A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z
A
Academic Language Therapy Association (ALTA): a non-profit national professional organization incorporated in 1986 for the purpose of establishing, maintaining, and promoting certification standards of education, practice and professional conduct for Certified Academic Language Practitioners (CALP), Instructor of Certified Academic Language Practitioners (ICALP), Certified Academic Language Therapists (CALT), and Qualified Instructors of Certified Academic Language Therapists (QI).
Accelerated reading instruction: intensified, research-based reading instruction that addresses the student’s reading needs that were determined by the results of the K–2 reading instruments (TEC §28.006)
This intensive, research-based instruction is provided for students determined to be at risk for dyslexia or other reading difficulties. The school district or open-enrollment charter school determines the form, content, and timing of the intensive instruction that is designed to meet students’ needs (e.g., instruction in phonemic awareness, alphabetic principle, word-analysis strategies, fluency, and/or reading comprehension).
Accommodation: changing or altering the learning environment, materials, delivery method, or number of answers.
Modifications/changes should not be made to the state curriculum standards known as the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS).
Adaptive behavior: the effectiveness with which the student meets the standards of personal independence and social responsibility expected of his or her age and cultural group.
Admission, Review and Dismissal (ARD): a committee which makes decisions concerning the educational program of a student referred or placed in special education. Responsibilities of the ARD Committee include:
- Review all diagnostic test results
- Establish eligibility for special education services
- Develop the Individual Education Plan (IEP)
- Provide for educational placement in the least restrictive environment
- Review all special services assignments annually to determine the need for continuation, change, reappraisal or dismissal
- Ensure that alternatives are reviewed and additional services are discussed
- Determine eligibility for Extended Year Services (EYS)
Alphabetic principle: the understanding that the sequence of letters in written words represents the sequence of sounds (or phonemes) in spoken words
Assistive technology: any item, piece of equipment, or product system, whether acquired commercially, modified, or customized, that is used to increase, maintain, or improve the functional capabilities of a child with a disability (IDEA).
Assistive technology does not include a medical device that is surgically implanted or the replacement of such device (34 C.F.R. §300.5).
At risk for dyslexia: a term used to describe students who are found to be at risk based on the results of the universal screening instrument or who are not making adequate progress in the areas of reading and/or reading development but who have not yet been identified as students with dyslexia.
The students considered at risk are at the pre-identification level. These students must be provided accelerated reading instruction (intensive, research-based instruction that addresses the reading needs of the student).
B
Basic Language Skills (BLS): an explicit, systematic, intensive literacy instruction for students with dyslexia or related language learning differences.
It is a literacy instructional framework that is systematic, sequential, intensive, and comprehensive. Basic Language Skills is for use by teachers and specialists working with students identified with special needs in learning to read and spell. Preferably, it is taught to a small group of up to five students who are similar in age and reading ability, with intensity and duration that ensures students’ progress and achievement, and with a monitored and modulated pace that is adjusted to meet student needs.
Basic Language Skills meets the standards set by the Texas Education Agency, the International Multisensory Structured Language Education Council, and the International Dyslexia Association.
Beginning of Year (BOY): this period is often used to report a student’s academic performance at the beginning of the school year on measures such as universal screening tests, reading levels, and language proficiency as a benchmark for student growth.
C
Certified Academic Language Practitioner (CALP): teachers trained at the practitioner level to provide explicit, systematic, sequential Multisensory Structured Language instruction which builds a high degree of accuracy, knowledge, and independence for students with written-language disorders, including dyslexia. CALPs are certified through ALTA.
Certified Academic Language Therapist (CALT): individuals trained at the therapist level to provide diagnostic, explicit, systematic, sequential Multisensory Structured Language intervention which builds a high degree of accuracy, knowledge, and independence for students with written-language disorders, including dyslexia. CALTs are certified through ALTA.
