District Guidance on Dyslexia Policies

Each local board of education may develop a policy addressing the implementation of a program for the identification of and strategies for assisting students in kindergarten through grade three (3) with dyslexia.   

The local board policies may include but not be limited to:

​(a) The definition and characteristics of dyslexia;  

(b) A process for identifying students who are displaying characteristics of dyslexia;  

(c) A process for the utilization of evaluation tools to accurately identify students who are displaying characteristics of dyslexia. Any qualified dyslexia evaluation tool utilized by a local district shall address but not be limited to the following components: 1. Phonological awareness and phonemic awareness; 2. Sound symbol recognition; 3. Alphabet knowledge; 4. Decoding skills; 5. Encoding skills; and 6. Rapid naming;  

(d) A process for how evaluation tools are administered and evaluated by trained district personnel or licensed professionals;  

(e) A process for outreach to parents of students identified with or displaying the characteristics of dyslexia with information and resource materials and how dyslexia may be addressed in the student's educational setting;  

(f) Identification of evidence-based interventions, structured multisensory and literacy approaches to teach language and reading skills, and accommodations that schools may utilize to provide services to students identified as having dyslexia; and  

(g) A process for monitoring a student’s progress after the positive identification, including assessments to ascertain whether the intervention services improve the student's language processing and reading skills.  

By June 30 of each year, each local school district that developed a policy addressing the implementation of a program for the identification of and strategies for assisting students in kindergarten through grade three (3) with dyslexia shall provide the department​ ​the following data for the current school year:  

(a) The number of students in kindergarten through grade three (3) that were identified as displaying characteristics of dyslexia;  

(b) The number of students in paragraph (a) of this subsection that were identified through the response-to-intervention process;  

(c) The number of students in kindergarten through grade three (3) that were evaluated for dyslexia;  

(d) The number of students in kindergarten through grade three (3) that were identified with dyslexia;  

(e) The dyslexia evaluation tools used to identify students;  

(f) The number of students in kindergarten through grade three (3) that were participating in interventions within the school setting;  

(g) The process or tools used to evaluate student progress; and  

(h) The number of trained district personnel or licensed professionals used to administer the dyslexia evaluation tools.   

Please direct any questions and submit dyslexia policies to T​he Standards Team at standards@education.ky.gov​.​