Category: Education

Updates on Universal Screening for Reading Difficulties, Including Risk of Dyslexia, in CA

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Required K-2 universal screening is coming to California in the 2025-26 school year!

On July 10, 2023, Governor Newsom signed the Education Omnibus Budget Trailer Bill (Senate Bill 114) which included annual universal screening for reading difficulties, including risk of dyslexia, for California students in Kindergarten, Grade 1, and Grade 2. (You can find more background here and excerpted language from the bill here.)

Education leaders at the state and district levels are now preparing for the rollout of the state requirement. Read the paragraphs below for a brief explanation of universal screening for reading difficulties, including risk of dyslexia, and an outline of the next stages of implementation.

What is universal screening and why is it so important?

Universal screening refers to the process of assessing all students in a given grade level to identify those who may be at risk for reading difficulties, including risk of dyslexia. It involves brief tests of discrete skills and also incorporates additional supports for screening of multilingual learners. The goal is to catch potential reading issues early, before they become more pronounced and harder to address.

The ability to read is a fundamental skill in modern society and the gateway to all academic areas. Research from multiple scientific studies is unequivocal: early identification and intervention improves literacy outcomes for students at risk of, or with, dyslexia and other struggling readers. K-2 universal screening makes system-wide early intervention possible and is the first step in closing academic gaps, before students fall behind.

The latest in neuroscience research shows that the time from birth to age eight is a critical period for literacy development due to rapid brain growth and its response to instruction. These exciting advances in neuroscience also show that, with appropriate early identification and reading interventions, the unique identifiers in the brain can be altered to resemble the reading patterns seen in the brain of a person who does not have dyslexia. Learn more about universal screening and the evidence base here.

Does universal screening diagnose dyslexia?

Universal screening does not diagnose children as having dyslexia, and it does not determine special education eligibility. Screening identifies children who are at risk for developing reading impairments. It provides information about which children are likely to encounter difficulty learning to read and need targeted support. The goal is to reduce the prevalence of reading impairments, including dyslexia, by taking preventive actions in providing evidence-based interventions in response to screening, delivered in the general education classroom.

What is happening with the new screening law and when will screening begin?

Required K-2 universal screening is coming to California in the 2025-26 school year!

In January, 2024, the California State Board of Education appointed nine experts to the Reading Difficulties Risk Screener Selection Panel. The panel is currently working to devise a list of screening instruments developed for English-speaking pupils and students learning English. The panel has convened eight times during 2024 to engage in this work. Agendas and minutes from the meetings can be found here.

The legislation calls for the State Board of Education to publish the approved list of screeners before the end of 2024. Once the list is released, Local Education Agencies (referred to as “LEAs” and means school districts, county offices of education, direct-funded charter schools, and special education local plan areas, etc.) must formally adopt screening instrument(s) from those on the approved list by June 30, 2025.   

LEAs will have until no later than the 2025-2026 academic year to begin annual screening of all pupils in Kindergarten, Grade 1 and Grade 2. Parents/guardians will receive the results of the screening, including information on how to interpret the results and the proposed supports and services for children identified as “at risk.” Proposed supports and services appropriate to the challenges identified in the screening process may include any of the following:

  1. Evidence-based literacy instruction focused on the pupil’s specific needs
  2. Progress monitoring
  3. Early intervention in the regular general education program
  4. One-on-one or small group tutoring
  5. Further evaluation or diagnostic assessment

Parents/guardians can opt-out if they do not want their child screened. There are also provisions for alternate procedures for English Learners who do not speak sufficient English to be screened using an English-language screening instrument.

What’s coming next?

DDCA was thrilled to see that the Governor’s budget included $25 million in funding for the implementation of universal screening. These funds are much needed as the legislation calls for, “guidance and resources for educators regarding how to administer screening instruments, interpret results, explain results to families, including in pupils’ primary languages, and determine further educational strategies, assessments, diagnostics, and interventions that should be considered and that are specific to each type of pupil result” (Senate Bill 114). To support LEAs with adoption and implementation of the screenings, the California Department of Education will add a dedicated web page to their website with information about the screening requirements, Frequently Asked Questions, and informational webinars. A Reading Difficulties Risk Screener Adoption Toolkit designed to guide LEAs in their review and adoption of screening instruments will also be published. DDCA will share more about the state-provided guidance and resources as information is released.

