Requires the certification or training of teachers, administrators and instructors in the area of dyslexia and related disorders.

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S2496-2013 Actions

• Jan 17, 2013: REFERRED TO EDUCATION

S2496-2013 Memo

BILL NUMBER:S2496

TITLE OF BILL:
An act
to amend the education law, in relation to the certification or training
of teachers, administrators and instructors in the area of dyslexia and
related disorders

PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL: This bill would
require school
districts to diagnose students with dyslexia and to provide such
students with teachers trained to instruct dyslexic students.

SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS: Section one amends
section 3004 of the
education law to authorize the commissioner of education to certify
or the required training of teachers and school administrators in the
area of dyslexia and related disorders. The section also provides a
definition for dyslexia.

Section two amends section 4402 of the education law to provide that
if a committee or subcommittee of special education believes that a
student may be suffering from dyslexia, the student must be sent to
an evaluation for dyslexia or related disorder.

Section three amends section 4402 of the education law to provide that
if a student is determined to have dyslexia, the recommendations on
programs or placement for the student must be made by a team that is
knowledgeable in instructing children with dyslexia.

Section four amends section 4402 of the education law to require a
school district to provide a teacher trained in dyslexia to any
student who has been determined to suffer from dyslexia.

Section five provides that this act shall take effect 30 days after it
has become law.

JUSTIFICATION: A lot happens in the brain as we learn
to read. It
becomes a complicated and daunting task when letters and numbers
become mixed up. Approximately 15% of children have dyslexia, a brain
based learning disability that makes word recognition, spelling and
reading success a very difficult task. About 85% of children with
learning disabilities have dyslexia making it the most prevalent
learning disability in children. Yet, most parents and teachers have
trouble recognizing its symptoms. Research shows that if students are
not reading on grade level by third grade, they only have a 1 in 8
chance of catching up to their peers. This means not only academic
consequences, but also emotional and social problems as well.

The key to overcoming this disability is to pinpoint the disability
early so that these children can become proficient readers and do not
fall behind their peers. Because of
the way the law is written currently students with dyslexia are
broadly labeled as learning disabled. This puts in order costly and
usually ineffective interventions which do not address the key issues


for students with dyslexia. Students with dyslexia need appropriate
intervention for their specific disability rather than broad help in
school to address the problem at hand. Meaning that our teachers must
have expert approaches when helping struggling students learn to
read, write and spell.

Students with dyslexia could receive appropriate remediation within an
inclusion classroom or in an after school program where multi-sensory
reading instruction takes place.

The consequences of an inadequate education have a huge impact on our
society. Children need the basic ability to read and write to become
successful members of society. This legislation will improve school
conditions so that children with dyslexia and related learning
disabilities can have an equal opportunity to learn. In the long run,
it will help save the state money and improve the lives of the many
students in our state affected with this disability.

PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY: A9940 (57797) of 2012. In
Higher Ed

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS TO STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT:
To be determined.

EFFECTIVE DATE: 30 days following enactment.

S2496-2013 Text

                      S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
  ________________________________________________________________________

      S. 2496                                                  A. 2775

                         2013-2014 Regular Sessions

                        SENATE - ASSEMBLY

                              January 17, 2013
                                 ___________

  IN SENATE -- Introduced by Sen. ADDABBO -- read twice and ordered print-
    ed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Education

  IN  ASSEMBLY  --  Introduced  by  M.  of  A. BRENNAN, MILLMAN, ABINANTI,
    BOYLAND, CASTRO, MARKEY, MILLER, STEVENSON, TITONE --  Multi-Sponsored
    by  --  M. of A. CLARK, HOOPER, McDONOUGH, PAULIN, SCARBOROUGH, WEPRIN
    -- read once and referred to the Committee on Higher Education

  AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to the  certification  or
    training  of  teachers,  administrators and instructors in the area of
    dyslexia and related disorders

    THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
  BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:


