Kristi Santi, an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychological, Health and Learning Sciences, and her research team are partnering with Houston area school districts to work with students with dyslexia in order to encourage the students’ success using scientific and observation-based practices.
Santi has relatives with learning disabilities, making this project more personal.
“Every student, regardless of status, should have quality instruction delivered in the general education setting,” Santi said.
The overall goal of this project is to improve the reading levels of students with dyslexia or other reading disabilities. Santi also hopes this project will help teachers, schools, and school districts implement better support systems for these students.
While Santi and her team are focused on the academic gains of all students, more specifically they would like to reduce the percentage of students with reading disabilities in the second and third grades by providing professional development to educators on screening for the identification of dyslexia, using instructional techniques, monitoring student progress and creating a blueprint for systems change.
This project will be ongoing for the next two years. In the first stage of the project, some schools participated in a summer institute for professional development where they went through Just-in-Time training.
“In addition, the school administrators participate in monthly network improvement community strategy meetings that develop supports, resources, and professional development to move campuses forward,” Santi said.
They also have a website where educators and parents can access resources that help children with dyslexia.
Santi hopes that they will continue this work through other locally and federally funded initiatives moving forward.
Image: Getty Images+/E+/damircudic
