Up to 20% of children could be diagnosed with dyslexia, which would affect their ability to read. | Pixabay
Up to 20% of children could be diagnosed with dyslexia, which would affect their ability to read. | Pixabay
Michigan has not moved the needle in its basic reading skills, based on fourth-graders tested over the past two decades, a statistic it would like to change by taking a closer look at dyslexia.
Roughly one in three fourth-graders in the state has not demonstrated basic reading skills, despite millions of dollars invested into the problem. State leaders such as Sen. Jim Runestad (R-White Lake) believe that diverting funding to dyslexia could have a great impact.
Dyslexia impacts as many as 15 to 20% of people in different forms, according to Chalkbeat Detroit. Studies have determined that those with dyslexia can become average readers, if the problem is diagnosed early. The success stories -- those who become competent readers -- range from 56% to 92% with intensive instruction. To that end, two-thirds of all states attempt to diagnose the problem at an early age.
Sen. Jim Runestad
| #MiSenateGOP
Michigan law, on the other hand, barely mentions dyslexia at all.
That could change soon with a bipartisan effort represented in a package of bills expected to reach the Michigan Senate early in the New Year. There remains a lot of work to be done, starting with an unknown funding impact. School groups have yet to sign off on the bill. But it has a promising start and is long overdue.
There is hope that identifying dyslexia at an earlier age not only would enhance the possibility for a child's success, but would also be less expensive for the state in the long run.
“Michigan currently has no statewide strategy to screen and treat dyslexia, the most common language-based learning disability in existence,” Runestad said, according to Chalkbeat Detroit. “This is unacceptable.”
Part of the strategy would be to test kids in kindergarten through third grade on a regular basis. Signs of possible dyslexia would be merely flagged by schools, with trained professionals making the final call. There would also be a focus on literacy teaching, with improvements to be in place by 2024.
“I would say that we need to all be advocating for more literacy specialists who have the deep knowledge of literacy challenges,” Elizabeth Moje, dean of the College of Education at the University of Michigan, told Chalkbeat Detroit. “We used to have many more.”
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