyforservicesundertheIDEA,havingoneoftheseconditionsdoesnotautomaticallyqualifyastudentforservices.AstudentonlyqualifiesforservicesafteranIEPteamhasconductedacomprehensiveevaluation,determinedthatthestudentmeetsallofthecriteriaforoneofthedisabilitycategoriesundertheIDEA,andfoundthatthestudentrequiresspeciallydesignedinstructiontoaddresstheuniqueneedsthatresultfromhisorherdisabilityandtoensureaccesstothegeneraleducationcurriculum.Dyslexia,dyscalculia,anddysgraphiaarenottheirowndisabilitycategories,butratherexamplesofSLD.Thus,evenifoneoftheseconditionsisidentified,thestudentmustbeevaluatedanddeterminedeligiblebyanIEPteaminaccordancewiththeIDEA.



Pleasenote,however,thatifastudentisnotdeemedeligibleforspecialeducationandrelatedservicesundertheIDEA,heorshemaystillbeprotectedunderSection504oftheRehabilitationAct.EffectiveOctober11,2016,dyslexiaandotherspecificlearningdisabilitieswereaddedasexampleswithinthedefinitionof“physicalormentalimpairment”underTitleIIoftheAmericanswithDisabilitiesAct(28C.F.R.§35.108(b)(2)).

4. Cantheseconditionsbereferencedinastudent’sIEP?Yes.ThereisnothingintheIDEAorMarylandlawthatprohibitstheinclusionoftheconditionthatunderliesastudent’sdisabilityintheIEPdocument.TheIEPmustaddressthestudent’sneedsresultingfromthatdisabilityinordertoenablethestudenttoadvanceappropriatelytowardattaininghisorherannualIEPgoalsandtobeinvolvedin,andmakeprogressin,thegeneraleducationalcurriculum.ProperidentificationmustbeobtainedthroughanexaminationorderedbytheIEPteamorconductedindependently.Onceidentified,theIEPteamshouldincludeinformationaboutdyslexia,dyscalculia,ordysgraphiaindocumentinghowthatconditionrelatestothestudent’seligibilitydetermination.Informationincludedinthepresentlevelsofacademicachievementandfunctionalperformance(PLAAFP)sectionoftheIEPmustincludedata-based,student-specificinformationdescribingthestudent’sstrengthsandneedsresultingfromthedisability,includinghowitaffectshisorherinvolvementandprogressinthegeneraleducationcurriculum.AddingthislevelofspecificitytoaSLDdeterminationmaybehelpfulinplanningspeciallydesignedinstructiontoaddressthestudent’sunderlyingacademicdifficultiesinreading,writing,andmath.EvenifaparticularconditionhasnotbeenidentifiedbytheIEPteam,orbyanoutsidesource,discussionofdyslexia,dyscalculia,ordysgraphiamaybeincludedinthemeetingnotes.Themeetingnotesshouldreflecttheconcernsoftheparentorguardian,evenifatthetimeoftheIEPteammeetingheorsheisonlyreportingasuspicionofaparticularconditionthathasnotyetbeenidentified.

Instruction 1. Whatarea(s)ofacademicachievementmighttheseconditionsimpact?

Theconditionsofdyslexia,dyscalculia,anddysgraphiamayimpactachievementacrossmultipleareasofMaryland’sacademiccontentstandards.Astudentwithdyslexiamaylackphonemicawareness,makingitdifficulttoidentifyindividuallettersandsounds.Thismaymanifestitselfinbasicreadingskills,whichwhencompoundedmakeitdifficulttoreadfluentlyorquicklyenoughtocomprehend.Astudentwithdyscalculiamaystrugglewithbasicmathematicscalculation,makingmulti-stepequationsandwordproblemsparticularlyfrustrating.Astudentwithdysgraphiamaybeconfrontedwithphysicaland/orlanguagebasedchallengeswhilelearningtowrite.Thiscanimpactstaminaorlegibilityduringhandwriting,aswellasspellingandorganizationduringcomposition.

