What is interesting about this subject, the whole subject of dyslexia, reading, illiteracy and education is that there is a great upheaval in education right now. Moreso than usual.
The Third Grade Reading Guarantee in my state (Ohio) is essentially about the privatization of education.
In deciding to make changes the governor and his accomplices didn't count or think it seemed to matter that; Charter (aka: "Community") schools have a lousy educational track record and no one asked any trained professionals (aka teachers, pediatric neuropsychologists, etc. ) before they passed this 400 page nonsense into a law called Senate Bill 316.
What does this mean for dyslexia?
First off, we know that most children with dyslexia are not identified. Those few that are and have an IEP to (hopefully) protect them are invariably in a much stronger socio-economic position than children in impoverished areas where children regularly go without any needed intervention.
Second, take the statistic which shows that the Whole Language teaching method doesn't work for 40% of the population. Nearly every teacher who has come out of college in my state since 1987 has been taught Whole Language and fed the line that the Phonics method is a slower way to teach reading and an relic of the past. Most people in college are still in their formative years and this is a crucial time of being convinced as to which way is right and which is wrong.
This argument over which is a better way to teach reading is officially called the Reading Wars.
Where does this take us as far as Charter schools go?
Here is my thinking:
Public schools aren't doing all that fabulous at educating children with dyslexia but there are so many more factors to play against dyslexic children in the charter schools.
Starting with teachers with less training, making less money and having less overall job security.
Let me digress for a moment and say that Universities would be wise to realize that should teaching become a non-career their entire Colleges of Education will no doubt end up suffering. Should more teachers be paid Walmart wages, you can expect serious ambitious college students to NOT become teachers.
Also a charter school doesn't have to accept just any child the way a public school does. The charter school that doesn't educate third graders to read isn't going to be graded and closed the way it's written for the public schools to be closed if they are in "academic emergency".
If the path of turning much of out educational system is going to go private we will see that less and less funding, encouragement and support will go to our public schools.
This is not good overall for any child but especially not the dyslexic child.
Currently public school districts in wealthier areas are starting to implement things like the Wilson method. They are trying to get some Orton-Gillingham training. They are scared to death of continuing to be sued by ever more knowledgeable parents who are forming groups. They are changing because they have to.
Charter schools close at the drop of the hat, reorganize themselves, change their names and have all sorts of other ways to hide. They simply aren't going to be held to the accountability factor that public schools are.
I cant predict the future but I'm going to go out on a limb and say what I seem to be seeing in the works and how it may, on a personal level affect both my family and my community and not for the better.
We, as a society, are going to have to respond. We need a plan to counteract what has currently been set in store for us.
On a personal level and on a more widespread level, it's time to see some action start to take place. I have hope it will.
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