Back to SBOE Meeting Highlights


Dyslexia Handbook Revisions Approved

The State Board of Education (SBOE) gave 2nd/final reading approval (agenda) to an updated version of the state’s Dyslexia Handbook.
  • Note: Click here for a table listing the adopted revisions.
The item was advanced to the full board for final approval by the SBOE Committee on Instruction (webcast-click Item 1 for the public hearing, and Item 2 for the committee’s discussion and vote).

The handbook had been criticized in two U.S. Department of Education special-ed monitoring letters (in 2018 and 2020) as being deficient, especially in the areas of ensuring that Texas students with dyslexia are not being improperly denied special-ed services, and that there has been a misalignment with the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).

The revised version of the Dyslexia Handbook, to be published in English and Spanish by the TEA, will be easily recognizable by having a different color cover than the current edition, staff said.
  • Note: When available, the revised handbook is expected to be posted by the TEA here.
The adopted provisions also clarify requirements related to student evaluation and the required dyslexia screening for students in kindergarten and first grade.