• What is dyslexia?
• What is the timeline for implementation of the provisions outlined in the law? What are the timelines for administering dyslexia screeners?
• Does this law replace the Third Grade Reading Guarantee requirements for screening and providing Reading Improvement and Monitoring Plans?
• How will districts cover the various costs associated with the requirements of this legislation?
• Will districts need to report data regarding implementation of the dyslexia support laws to the Ohio Department of Education?
• What information is in Ohio's Dyslexia Guidebook?
• What is a structured literacy approach?
• How can districts learn more about structured literacy programs?

• What is the Ohio Dyslexia Committee?
• Who is on the Ohio Dyslexia Committee?

• Do music, art and PE teachers who serve students in grades K-3 also need to take 18 hours of dyslexia-related professional development?
• What is the timeline for teachers to complete the professional development requirement?
• Our district has selected an approved professional development course that will require more than 18 hours to complete. Do we need to finish the entire course to meet the professional development requirement?
• What type of teacher professional development is required?
• What is “structured literacy certification?”
• Are required teacher professional development and structured literacy certification the same thing?

• Will dyslexia become one of the disability categories for special education?
• Will an individualized education program (IEP) need to be written if a child is identified as “at risk” by the dyslexia screener?
• How do districts find reliable screening measures?
• What is a tier one or tier two dyslexia screening measure? When does a district use a tier one or tier two screening measure?
• What must a district do if a student is identified as at risk for dyslexia according to a tier one screening measure?
• What must a district do if a student is identified as having dyslexia tendencies under a tier two screening measure?

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There are many different components of the law, and timelines vary for each. Below is a list of requirements and their start dates or deadlines.

A. Committee and Guidebook

Appoint Committee: Ohio Department of Education to appoint individuals to the Ohio Dyslexia Committee and other appointing authorities to establish selection process for appointments.
Deadline: May 12, 2021

Convene Committee: Convene the first meeting of the Ohio Dyslexia Committee.
Start Date: Within 30 days after nine members have been appointed to the committee. 

Guidebook: Ohio Dyslexia Committee to develop a dyslexia guidebook.
Start Date: Dec. 31, 2021

B. Tier One Dyslexia Screening

Kindergarten Screening: Screen all Kindergarten students.
Start Date: Beginning with the 2023-2024 school year and each school year thereafter. Screening to take place after the first day of January of the school year in which the student is enrolled in kindergarten and prior to the first day of January of the following school year.

Elementary Grades Screening - Startup:

• All K-3 Students: Screen all students in grades K-3.

• Grades 4-6 by Request: Screen students in grades 4-6 upon request of a student’s parent or guardian or request of a student’s teacher with the permission of the student’s parent or guardian.

Start Date: Beginning with the 2023-2024 school year.

C. Transfer Student Screening

​Kindergarten Transfers: Administer a tier one dyslexia screening measure to each kindergarten student who transfers into the district or school midyear during the school's regularly scheduled screening of the kindergarten class or within 30 days after the student's enrollment if the screening already has been completed.

Grades 1-6 Transfers: Screen each student in grades 1-6 who transfers into the district or school midyear within 30 days after the student's enrollment.
Start Date: Beginning with the 2023-2024 school year and each year thereafter.

Elementary Grades - Continuing: Screen all students in kindergarten and students in grades 1-6 upon request of a student’s parent or guardian or request of a student’s teacher with the permission of the student’s parent or guardian.
Start Date: Beginning with the 2024-2025 school year and each school year thereafter.

D. Tier Two Dyslexia Screening

Tier Two Dyslexia Screening:
At-Risk Students: Screen each at-risk student who does not show significant progress toward attaining grade-level reading and writing skills by the sixth week after the student is identified as at risk.
 
At-Risk Transfer Students: In the case of a transfer student who is identified as at risk of dyslexia, a tier two dyslexia screening must be administered “in a timely manner.”
 
Start Date: Beginning with the 2023-2024 school year and each school year thereafter.

E. Teacher Professional Development and Certification

• Teachers of grades K-1, including special education – by the beginning of the 2023-2024 school year.
• Teachers of grades 2-3, including special education – by the beginning of the 2024-2025 school year.
• Special education teachers of students in grades 4-12 – by the beginning of 2025-2026 school year.

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The Ohio Dyslexia Committee is the group responsible for developing many of the implementation guidelines of the Ohio dyslexia support laws. The committee’s responsibilities include developing Ohio's Dyslexia Guidebook and prescribing the number of clock hours of dyslexia-related professional development required for teachers. In addition to these duties, the Ohio Dyslexia Committee may:

1. Recommend appropriate ratios in school buildings of students to teachers who have received certification in identifying and addressing dyslexia;
2. Recommend which additional school personnel should receive certification in identifying and addressing dyslexia, including school psychologists or speech-language pathologists; and 
3. Consider and make recommendations regarding whether the dyslexia law’s professional development requirements should include completion of a practicum.