    Section  1.  Section  3004 of the education law is amended by adding a
  new subdivision 7 to read as follows:

    7. A.  NOTWITHSTANDING ANY OTHER PROVISION OF LAW, THE COMMISSIONER IS
  AUTHORIZED AND EMPOWERED TO CERTIFY OR  REQUIRE  TRAINING  OF  TEACHERS,
  ADMINISTRATORS  AND  INSTRUCTORS IN THE AREA OF DYSLEXIA AND ITS RELATED
  DISORDERS. THE COMMISSIONER SHALL HAVE THE POWER TO PRESCRIBE THE NECES-
  SARY REGULATIONS AND ESTABLISH SUCH PROGRAMS AND TRAINING RELATED TO THE
  NEEDS OF CHILDREN WITH DYSLEXIA OR A RELATED DISORDER. SUCH PROGRAMS AND
  TRAINING SHALL INCLUDE, BUT NOT BE LIMITED TO, SUCCESSFUL COMPLETION  OF
  SUFFICIENT  HOURS  OF  COURSEWORK AND SUPERVISED CLINICAL EXPERIENCE, AS
  DETERMINED BY THE COMMISSIONER TO BE EVIDENCE-BASED EFFECTIVE  PROGRAMS,
  SUCH  AS  MULTISENSORY  STRUCTURED  LANGUAGE  EDUCATION OR OTHER SIMILAR
  EDUCATION PROGRAMS FOR TEACHING CHILDREN AT RISK FOR BEING, OR DIAGNOSED
  AS, DYSLEXIC OR A RELATED DISORDER. SUCH PROGRAMS  OR  TRAINING  MAY  BE
  OBTAINED  FROM AN INSTITUTION OR PROVIDER WHICH HAS BEEN APPROVED BY THE
  DEPARTMENT TO PROVIDE SUCH PROGRAMS AND TRAINING.
    B. FOR THE PURPOSES OF THIS SECTION, THE TERM "DYSLEXIA" SHALL MEAN  A
  SPECIFIC  LEARNING  DISORDER  THAT IS NEUROLOGICAL IN ORIGIN AND THAT IS
  CHARACTERIZED BY UNEXPECTED DIFFICULTIES WITH ACCURATE  OR  FLUENT  WORD

   EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                        [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                             LBD04592-01-3

 S. 2496                             2                            A. 2775

  RECOGNITION  AND  BY POOR SPELLING AND DECODING ABILITIES NOT CONSISTENT
  WITH THE PERSON'S INTELLIGENCE, MOTIVATION,  AND  SENSORY  CAPABILITIES,
  WHICH  DIFFICULTIES  TYPICALLY RESULT FROM A DEFICIT IN THE PHONOLOGICAL
  COMPONENT OF LANGUAGE.
    S  2.  Clause (a) and subclause (i) of clause (b) of subparagraph 3 of
  paragraph b of subdivision 1 of  section  4402  of  the  education  law,
  clause  (a)  as  amended by chapter 53 of the laws of 1991 and subclause
  (i) of clause (b) as amended by chapter 378 of the  laws  of  2007,  are
  amended to read as follows:

