Dyslexia Testing & Schools
Most schools do not test for dyslexia; they test for eligibility for special education services. Only 1 in 10 children with dyslexia are severe enough to qualify. The remaining nine are the kids who fall through the cracks undetected and needlessly struggle, often believing they are not smart enough. When, in actuality, they are often very bright, they just need to be taught to read in a specific way.
According to Mark Shinn, quoted on the “Specific Learning Disabilities: Tennessee’s New Eligibility Standards” presented by Janet Panter, Ph.D. Memphis Center for Women and Families: SLD is considered:
- Severe low achievement relative to peers, usually in Reading
- Many students not referred (the “bottomless pit”)
- SLD is often accompanied by – feelings of “inability”, and failure; Parental concern; and Mildly disruptive classroom behavior that can place children and youth on a negative educational and socio-emotional trajectory.
According to The “Disability Evaluation and Eligibility” section of the Tennessee Department of Education:
The student does not achieve adequately for the student’s age or to meet State-approved grade level standards in one or more of the following areas, when provided with learning experiences and instruction appropriate for the student’s age or State-approved grade level standards:
(a) Basic Reading Skills
(b) Reading Fluency Skills
(c) Reading Comprehension
(d) Written Expression
(e) Mathematics Calculation
(f) Mathematics Problem Solving.
The student does not make sufficient progress to meet age or State-approved grade-level standards in (these same) areas.
Some school districts claim it is a medical problem. (Doctors do not test for dyslexia, nor can any pill “fix it”.) Some say that you need to wait until 3rd grade to be tested (this is because you must have at least a 2 year discrepancy to qualify for special education services). Some districts claim dyslexia is a catch all phrase and there is no test for it.
All of these claims are inaccurate. A Dyslexia Testing Specialist can test a non-reading child as early as 5 ½ years old. A combination of 10 to 12 tests is given to investigate every area that could be impacted by dyslexia.