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North East Independent School District

Dyslexia

Program Coordinator: Stacy Guerrero

Texas Education Code (TEC) §38.003 defines dyslexia in the following way:
“Dyslexia” means a disorder of constitutional origin manifested by a difficulty in learning to read, write, or spell, despite conventional instruction, adequate intelligence, and sociocultural opportunity."

The International Dyslexia Association defines dyslexia in the following way:
 “Dyslexia is a specific learning disability characterized by difficulties in word reading and/or spelling that involve accuracy, speed, or both and vary depending on the orthography. These difficulties occur along a continuum of severity and persist even with instruction that is effective for the individual’s peers. The causes of dyslexia are complex and involve combinations of genetic, neurobiological, and environmental influences that interact throughout development. Underlying difficulties with phonological and morphological processing are common but not universal, and early oral language weaknesses often foreshadow literacy challenges. Secondary consequences include reading comprehension problems and reduced reading and writing experience that can impede growth in language, knowledge, written expression, and overall academic achievement. Psychological well-being and employment opportunities also may be affected. Although identification and targeted instruction are important at any age, language and literacy support before and during the early years of education is particularly effective.”
(Adopted by the International Dyslexia Association Board of Directors, October 22, 2025)

Primary Characteristics:
  • Difficulty decoding words
  • Difficulty reading words in isolation
  • Poor reading fluency (rate and/or accuracy)
  • Poor spelling

Dyslexia Intervention:

Students receive direct, explicit, evidence-based dyslexia instruction, delivered by a provider trained and certified in the specific evidence-based program. Instruction addresses the required components of dyslexia instruction, including phonological awareness, sound-symbol association, syllabication, orthography, morphology, syntax, reading fluency, and reading comprehension. The program is implemented according to its prescribed scope and sequence, typically progressing at a pace of one lesson per instructional day, with pacing adjusted based on student performance and mastery as appropriate within program fidelity.

In accordance with the Texas Dyslexia Handbook, instruction incorporates simultaneous multisensory instruction (visual, auditory, kinesthetic, and tactile), systematic and cumulative teaching, explicit instruction, diagnostic teaching to automaticity, and both synthetic and analytic instruction. Student performance is continuously monitored to guide instruction, provide corrective feedback, reinforce previously taught skills, and determine when additional practice or instructional intensity is needed.

Dyslexia instruction is delivered with fidelity by appropriately trained staff, typically five days per week, forty-five minutes per session, in a small-group setting of 2–6 students. The frequency, duration, group size, pacing, and/or level of individualized instruction may be intensified based on the student’s identified needs, progress, and response to instruction. Specialized program materials, manipulatives, multisensory instructional resources, decodable/controlled text, and ongoing progress-monitoring tools are utilized as prescribed by the program to support skill acquisition, automaticity, and generalization.