    (a)  Obtain,  review  and evaluate all relevant information, including
  but not limited to that presented by  the  parent,  person  in  parental
  relationship  and teacher, pertinent to each child suspected of or iden-
  tified as having a handicapping condition, including the  results  of  a
  physical  examination performed in accordance with sections nine hundred
  three, nine hundred four and nine hundred  five  of  this  chapter  and,
  where  determined to be necessary by a school psychologist, an appropri-
  ate psychological evaluation performed by a qualified private or  school
  psychologist,  and  other appropriate assessments as necessary to ascer-
  tain the physical, mental, emotional  and  cultural-educational  factors
  which  may contribute to the suspected or identified handicapping condi-
  tion, and all other school data which  bear  on  the  child's  progress,
  including,  where appropriate, observation of classroom performance.  IF
  THE COMMITTEE OR SUBCOMMITTEE HAS REASON TO BELIEVE THAT  THE  HANDICAP-
  PING CONDITION MAY INVOLVE DYSLEXIA, AS DEFINED IN PARAGRAPH B OF SUBDI-
  VISION  SEVEN  OF  SECTION  THREE  THOUSAND  FOUR  OF THIS CHAPTER, OR A
  RELATED DISORDER, THE CHILD SHALL BE EVALUATED AND TESTED  ACCORDING  TO
  CURRENT  SCIENTIFIC  UNDERSTANDING  OF DYSLEXIA TO DETERMINE WHETHER THE
  CHILD HAS DYSLEXIA OR A RELATED DISORDER.
    (i) Make recommendations based upon a written evaluation setting forth
  the reasons for the recommendations, to the child's parent or person  in
  parental  relation  and board of education or trustees as to appropriate
  educational programs and placement in accordance with the provisions  of
  subdivision six of section forty-four hundred one-a of this article, and
  as  to the advisability of continuation, modification, or termination of
  special class or program placements which evaluation shall be  furnished
  to  the  child's parent or person in parental relation together with the
  recommendations provided, however that the  committee  may  recommend  a
  placement  in a school which uses psychotropic drugs only if such school
  has a written policy pertaining to such  use  that  is  consistent  with
  subdivision  four-a  of section thirty-two hundred eight of this chapter
  and that the parent or person in parental relation is given such written
  policy at the time such recommendation is made.  IF THE CHILD IS  DETER-
  MINED  TO  HAVE DYSLEXIA, AS DEFINED IN PARAGRAPH B OF SUBDIVISION SEVEN
  OF SECTION THREE THOUSAND FOUR OF THIS CHAPTER, OR A  RELATED  DISORDER,
  THE RECOMMENDATIONS SHALL BE MADE BY A TEAM THAT IS KNOWLEDGEABLE IN THE
  CURRENT  SCIENTIFIC  UNDERSTANDING  OF  DYSLEXIA, INCLUDING THE INSTRUC-
  TIONAL COMPONENTS AND APPROACHES FOR STUDENTS  WITH  DYSLEXIA.  If  such
  recommendation  is  not  acceptable  to the parent or person in parental
  relation, such parent or person in parental  relation  may  appeal  such
  recommendation  as  provided  for  in section forty-four hundred four of
  this [chapter] ARTICLE.
    S 3. Clause (b) of subparagraph 3 of paragraph b of subdivision  1  of
  section 4402 of the education law, as amended by chapter 716 of the laws
  of 1991, is amended to read as follows:

    (b) Make recommendations based upon a written evaluation setting forth
  the  reasons for the recommendations, to the child's parent or person in

 S. 2496                             3                            A. 2775

  parental relationship and board of education or trustees as to appropri-
  ate educational programs and placement in accordance with the provisions
  of subdivision six of section forty-four hundred one-a of this  article,
  and as to the advisability of continuation, modification, or termination
  of  special  class  or  program  placements  which  evaluation  shall be
  furnished to the child's  parent  or  person  in  parental  relationship
  together  with  the recommendations provided, however that the committee
  may recommend a placement in a school which uses psychotropic drugs only
  if such school has a written policy pertaining to such use and that  the
  parent  or  person in parental relationship is given such written policy
  at the time such recommendation is made.  IF THE CHILD IS DETERMINED  TO
  HAVE DYSLEXIA, AS DEFINED IN PARAGRAPH B OF SUBDIVISION SEVEN OF SECTION
  THREE  THOUSAND  FOUR OF THIS CHAPTER, OR A RELATED DISORDER, THE RECOM-
  MENDATIONS SHALL BE MADE BY A TEAM THAT IS KNOWLEDGEABLE IN THE INSTRUC-
  TIONAL COMPONENTS AND APPROACHES FOR STUDENTS  WITH  DYSLEXIA.  If  such
  recommendation  is  not  acceptable  to the parent or person in parental
  relationship, such parent or person in parental relationship may  appeal
  such  recommendation  as provided for in section forty-four hundred four
  of this [chapter] ARTICLE.
    S 4. Paragraph a of subdivision 2 of section  4402  of  the  education
  law,  as  amended by chapter 243 of the laws of 1989, is amended to read
  as follows:

