(Salt Lake City, UT) October 18, 2018 — In honor of dyslexia awareness month, Reading Horizons, a leading provider of literacy solutions for the Prek-12 education market, has launched a complimentary online dyslexia screener. Parents and educators can access the non-diagnostic risk screener to identify indicators of dyslexia, with the goal being earlier recognition and intervention. Studies show that approximately 10-20% of students struggle with factors related to dyslexia. The announcement came during the company’s second-annual Online Dyslexia Summit on Thursday, October 18.
Dyslexia impacts virtually every experience a student will have in the classroom. Research shows that if a student is identified and receives targeted remediation by 1 grade, the educational consequences of dyslexia can be greatly reduced. The screener was developed by a team of reading and dyslexia specialists including psychologist Dr. Richard Selznick, author of several books on dyslexia and learning issues, who served as a consultant. The primary research sources for the screeners include Overcoming Dyslexia by Sally Shaywitz and Essentials of Assessing, Preventing, and Overcoming Reading Difficulties, by David A. Kilpatrick, as well as several studies. Links to the research behind each question are available on the screener.
“Schools benefit by screening students, whether they have characteristics of dyslexia or not, since many educators may be unfamiliar with the signs of dyslexia. This is a good first step in obtaining valuable information,” said Donell Pons, a reading and dyslexia expert and co-developer of the screener. “Informal screening that includes information from parents and educators can be done quickly and is an effective tool that can be completed at no cost. When teachers know what to look for, they are better able to support their students.”
The screener is available in four versions: one each for four- and five-year olds, six-and seven-year olds, eight-years old and above, and adults. Each screener includes questions focused on the specific indicators of dyslexia that are developmental or appear as reading tasks become more complex. Parents are invaluable as a source of information to determine if there is a family history of reading problems, and other early risk-factors such as a child’s delay in speaking, difficulty with rhyming, or retaining letter names and sounds.
Once the screener has been completed, a list of the responses is generated, along with recommendations based on the number of identified indicators. To learn more about how to identify, accommodate, and support students with dyslexia, watch Reading Horizons’ second-annual Online Dyslexia Summit.
About Reading Horizons
For more than 30 years, Reading Horizons has dedicated its time and efforts to perfecting a reading system that makes learning to read simple and enjoyable for beginning and struggling readers. All of Reading Horizons’ products are based on a method that provides explicit, systematic, sequential decoding instruction. The Reading Horizons method has been proven successful for beginning readers, struggling readers, and students learning English. For more information, please visit ReadingHorizons.com.
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