DDCA has advocated for universal screening since 2015 and, now, almost ten years later, it’s becoming a reality in California public schools! We look forward to the release of the approved list of screeners and hope to support stakeholders as they navigate the screener selection process and prepare for screening during the 2025-26 school year. Successful implementation depends on schools being prepared to provide appropriate follow-up interventions and support, as simply identifying at-risk students is not enough without a robust system in place to help them succeed.

Please follow DDCA to learn and support the implementation of this critical legislation! You can signup for DDCA emails by clicking here.

Free Audiobook Resources

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Access to free audiobooks is a right afforded to those
with reading difficulties, including those at risk of or with dyslexia.

Do you or your child struggle with reading and want recreational audiobooks and/or classroom material audiobooks for free? If so, please read this blog!

Through various state and federally funded programs, people with reading difficulties, including those at risk of or with dyslexia, are able to gain access to two libraries of audiobooks, at no cost, for use both in and out of the classroom.

*Recreational Audiobooks*

The National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled (NLS) administers a free library program housing a huge collection of audiobooks for residents of the United States (and American citizens living abroad) who have difficulty reading.

What are the steps to take advantage of this free resource?

  1. Determine which NLS library you’re assigned to (based on which county you live in) at this link. Then go to your assigned library:

  2. Complete and submit an application, which can be found on the library’s website. (On the website for the Southern California option, first click on the “Become a Patron” button.)

    • If you are completing the application for yourself or as a parent or guardian of a child, a certifying authority* must attest that you or the child are unable to read the printed word due to a learning/reading disability by completing a designated portion of the application.
    • It is important to note that a student does not have to have an IEP or a 504 plan in order for a certifying authority to attest that a student would benefit from audiobooks.

  3. After your submitted application is processed, you will be provided access to the library of audiobooks one of two ways through the Braille and Audio Reading Download (BARD) service:
    • App for mobile devices: Audiobooks can be downloaded directly to the mobile device for immediate use. The app was designed specifically for ease and usability, and encompasses many helpful features.
    • USB drive (containing books) and NLS device (talking book machine): The NLS device comes with a headphone jack; and, all NLS materials and components ship through the mail for free.

If a teacher, school librarian or other public school professional would like to complete an application on behalf of students they serve, they will do so as an “institution” and will be granted the same access to the free library of audiobooks. The institution application can be found on the library’s website or by contacting the library directly.

A few additional points worth mentioning:

  • BARD continually adds to their library of over 120,000 books, including books for all ages in all genres and in multiple languages. BARD’s library also includes podcasts, cookbooks, how-to guides for coding and web design, magazines and even rulebooks for video games, just to name a sampling.
  • It’s estimated that only 5% of the eligible population is taking advantage of this free library service. The employees at each of California’s four NLS libraries are eager to spread the word and answer questions, and we encourage everyone to explore their websites and contact them for any further help you or your child may need!
  • The California School Library Association wrote a blog in 2021 discussing the services of the Northern California NLS library, the Braille and Talking Book Library (BTBL). While it covers BTBL, the services and information shared in the blog apply to all four of California’s NLS libraries.

*Classroom Material Audiobooks*

California’s Department of Education’s Clearinghouse for Specialized Media and Technology (CSMT) produces and disseminates to public schools throughout the state, at no cost, audiobook versions of textbooks, workbooks, and literature books that have been adopted by California’s State Board of Education. (If a school is using a classroom curriculum not on the state adopted list, they would have to procure and pay for the accessible materials on their own.) 

This means that students with reading difficulties, including those at risk of or with dyslexia, can be easily and efficiently provided appropriate access to their K-8 education curriculum. (High school instructional materials not included in what CSMT provides as those are a local decision and do not go through the State Board of Education adoption process.) 

Any California public school educator or personnel can apply for an account online with the Instructional Materials Ordering and Distribution System (IMODS). CSMT will review the application and once approved, their IMODS account will provide them access to all classroom material audiobooks to share with the students they serve. (As of 2024, CSMT has discontinued the creation of audiobook files due to advances in text-to-speech technology on computers and assistive devices; however, audiobook files that have already been created will remain available to download in IMODS. For any state-adopted material not already existing in IMODS as an audiobook file, CSMT will provide the publisher’s digital format of the material and it can be played on computers and assistive devices using its text-to-speech technology.)

Again, it is important to note that students do not have to have an IEP or a 504 plan in order for school personnel to determine that they would benefit from these audiobooks.

We encourage you to share these free resources with others, including your child’s school. And if you haven’t already, please be sure to sign up for DDCA emails to stay informed on all literacy-related efforts in California.