    a. The board of education or trustees of each school district shall be
  required to furnish suitable educational opportunities for children with
  handicapping conditions by one of the special services or programs list-
  ed in subdivision two of section forty-four hundred one OF THIS ARTICLE.
  The need of the individual child shall determine which of such  services
  shall  be rendered.   IF THE CHILD IS A CHILD WITH DYSLEXIA OR A RELATED
  DISORDER, THE DISTRICT SHALL BE REQUIRED TO PROVIDE TO  SUCH  CHILD  THE
  SERVICES  OF  A  TEACHER  OR  INSTRUCTOR TRAINED IN DYSLEXIA AND RELATED
  DISORDERS PURSUANT TO SUBDIVISION SEVEN OF SECTION THREE  THOUSAND  FOUR
  OF  THIS  CHAPTER.  Each  district  shall  provide to the maximum extent
  appropriate such services in a manner which enables children with handi-
  capping conditions to participate in  regular  education  services  when
  appropriate.  Such  services  or programs shall be furnished between the
  months of September and June of each year, except that for the  nineteen
  hundred  eighty-seven--eighty-eight  school  year  and  thereafter, with
  respect to the students whose handicapping conditions are severe  enough
  to  exhibit  the  need  for  a structured learning environment of twelve
  months duration to maintain developmental levels, the board of education
  or trustees of each school  district  upon  the  recommendation  of  the
  committee  on  special education and, in the first instance, the consent
  of the parent shall also provide, either directly or  by  contract,  for
  the  provision  of  special  services and programs as defined in section
  forty-four hundred one of this article during the  months  of  July  and
  August  as  contained  in  the individualized education program for each
  eligible child, and with prior approval by the commissioner if required;
  provided that (i) a student with a handicapping condition who  is  first
  eligible  to attend public school in the nineteen hundred eighty-seven--
  eighty-eight school year shall  not  be  eligible  to  receive  services
  pursuant to this paragraph during the months of July and August nineteen
  hundred  eighty-seven  and  (ii) a student with a handicapping condition
  who is first eligible to attend public school in  the  nineteen  hundred
  eighty-eight--eighty-nine  school  year shall not be eligible to receive
  services pursuant to this paragraph during the months of July and August
  nineteen hundred eighty-eight and (iii) a student  with  a  handicapping

 S. 2496                             4                            A. 2775

  condition  who  is  eligible  for services during the months of July and
  August nineteen hundred eighty-nine pursuant to the provisions of subdi-
  vision six of section forty-four hundred ten of this article  shall  not
  be  eligible  to receive services pursuant to this paragraph during such
  months and (iv) a student with a handicapping condition who is  eligible
  for  services,  including services during the months of July and August,
  pursuant to section forty-four hundred ten of this article shall not  be
  eligible  to  receive  services  pursuant  to  this paragraph during the
  months of July and August.
    S 5. This act shall take effect on the thirtieth day  after  it  shall
  have  become  a  law,  provided  that the amendments to subclause (i) of
  clause (b) of subparagraph 3 of paragraph b of subdivision 1 of  section
  4402  of  the  education  law  made  by section two of this act shall be
  subject to the expiration and  reversion  of  such  clause  pursuant  to
  section  22 of chapter 352 of the laws of 2005, as amended, and subdivi-
  sion d of section 27 of chapter 378 of the laws  of  2007,  as  amended,
  when  upon  such  date the provisions of section three of this act shall
  take effect.