2015 -- H 5012

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2015

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A N   A C T

RELATING TO EDUCATION - SCREENING FOR READING DISABILITIES

     Introduced By: Representative John J. Lombardi

     Date Introduced: January 08, 2015

     Referred To: House Health, Education & Welfare

     It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

     SECTION 1. Title 16 of the General Laws entitled "EDUCATION" is hereby amended

by adding thereto the following chapter:

CHAPTER 105

SCREENING FOR READING DISABILITIES ACT

     16-105-1. Short title. – This chapter shall be known and may be cited as the "Screening

for Reading Disabilities Act".

     16-105-2. Definitions. – The following words and phrases shall have the following

meanings when used in this chapter.

     (1) "Potential indicators of dyslexia or other reading disabilities" means indicators that

include, but shall not be limited to, difficulty in acquiring language skills; inability to comprehend

oral or written language; difficulty in rhyming words; difficulty in naming letters, recognizing

letters, matching letters to sounds, and blending sounds when speaking and reading words;

difficulty recognizing and remembering sight words; consistent transposition of number

sequences, letter reversals, inversions, and substitutions; and trouble in replication of content.

     16-105-3. Distribution of information on screening instruments. – (a) The

commissioner of education shall distribute to each school district information on screening

instruments available to identify students who possess one or more potential indicators of

dyslexia or other reading disabilities pursuant to this chapter. The commissioner shall provide

information on the screening instruments appropriate for kindergarten through second grade

students and on screening instruments that may be suitably used for older students. Each school

district shall select and implement age appropriate screening instruments for the early diagnosis

of dyslexia and other reading disabilities.

     (b) The commissioner shall develop and distribute to each school district guidance on

appropriate intervention strategies for students diagnosed with dyslexia or other reading

disabilities.

     16-105-4. Screening for dyslexia and other reading disabilities. – (a) A school district

shall ensure that each student enrolled in the school district who has exhibited one or more

potential indicators of dyslexia or other reading disabilities is screened for dyslexia and other

reading disabilities using a screening instrument selected pursuant to this chapter no later than the

student's completion of the first semester or trimester of the second (2nd) grade.

     (b) In the event that a student who would have been enrolled in kindergarten or grade one

or two (2) during or after the 2015-2016 school year enrolls in the district in kindergarten or

grades one through six (6) during or after the 2016-2017 school year and has no record of being

previously screened for dyslexia or other reading disabilities pursuant to this act, the school

district shall ensure that the newly-enrolled student is screened for dyslexia and other reading

disabilities using a screening instrument selected pursuant to this act at the same time other

students enrolled in the student's grade are screened for dyslexia and other reading disabilities, or,

if other students enrolled in the student's grade have previously been screened, within ninety (90)

calendar days of the date the student is enrolled.

     (c) The screening required by this chapter shall be administered by a teacher or other

teaching staff member properly trained in the screening process for dyslexia and other reading

disabilities.

     16-105-5. Comprehensive assessment for the learning disorder. – In the event that a

student is determined through screening conducted pursuant to this chapter to possess one or

more potential indicators of dyslexia or other reading disabilities, the school district shall ensure

that the student receives a comprehensive assessment for the learning disorder. In the event that a

diagnosis of dyslexia or other reading disability is confirmed by the comprehensive assessment,

the school district shall provide appropriate evidence-based intervention strategies to the student,

including intensive instruction on phonemic awareness, phonics and fluency, vocabulary, and

reading comprehension.

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     SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage and shall be implemented at the

commencement of the 2015-2016 school year.

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N   A C T

RELATING TO EDUCATION - SCREENING FOR READING DISABILITIES

***

     This act would require school districts to conduct screening for dyslexia and other

reading disabilities of school children who have exhibited one or more potential indicators using

certain screening methods selected by the commissioner of education.

     This act would take effect upon passage and would be implemented at the

commencement of the 2015-2016 school year.

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