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The Ohio Dyslexia Committee consists of 11 members. Members were appointed by the state superintendent of public instruction (seven members), state Speech and Language Board (one member), chancellor of higher education (one member) and Ohio Chapter of the International Dyslexia Association (two members). Visit the Ohio Dyslexia Committee page for more information.

State Superintendent of Public Instruction

• School district superintendent

• Elementary school principal

• Certified classroom teacher with two years of experience teaching in a multi-sensory structured literacy program

• Appropriately certified educational service center employee

• School psychologist

• Appropriately certified reading intervention specialist

• Ohio Department of Education employee

International Dyslexia Association of Ohio

• Parent of a child with dyslexia or an adult with dyslexia

• Appropriately certified board member of the International Dyslexia Association

Chancellor of Higher Education

• Appropriately certified individual with experience in
  higher education and teacher preparation programs

Ohio Speech and Hearing Professionals Board

• Appropriately certified speech-language pathologist

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• By the beginning of the 2023-2024 School Year: Kindergarten and First Grade (ALL licensed teachers) 
• By the beginning of the 2024-2025 School Year: Second and Third Grade (ALL licensed teachers) 
• By the beginning of the 2025-2026 School Year: Fourth through Twelfth Grade (Intervention Specialists) 

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The professional development required by the dyslexia support laws includes training for identifying characteristics of dyslexia and understanding the pedagogy for instructing students with dyslexia. The Ohio Dyslexia Committee has determined that teachers will need to complete 18 clock hours of PD to meet this requirement. The list of training that fulfill this requirement can be found on the Professional Development webpage.
 
Please note: Professional development training that was completed by a teacher prior to the law’s effective date of April 12, 2021, will count toward the required number of instructional hours in professional development training only if it appears on the list of Department-approved training.

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A structured literacy certification process has been defined by the Ohio Dyslexia Committee. Beginning in the 2022-2023 school year, districts must establish their own multi-sensory structured literacy certification process for teachers that aligns to the Ohio Dyslexia Committee’s guidebook. More information is available on the Structured Literacy Certification Process webpage.

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No. The professional development training and structured literacy certification are two separate requirements under the law. The professional development requires 18 hours of approved coursework (established by the Ohio Dyslexia Committee). The structured literacy certification process for teachers will be determined by districts with guidance provided by the Ohio Dyslexia Committee. Please see the table above for specific implementation dates.

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No. Dyslexia will not be added as a disability category for special education.

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No. The determination of “at risk” by a dyslexia screener is not a diagnosis. If a parent or guardian thinks his or her child may have a disability that is affecting the child’s education, a request can be made to the district to evaluate the child to determine whether he or she would be eligible for special education.

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In the coming months, the Ohio Dyslexia Committee will develop a list of approved dyslexia screeners. The approved list will be communicated to the public and posted on the Ohio dyslexia supports website. Currently, there are no assessments approved to fulfill the requirements of the law.

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Information about what qualifies as tier one or tier two dyslexia screening measure is described in Ohio's Dyslexia Guidebook. Under Ohio law, tier one dyslexia screening measures will be used by districts to identify each student who is at risk of dyslexia. Districts also must administer a tier two dyslexia screener if no progress is observed during the progress monitoring period after the tier one dyslexia screener was administered.

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If a student is identified as at risk for dyslexia based on the student’s tier one screening measure results, districts are required to do the following:

• Notify the student’s parent, guardian or custodian that the student has been identified as being at-risk for dyslexia;

• Monitor the progress of each at-risk student toward attaining grade-level reading and writing skills for up to six weeks.

  • The district or school shall check each at-risk student's progress on at least the second week, fourth week and sixth week after the student is identified as being at risk.

  • If no progress is observed during the monitoring period, the district or school shall notify the parent, guardian or custodian of the student and administer a tier two dyslexia screening measure to the student.

  • Report to the student’s parent, guardian or custodian the results of the tier two screening measure within 30 days after the screening measure’s administration.

In addition, districts will be required to follow the guidance in the forthcoming dyslexia guidebook regarding students identified as at risk for dyslexia.

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Districts will be required to report to a student's parent or guardian the student's results on a tier two screening measure approved by the Ohio Dyslexia Committee within 30 days after the measure's administration. If, as determined by the tier two screening measure, the student is identified as having dyslexia tendencies, the student's parent or guardian will be provided with information about reading development, the risk factors for dyslexia and descriptions for evidenced-based interventions.

If a student demonstrates markers of dyslexia, the district must provide the student’s parent, guardian or custodian with a written explanation of the district’s structured literacy program. In addition, districts will be required to follow the guidance in the forthcoming dyslexia guidebook regarding students identified as at risk for dyslexia.

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