Child Find: a school district’s system for identifying, locating, and evaluating individuals with disabilities (birth through 21 years of age) who reside in its jurisdiction and who may need special education and related services
Cognate: a word in one language that looks and means the same as a word in another language (family (English)/familia (Spanish)/família (Portugese)/famiglia (Italian)/famille (French)/família (Catalan)/familie (Romanian).
Comprehensive Test of Phonological Processing (CTOPP): an instrument used to measure phonological awareness, phonological memory, and naming. The assessment helps evaluate phonological processing skills that are prerequisites to reading fluency.
Cross-linguistic: relating to the comparison of different languages and the influence that knowledge of one language has on an individual’s learning or use of another language.
D
Data-based decision making: an ongoing process of collecting and analyzing formal and informal data (e.g., demographic, progress-monitoring, assessment, etc.) in order to guide educational decisions for a student
Developmental auditory imperception: the inability to receive and understand sounds and words
Developmental dysgraphia: an inability to write legibly. This may occur in addition to other difficulties in written language. Visual-motor coordination skills are frequently within the average range and are not the primary cause of dysgraphia.
Developmental spelling disorder: significant difficulty learning to spell. This occurs in the absence of reading or other written-language difficulties.
Differentiated instruction: a process used to recognize students’ varying background knowledge, readiness, language, preferences in learning, and interests
Differentiated instruction is a process used to approach teaching and learning for students of differing abilities in the same class. The intent of differentiating instruction is to maximize each student’s growth and individual success by meeting each student where he or she is and assisting in the learning process.
Dominant language: the language of an individual that is strongest and most developed
Dyslexia: specific learning disability that is neurological in origin. It is characterized by difficulties with accurate and/or fluent word recognition and poor spelling and decoding abilities. These difficulties typically result from a deficit in the phonological component of language that is often unexpected in relation to other cognitive abilities and the provision of effective classroom instruction. Secondary consequences may include problems in reading comprehension and reduced reading experience that can impede growth of vocabulary and background knowledge (International Dyslexia Association, 2002).
Dyslexia Service Provider (DSP): RRISD’s distinction for an individual who provides multisensory structured language instruction for students who have been identified with dyslexia and are determined to have an academic need for direct services. DSPs must meet the minimum training requirements for each program they teach, as stated in the Dyslexia Handbook.
Dysphasia: a delay in the development of comprehension and/or expression of oral language; terms commonly used to describe this condition include “developmental language disorder” and “specific language impairment”
E
End of Year (EOY): this period is often used to report a student’s academic performance at the end of the school year on measures such as universal screening tests, reading levels, and language proficiency as a benchmark for student growth.
English as a Second Language (ESL): The term ESL is used frequently in the USA. If you maintain an EFL/ESL distinction, then ESL refers to English language learning in countries where English is the main and / or official language, and the student’s own native language (first language) is not English. This term is problematic when we consider learners for whom English is their third or fourth language.
Evaluation: the use of multiple methods in evaluating a variety of data to guide establishment of appropriate interventions
For the identification of a student with dyslexia, the data for evaluation should include the teacher’s observations, the developmental and academic history of the student, the results of a variety of reading assessments, and all other information relevant to the identification of dyslexia.
Evidence-based instruction: an activity, strategy, or intervention that—
(i) demonstrates a statistically significant effect on improving student outcomes or other relevant outcomes based on—(I) strong evidence from at least 1 well-designed and well-implemented experimental study; (II) moderate evidence from at least 1 well-designed and well-implemented quasi-experimental study; or (III) promising evidence from at least 1 well designed and well-implemented correlational study with statistical controls for selection bias; or
(ii)(I) demonstrates a rationale based on high quality research findings or positive evaluation that such activity, strategy, or intervention is likely to improve student outcomes or other relevant outcomes; and (II) 14 includes ongoing efforts to examine the effects of such activity, strategy, or intervention” (ESSA, 2015, pp. 388-389).
For reading, this will include reliable, trustworthy, and valid evidence suggesting that when the program is used with a given group of students, the students can be expected to make adequate gains in reading achievement.
