In October 2015, Governor Jerry Brown signed AB 1369, California’s new dyslexia law that was passed unanimously in the Assembly and the Senate (and was cosponsored by then-assemblymember Das Williams). It contained two important provisions: 1) An additional way to qualify students for special education services (under “phonological processing”), and 2) directed the Superintendent of Public Instruction to develop dyslexia “program guidelines” to help educators provide services for dyslexic students.
These much-needed “program guidelines” will be a welcome addition for the delivery of appropriate services and approaches to education for the 20 percent of students who are dyslexic and who typically struggle in school with reading, writing and spelling. Currently, California’s classroom teachers, school psychologists, education administrators, special ed staff, and school board members are left to rely on their own experience and possible training when it comes dealing to dyslexia in our schools.
A 23-member working group to create these guidelines has been assembled; it is composed of medical and research professionals and advocates with expertise in dyslexia, as well as individuals who represent the many education organizations that opposed the passage of the bill, including the California Teachers Association, the California Association of School Psychologists, and the Special Education Local Plan Area.