The 155th Georgia General Assembly has come to a close, and I am impressed with the meaningful bills we were able to turn into effective laws over the 40-day legislative session. One piece of successful legislation is particularly important to me – Senate Bill 48. This bill addresses dyslexia support in Georgia’s schools, and I commend Senator P.K. Martin for his leadership in sponsoring this bill and carrying it all the way to the governor’s desk. SB 48 provides specific guidance for schools to identify dyslexia in young students and continued training for school officials and teachers to learn about dyslexia in order to produce better-supported students.In the fall of 2018, former Senator Fran Millar led the Senate Study Committee on Dyslexia. This committee was formed to revise a previously existing law that simply “encouraged schools, local education agencies, and state educational agencies to recognize that dyslexia has a profound educational impact.” Upon hearing from educators, parents, medical professionals, and experts in dyslexia, the committee found that children with language difficulties that continue into kindergarten are at a higher risk of dyslexia. One in five students has a language-based disability, of which dyslexia is the most common. After expert testimony, as well as hearing from students who have dyslexia and the impact it has on their daily lives, the committee recommended the following:
• Mandated screening for all kindergarten students should be implemented across the state.
• All students, kindergarten to second grade, should be screened using a screener who has been approved by the Georgia Department of Education.
• Statewide guidance, teacher training, and evaluation should be provided via a handbook created by the Department of Education, which focuses on dyslexia, reading, and language disorders and how they interconnect.
• The Department of Education should develop required teacher training on dyslexia for those wishing to become teachers and those who are currently teaching.
In response to the committee’s findings, SB 48 was drafted and introduced. In its preliminary stages, the bill was assigned to the Education and Youth Committee where parents, teachers, and individuals with dyslexia provided emotional testimonies regarding the lack of support under current policy. The stories of their struggles only reinforced the importance of providing clear, explicit legislation regarding dyslexia in Georgia’s law. As SB 48 progressed through the legislative process, I was proud to see bipartisan support and effort to ensure that this crucial bill became law.
What stood out most during the moving testimonies I heard is that dyslexia may cause difficulties for our children in reading, but it does not prevent our children from thinking. Our children are the future of this great state, and we must do all we can to provide them with a quality education while also addressing their needs as early as possible. I look forward to seeing the positive impact this investment will provide our next generation of great thinkers.