Explicit, direct instruction: instruction that is systematic (structured), sequential, and cumulative. Instruction is organized and presented in a way that follows a logical sequential plan, fits the nature of language (alphabetic principle) with no assumption of prior skills or language knowledge, and maximizes student engagement.
F
Fidelity of implementation: the commitment to implement a program, practice, or service as the designers or developers of the program intended
Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE): an educational right of a child with disabilities in the United States to be provided with an education, including specialized instruction and related services, that prepares the child for further education, employment, and independent living
In 1975, Congress passed Public Law 94-142, also known as the Education for All Handicapped Children Act, which defined and outlined that all public schools should provide all students with a free appropriate public education at public expense without additional charges to parents or students and must be under public supervision and be appropriate for the child’s needs.
Fluency: the ability to read with speed, accuracy, and proper expression. Fluency is one of several critical factors necessary for reading comprehension.
Full Individual Evaluation (FIE): a comprehensive assessment of a student’s abilities to determine eligibility and need for special education services
Full Initial and Individual Evaluation (FIIE): the intial comprehensive assessment of a student’s abilities to determine eligibility and need for special education services
Fundamental Literacy Ability Index (FLAI): on the WIST, a composite score made up of the student’s Word Identification (regular and irregular words) and Spelling (regular and irregular words). According to the WIST manual, the FLAI is the best measure of what the majority of people mean when they say “basic literacy”.
G
Graphophonemic knowledge (phonics) instruction: instruction that takes advantage of the letter-sound plan in which words that carry meaning are made of sounds, and sounds are written with letters in the right order. Students with this understanding can blend sounds associated with letters into words and can separate words into component sounds for spelling and writing.
Gray Oral Reading Tests (GORT): one of the most widely used measures of oral reading fluency and comprehension in the United States.
H
House Bill (HB): A bill is a legislative proposal before Congress. Bills from each house are assigned a number in the order in which they are introduced, starting at the beginning of each Congress (first and second sessions).
I
Individualized Education Program (IEP): a plan or program developed to ensure that a child who has a disability identified under the law and is attending an elementary or secondary educational institution receives specialized instruction and related services. The IEP is created and approved by the ARD committee and reviewed at least once a year.
Individualized instruction: instruction that meets the specific learning needs of an individual student. Materials and methods are matched to each student’s ability level.
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA): a law that makes available a free appropriate public education to eligible children with disabilities throughout the nation and ensures special education and related services to those children.
Intervention: a change in instruction in the area of learning difficulty to improve performance and achieve adequate progress
International Dyslexia Association (IDA): non-profit education and advocacy organization devoted to issues surrounding dyslexia. The International Dyslexia Association serves individuals with dyslexia, their families, and professionals in the field.
J
K
L
Language proficiency: the level of skill in a language. Language proficiency is composed of oral (listening and speaking) and written (reading and writing) components as well as academic and nonacademic language.
Language structure instruction: instruction that encompasses morphology, semantics, syntax, and pragmatics
Linguistic instruction: instruction that is directed toward proficiency and fluency with patterns of language so that words and sentences are the carriers of meaning
M
Meaning-based instruction: instruction that is directed toward purposeful reading and writing, with an emphasis on comprehension and composition
Middle of Year (MOY): this period is often used to report a student’s academic performance at the midway through a school year (at the end of the first semester) on measures such as universal screening tests, reading levels, and language proficiency as a benchmark for student growth.
Morpheme: a meaningful linguistic unit that cannot be divided into smaller meaningful elements, such as the word “book.” A morpheme is also a component of a word, as the letter “S” in “books.”
Morphology: the study of the structure and form of words in a language, including inflection, derivation, and the formation of compounds. Knowledge of morphemes facilitates decoding, spelling, and vocabulary development.
Morphosyllabic writing systems: writing systems composed of several thousand characters that are visually complex and each represents a morpheme not a phoneme. An example of a morphosyllabic writing system is Japanese Kanji or Chinese Hanzi.