Dyslexia4Generalproblemsexperiencedbystudentswithdyslexiamayinclude:

• Phonologicalprocessing• Alphabeticprinciples• Decoding• Articulation• Writtenexpression• Spelling

Specificproblemsforelementaryagedstudentsmayinclude:• Wordrecall• Readingfluency

4 https://ldaamerica.org/types-of-learning-disabilities/dyslexia/



• Mathfactfluency• Understandingtherhymingofwords• Differentiatingbetweenwordsthatbeginwiththesamesound;• Pronunciation• Rapidletternaming• Usingwordsthatlackspecificity(e.g.“stuff”or“thing”)• Familyhistoryofspokenorwrittenlanguageproblems

(Moats&Dakin,2012)Dyscalculia5Generalproblemsexperiencedbystudentswithdyscalculiamayinclude:• Recallingbasicmathfacts• Timemanagement• Poorsenseofdirection• Understandinginformationongraphsorcharts• Understandingwordsrelatedtomath,suchasgreaterthanorlessthan• Identifyingmathematicsymbols• MakingchangeSpecificproblemsforelementaryagedstudentsmayinclude:• LearningtocountDysgraphia6Generalproblemsexperiencedbystudentswithdysgraphiamayinclude:

• Difficultyspelling• Poorhandwriting• Troubleputtingthoughtsonpaper• Poororganizationofwritingonthepage• Bodyawarenessorfeedbackinthehands• Poorenduranceforhandwriting

Specificproblemsforelementaryagedstudentsmayinclude:• Writinglettersmuchslowerthanotherchildrentheirage• Wigglingaroundandnotabletogetcomfortablewhiledrawingorwriting• Spellingthesameworddifferently• Fillingpaperswitherasuresandcrossouts• Usingvaguewordsorrepeatingthesamewordsinsentences• Misusingoromittingpunctuation

2. HowdoIknowifoneoftheseconditionsrequiresspeciallydesignedinstruction?

Allstudentsshouldbeprovidedwithanintegratedtieredsystemofsupportsthatincorporatesarangeofevidence-basedpracticesandinterventionsmatchedtoidentifiedareasofneed.Theresultsoffrequent,ongoingandconsistentprogressmonitoringforallstudentsshouldbeanalyzedtoensurestudentsarerespondingadequatelytotheinstructionprovided.Somestudents,whoarenotachievingadequatelydespiteappropriateinstruction,mayrequiremoreintensive,speciallydesignedinstruction,asillustratedbelow.Inthatcase,thestudentshouldbeevaluatedbyanIEPteamandanbeIEPdevelopedasappropriate.

5 https://ldaamerica.org/types-of-learning-disabilities/dyslexia/ 6 https://ldaamerica.org/types-of-learning-disabilities/dysgraphia/



Fordyslexia,observationandassessmentsshouldaddressphonemicawareness,phonics,anddecoding.Oneofthemostaccurateandpowerfulpredictorsoflaterreadingachievementinkindergartenandfirstgradearetimedtestsofletternamingorlettersoundassociations,alsoknownasRapidAutomatizedNamingandRapidAutomatizedSpelling(Moats&Dakin,2008;Norton&Wolf,2012).Fordyscalculia,observationandassessmentsofastudent’sabilitytorecognizenumbersandsymbols,connectnumberstoreallifesituations,andidentifyandsortpatternsmaybeparticularlyuseful.Fordysgraphia,earlywarningsignsincludeastudent’smemoryretrievaloflettersandsounds,pen/pencilgrip,handwritingposture,andvisualspacing.

Allstudentswhoexperiencedifficultylearningtoread,write,orunderstandmathematics,however,willnotrequirespecialeducation.Astudent’sresponsetoinstructionisacriticalindicatorofthenatureandseverityofhisorheracademicdifficulties.Thus,asillustratedabove,itisimportanttoconsidertherateofgrowthasaresultofinterventionswithinaonthewaytowardacomprehensiveevaluationforanIEPthatprovidesspeciallydesignedinstruction.

3. Whatmightspeciallydesignedinstructionlooklike?

Studentswithpersistentreadingdisabilities,suchasdyslexia,mayrequireevidence-basedinterventionsalongsidespeciallydesignedinstruction.Onehighlyrecommendedapproachisstructuredliteracyinstruction,whichemphasizesthestructureoflanguage,includingthespeech



soundsandthewritingsystems.Tobeeffective,suchinstructionmustbeexplicit,systematic,cumulative,anddiagnostic(InternationalDyslexiaAssociation,2015).Structuredliteracyismarkedbyseveralelements,including:phonology;sound-symbolassociation;syllableinstruction;morphology;syntax;andsemantics.7Otherimportantfactorsincludetheintensity,fidelity,andcustomizationofinstructiontomeettheindividualneedsofthestudentandincreasetherateoflearning,whichhelpstonarrowthegapinreadingachievementforthatstudent.

