Decoding Dyslexia Maryland : Hosts Panel on Dyslexia & its Impact on Reading Achievement

ANNAPOLIS, Md., Jan. 27, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The impacts of reading failure are common knowledge, yet Maryland continues to churn out graduates with low literacy. Decoding Dyslexia Maryland will host a discussion on the impacts of dyslexia and reading struggles, and include solutions for policymakers.

    WHAT:                           Panel Discussion on Reading & Dyslexia
                                    Policy Solutions

    WHO:                            Ella-Jane Miller, student Montgomery
                                    County Public Schools; Dayne Guest,
                                    recent graduate, Baltimore County
                                    Public Schools; Amy Siracusano,
                                    teacher trainer, Calvert County
                                    Public Schools; Monica McHale-Small,
                                    Superintendent, Saucon Valley School
                                    District, PA & Dr. Fran Warkomski,
                                    Dyslexia Pilot Coordinator, PA Dept.
                                    of Ed; Delegate Anne Kaiser, Chair,
                                    House Ways & Means Committee &
                                    Member, Task Force to Implement a
                                    Dyslexia Education Program

    WHEN:                           Thursday, February 2, 2017, 12:00pm-
                                    1:00pm

    WHERE:                          Room 180, Lowe House Building, 6
                                    Bladen Street, Annapolis, 21401

Last November, the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE) released a "Technical Assistance Bulletin on SLD: Focus on Dyslexia, Dysgraphia and Dyscalculia" that defines dyslexia and encourages schools to use the term dyslexia to drive effective reading instruction.

"The Dyslexia Bulletin is part of the solution," said Pamela Guest, a Baltimore-area parent, "but many students need Maryland to do more. My son Dayne struggled with reading throughout his school years and teachers would say, despite my repeated requests to have him tested for dyslexia, that he just wasn't trying hard enough. No matter how hard he tried, his reading skills didn't improve and prevented him from entering the plumbing work study program."

Maryland's focus on college and career readiness must address all students, not just those who read early and easily. One recommendation included in the "Report of the Task Force to Study the Implementation of a Dyslexia Education Program," commissioned by the Legislature in 2015, is to "transform teacher reading preparation at Maryland universities." Another recommendation is "universal early screening for reading difficulties in K-2." The full report includes 6 recommendations, Best Practices for Dyslexia, and a Pilot Program outline developed by Maryland teachers, school psychologists, dyslexia specialists, parents, MSDE and school administrators.

Decoding Dyslexia Maryland is a grassroots movement of parents, students, teachers and related professionals concerned with the limited access to educational interventions for dyslexia in Maryland public schools. www.DecodingDyslexiaMD.org

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SOURCE Decoding Dyslexia Maryland