Multisensory instruction: instruction that incorporates the simultaneous use of two or more sensory pathways (auditory, visual, kinesthetic, tactile) during teacher presentation and student practice.
N
O
Orthographic awareness: the ability to perceive and manipulate aspects of a writing system and the visual aspects of reading and spelling, such as letters, letter patterns, and words
Orthographic memory: the memory for letter patterns and word spellings
Orthography: the writing system of a language, including the spelling, punctuation, and capitalization rules
P
Phonemic awareness: the insight that spoken words can be conceived as a sequence of sounds; the ability to manipulate the sounds within words (e.g., segmenting or blending)
Phonics: a method of teaching reading that helps students build understanding of sound-symbol relationships and spelling patterns
Phonology: the sound structure of speech and in particular, the perception, representation, and production of speech sounds
Phonological memory: passive short-term memory that briefly stores speech-based information in phonological form
Progress monitoring: a scientifically based practice used to assess students’ academic progress and/or performance and evaluate the effectiveness of instruction.
Progress monitoring can be implemented with individual students or an entire class. Progress monitoring is a quick (less than 5 minutes) assessment that is done frequently (weekly or biweekly) in order to make instructional changes in a timely fashion.
Public Education Information Management Systems (PEIMS): encompasses all data requested and received by TEA about public education, including student demographic and academic performance, personnel, financial, and organizational information.
Q
R
Recommendation for assessment for dyslexia: recommendation by the teacher, school district, or open-enrollment charter school staff, and/or the parent or guardian that a student be assessed for dyslexia.
Following the recommendation, the school district or open-enrollment charter school must adhere to its written procedures and the procedures within the handbook.
Response to intervention (RTI): a multistep, or tiered, approach to providing services and interventions at increasing levels of intensity to students who struggle with learning. The progress students make at each stage of intervention is closely monitored. Results of this monitoring are used to make decisions about the need for further research-based instruction and/or intervention in general education, in specialized instructional settings, or both.
S
Scientifically based research: the required standard in professional development and the foundation of academic instruction called for in the guidelines of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA).
Under the ESEA definition, scientifically based research must meet the following criteria:
- Employ systematic, empirical methods that draw on observation or experiment
- Involve rigorous data analyses that are adequate to test the stated hypotheses and justify the general conclusions
- Rely on measurements or observational methods that provide valid data across evaluators and observers and across multiple measurements and observations
- Be accepted by a peer-reviewed journal or approved by a panel of independent experts through a comparatively rigorous, objective, and scientific review
Semitic writing system: a writing system where each symbol usually stands for a consonant sound and the reader must supply the appropriate vowel sound. Examples of Semitic languages are Hebrew and Arabic.
Specially designed instruction: defined under IDEA as “adapting . . . the content, methodology, or delivery of instruction” to a child eligible under IDEA. This instruction must address the unique needs of the child that result from the child’s disability and must ensure access to the general curriculum so that the child can meet the state’s educational standards (34 C.F.R §300.39(b)(3)).
Specific developmental dyslexia: another term for dyslexia.
Standard protocol dyslexia instruction (SPDI): dyslexia instruction typically provided in a small group setting and that follows an established format or delivery system. Standard protocol dyslexia instructional programs provide evidence-based, multisensory structured literacy instruction and must include the following components: phonological awareness, sound-symbol association, syllabication, orthography, morphology, syntax, reading comprehension, and reading fluency.
State Board of Education (SBOE): sets policies and standards for Texas public schools. The primary responsibilities of the SBOE include:
- Setting curriculum standards
- Reviewing and adopting instructional materials
- Establishing graduation requirements
- Overseeing the Texas Permanent School Fund
- Appointing board members to military reservation and special school districts
- Providing final review of rules proposed by the State Board for Educator Certification
- Reviewing the commissioner’s proposed award of new charter schools, with authority to veto a recommended applicant
State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR): the state’s testing program based on state curriculum standards in core subjects including reading, writing, mathematics, science, and social studies.
