BILL ANALYSIS Ó SENATE COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS Senator Ricardo Lara, Chair 2015 - 2016 Regular Session AB 1369 (Frazier) - Special education: dyslexia. ----------------------------------------------------------------- | | | | | | ----------------------------------------------------------------- |--------------------------------+--------------------------------| | | | |Version: May 4, 2015 |Policy Vote: ED. 9 - 0 | | | | |--------------------------------+--------------------------------| | | | |Urgency: No |Mandate: No | | | | |--------------------------------+--------------------------------| | | | |Hearing Date: August 17, 2015 |Consultant: Jillian Kissee | | | | ----------------------------------------------------------------- This bill meets the criteria for referral to the Suspense File. Bill Summary: This bill requires the State Board of Education to include "phonological processing" in the description of basic psychological processes in the state's regulations. The Superintendent of Public Instruction is required to develop program guidelines for dyslexia, post them on the California Department of Education's (CDE) website, and provide technical assistance regarding their use. Fiscal Impact: According to the CDE, one-time costs of about $103,000 and three partial staff to modify regulations and develop and disseminate program guidelines on dyslexia. Costs also include creating webinars to provide technical assistance, and travel costs associated with stakeholder meetings. (General Fund) After year one, ongoing costs of about $130,000 for one position and a partial position to provide technical assistance to the field, update and disseminate information, AB 1369 (Frazier) Page 1 of ? and respond to complaints of non-compliance with the new guidelines. (General Fund) Significant local cost pressures to implement the guidelines developed by the CDE. Background: Existing law: 1)Defines a specific learning disability as a disorder in one or more of the basic psychological processes involved in understanding or in using language, spoken or written, which may manifest itself in the imperfect ability to listen, think, speak, read, write, spell, or perform mathematical calculations. (United States Code, Title 20, § 1401, and Education Code § 56337) 2)Includes in the definition of a specific learning disability conditions such as perceptual disabilities, brain injury, minimal brain dysfunction, dyslexia, and developmental aphasia. Existing regulations specify that the basic psychological processes include attention, visual processing, auditory processing, sensory-motor skills, cognitive abilities (including association), conceptualization and expression. (California Code of Regulations, Title 5, § 3030) 3)Provides that a student who is assessed as being dyslexic and meets eligibility criteria for the category of specific learning disabilities is entitled to special education and related services. (EC § 56337.5) 4)Provides that if a student who exhibits the characteristics of dyslexia or another related reading dysfunction is not found to be eligible for special education and related services, the student's instructional program is to be provided in the regular education program. (EC § 56337.5) 5)Encourages institutions of higher education to provide, in teacher training programs, increased emphasis on the AB 1369 (Frazier) Page 2 of ? recognition of, and teaching strategies for, specific learning disabilities, including dyslexia and related disorders. (EC § 44227.7) 6)Encourages the inclusion of a component on the recognition of, and teaching strategies for, specific learning disabilities, including dyslexia and related disorders, in local in-service training programs for regular education teachers and special education teachers in local educational agencies. (EC § 56245) According to the American Speech-Language Hearing Association, a phonological process disorder involves patterns of sound errors, such as substituting "k" sounds for "g" sounds. According to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, dyslexia is a brain-based type of learning disability that specifically impairs a person's ability to read. Common characteristics among people with dyslexia are difficulty with phonological processing (the manipulation of sounds), spelling, and/or rapid visual-verbal responding. Proposed Law: This bill requires the State Board of Education to include "phonological processing" in the description of basic psychological processes in the state's regulations. This bill also requires the Superintendent to, before the beginning of the 2017-18 academic year, develop program guidelines for dyslexia to be used to: (1) assist regular and special education teachers, and parents to identify and assess students with dyslexia, and (2) plan, provide, evaluate, and improve educational services to students with dyslexia. Educational services are specifically defined as "an evidence-based, multisensory, direct, explicit, structured, and sequential approach to instructing pupils who have dyslexia." In developing the program guidelines the Superintendent must consult with a number of individuals and professionals involved in the identification and education of students with dyslexia. AB 1369 (Frazier) Page 3 of ? The Superintendent is required to post the guidelines on the CDE's website and to provide technical assistance regarding their use and implementation. Staff Comments:7) Current law provides that a student who is assessed as being dyslexic, as specified, is entitled to special education and related services under the specific learning disability category. Existing law defines a specific learning disability as a disorder in one or more of the basic psychological processes involved in understanding or in using language, spoken or written. State regulations specify that the basic psychological processes include attention, visual processing, auditory processing, sensory-motor skills, cognitive abilities, conceptualization and expression. The description of psychological processes and the inclusion of phonological processes appear to be an expansion to beyond federal law. To the extent expanding the definition of psychological processes results in required expansion of services beyond federal law, costs for implementing these services could be determined to be a reimbursable state mandate. This bill also requires the CDE to develop program guidelines for dyslexia to be used to assist teachers and other individuals to identify and assess students with dyslexia and to plan, provide, evaluate, and improve educational services to students with dyslexia. This bill provides a specific definition for educational services. These program guidelines would only be advisory to local educational agencies and would therefore not be eligible for reimbursement under state mandate law but would create cost pressures to implement them. -- END --