Experiencingdifficultiesinprocessingmathematicalinformationisascomplexasthechallengesfacedbystudentswithdyslexia.Thus,thebasisofsupportissimilartothatofotherdisabilities,whichrequiresunderstandingthestudent’sstrengthsandneeds.Becausemanystudentswithdyscalculiastrugglewiththelanguagebasedelementsofmathematics,itisrecommendedthatinterventionavoidrelianceonlanguageandauditorymemory.Usefulstrategiesmayincludechunkingofinformation,focusonkeyelementsofthequestions,andbuildingstrongconnectionsbetweenpriorandnewknowledge(Tapper,2012).

Studentswithdysgraphiamaybenefitfromaccommodations,suchastypingorspeechtotextinput,whileshorteningresponsesorallowingalternativemethodsofoutputmayserveasfunctionalmodifications.Likewithdyslexia,handwritinginstructionshouldbeexplicitandtargetfoundationalskills,includingletterformation,automaticity,andfluency.Multisensorytechniquesandmodelingareverybeneficial.

Regardlessofwhichconditionmayunderlieastudent’sdisability,theIEPisthecriticaldocumentthatoutlinesthespeciallydesignedinstruction,accommodations,modifications,andothersupportsappropriateforthatstudent,giventhestudent’sindividualizedneeds.Witheachoftherequiredelementsinplace,theIEPisdesignedtogivethestudentaccesstothegeneraleducationcurriculumbasedontheState’sacademiccontentstandardsforthegradeinwhichthestudentisenrolled,andincludesinstructionandsupportsthatwillpreparethestudentforsuccessincollegeandcareers.

7 https://dyslexiaida.org/effective-reading-instruction/



References:

InternationalDyslexiaAssociation.(2015,August).EffectiveReadingInstruction.Retrievedfromhttp://eida.org/effective-reading-instruction/

(n.d.).RetrievedAugust12,2016,fromhttps://ldaamerica.org

Moats,L.C.,&Dakin,K.E.(2008).BasicFactsAboutDyslexiaandOtherReadingProblems.Baltimore:InternationalDyslexiaAssociation.

Moats,L.C.,&Dakin,K.E.(2012)DyslexiaBasics.RetrievedfromInternationalDyslexiaAssociation:http://eida.org/dyslexia-basics

NationalCenterforLearningDisabilities.(2010).Whatisdyscalculia?RetrievedJune8,2016,fromhttps://www.understood.org/en/learning-attention-issues/child-learning-disabilities/dyscalculia/understanding-dyscalculia

NationalInstituteofNeurologicalDisordersandStroke.(2011).Whatisdysgraphia?RetrievedJune8,2016,fromhttp://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/dysgraphia/dysgraphia.htm

Tapper,J.(2012).SolvingforWhy.Sausalito,CA:MathSolutions

Wilkinson,C.,Witkowski,J.&Klotz,J.(2012,September11).Dyslexia,Dysgraphia,andADHD.RetrievedSeptember27,2016,fromhttp://dbpeds.stanford.edu/content/dam/sm/neonatology/documents/dyslexia_dysgraphia_adh_091112.pdf.

Yudin,M.K.(2015,October23).OSEPDearColleagueLetteronIDEA/IEPTerms.UnitedStatesDepartmentofEducation.RetrievedJune7,2016fromhttp://www2.ed.gov/policy/speced/guid/idea/memosdcltrs/index.html?exp=0#memos

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MarylandStateDepartmentofEducationDivisionofSpecialEducation/EarlyInterventionServices200WestBaltimoreStreetBaltimore,Maryland21201www.MarylandPublicSchools.orgwww.MarylandLearningLinks.orgKarenB.Salmon,Ph.D.StateSuperintendentofSchoolsCarolA.Williamson,Ed.D.DeputyStateSuperintendentforTeachingandLearningMarcellaE.Franczkowski,M.S.AssistantStateSuperintendentDivisionofSpecialEducation/EarlyInterventionServicesLarryHoganGovernor

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