Strategy-oriented instruction: thoughtfully ordered step-by-step instruction in the strategies that students need to become independent readers, including strategies for decoding, encoding, word recognition, fluency, and comprehension
Student Support Team (SST): A group of individuals composed of district personnel that periodically meets to discuss the performance, instructional response, and progress of students as it pertains to their unique educational needs.
Syllabic writing system: writing systems in which each symbol represents a syllable. Examples of syllabic writing systems are Japanese kana, Korean, Hangual, and many of the Asian-Indian languages.
Syntax: the study of rules and patterns for the formation of grammatical sentences and phrases in a language
T
Test of Word Reading Efficiency, 2nd Edition (TOWRE – 2): a measure of word reading accuracy and fluency. It provides a quick method to assess the efficiency of sight word reading and phonemic decoding in children and adults.
Texas Education Agency (TEA): the state agency that oversees primary and secondary public education. It is headed by the commissioner of education. The Texas Education Agency improves outcomes for all public school students in the state by providing leadership, guidance, and support to school systems.
Texas Education Code (TEC): The Texas Education Code includes all laws and rules passed by the state legislature. It applies to all educational institutions supported in whole or in part by state tax funds unless specifically excluded by this code.
U
Universal screening: a step taken by school personnel to determine which students are at risk for not meeting grade-level standards. Universal screening can be accomplished by administering an academic screening to all students in a given grade level. Students whose scores fall below a certain cutoff point are identified as needing closer monitoring or intervention.
V
W
Wilson Assessment of Decoding and Encoding (WADE): The Wilson® Assessment of Decoding and Encoding (WADE) is a curriculum-based measure which specifically assesses a student’s decoding and encoding (spelling) skills correlated to the word structures taught in Wilson Reading System®. The WADE is aligned to the scope and sequence of the Wilson Reading System in order to both guide instruction and determine mastery. The WADE should be administered as a pre-test prior to any Wilson instruction (beginning of programming) and is also administered as a posttest at the end of instruction or at the end of a school year to evaluate mastery of the curriculum and assess the student’s ability to independently apply decoding and encoding skills.
Wilson Reading System (WRS): an intensive Tier 3 program for students in grades 2-12 and adults with word-level deficits who are not making sufficient progress through their current intervention; have been unable to learn with other teaching strategies and require multisensory language instruction; or who require more intensive structured literacy instruction due to a language-based learning disability, such as dyslexia. As a structured literacy program based on phonological-coding research and Orton-Gillingham principles, WRS directly and systematically teaches the structure of the English language. Through the program, students learn fluent decoding and encoding skills to the level of mastery. Wilson Reading System meets the standards set by the Texas Education Agency, the International Multisensory Structured Language Education Council, and the International Dyslexia Association.
Woodcock-Johnson IV Oral Language (WJ IV OL): The Woodcock-Johnson IV Tests of Oral Language is a battery that includes 12 tests for measuring oral language ability and listening comprehension (in English and Spanish), oral expression, and two important cognitive linguistic abilities: phonetic coding and speed of lexical access.
Woodcock-Johnson IV Test of Achievement (WJ IV): The Woodcock-Johnson IV Tests of Achievement is a wide range, comprehensive set of individually administered tests for measuring cognitive abilities, scholastic aptitudes, and achievement. These tests were nationally standardized on examinees ages 2 years to 80+ years of age.
Word Identification and Spelling Test (WIST): evolved from the Wilson Assessment of Decoding and Encoding Test (WADE). The WIST provides a nationally standardized, diagnostic instrument designed specifically for students having difficulty with reading, spelling or both.
The Norm-Referenced Assessment measures Word Identification, Spelling, and Sound-Symbol Knowledge. The WIST can also be used as an informal assessment to obtain diagnostic information. In Round Rock ISD, we used the WIST at beginning and end of programming, and at transition from elementary to middle or middle to high school, as a consideration for program placement.