{"id":1347,"date":"2020-04-16T13:23:00","date_gmt":"2020-04-16T13:23:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.wilsonlanguage.com\/knowledge-library\/success-story\/putting-policy-into-practice\/"},"modified":"2024-08-28T18:26:44","modified_gmt":"2024-08-28T18:26:44","slug":"putting-policy-into-practice","status":"publish","type":"success_stories","link":"https:\/\/www.wilsonlanguage.com\/knowledge-library\/success-story\/putting-policy-into-practice\/","title":{"rendered":"Putting Policy into Practice"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The First Step: Passing State Dyslexia Legislation<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

State dyslexia legislation has the potential to provide much-needed support to help students with dyslexia. For example, such laws can mandate early screening to catch children before they experience failure in early grades. They can require teacher preparation and training to better support educators in their understanding of dyslexia and how to provide targeted instruction for their students. The good news is that in 2020, almost every state in the U.S. has either passed dyslexia legislation or has such legislation pending. Much of this legislative progress can be credited to the parent-led, grassroots Decoding Dyslexia movement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Decoding Dyslexia chapters provide awareness and support for students, parents, and teachers in every state. Guiding their work to improve literacy outcomes are five key policy components: 1) a universal definition in state education codes; 2) mandatory teacher training; 3) mandatory early screening; 4) mandatory dyslexia remediation programs; and 5) access to appropriate assistive technologies. While passing state legislation is a key objective for advocates, Decoding Dyslexia members recognize there\u2019s often a lag between this crucial first step and implementation. In other words, plenty of work remains to change the educational landscape for individuals with dyslexia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Next Steps: States Put Laws into Action<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In lessons learned from early research on implementation of federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) programs, Dr. Milbrey McLaughlin (1987) wrote that \u201cpolicy success depends critically on two broad factors: local capacity and will\u201d and that \u201cpolicymakers cannot mandate what matters\u201d (p. 172). Today\u2019s dyslexia educators and advocates certainly have the will and are working diligently to identify capacity to support implementation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Deborah Lynam, co-founder of Decoding Dyslexia-New Jersey, shared that when her group helped pass legislation in the state, parents and other advocates quickly realized the individuals \u201cwho have to implement the laws may not know best practice.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To overcome this challenge, Decoding Dyslexia-New Jersey members worked with the New Jersey Department of Education (NJDOE) to bring together experts from across the state for conversations about implementing the new dyslexia legislation. The development of a state dyslexia handbook soon followed. State dyslexia handbooks provide school districts with guidelines and recommendations for educators and administrators to follow as they teach and support individuals with dyslexia. The New Jersey Dyslexia Handbook addresses the five key policy components first mentioned above. It:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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