Implementing DC’s Dyslexia Legislation

Context

Effective March 16, 2021, DC Law 23-191 Addressing Dyslexia and Other Reading Difficulties Amendment Act of 2020 (“the Act”) established specific requirements for the Office of the State Superintendent of Education (OSSE) and local education agencies (LEAs) to address the needs of students with reading difficulties.

DCPS is required to:

Ensure DCPS students are screened for reading difficulties and receive the appropriate interventions,
Provide teachers training in dyslexia awareness and prevention and the Science of Reading & Structured Literacy
Implement High Quality Instructional Materials (HQIM) in K-5 literacy classrooms

DCPS is committed to complying with all aspects of the dyslexia legislation along with recommendations from OSSE’s Early Literacy Task Force. The following outlines how we are implementing each of the requirements.

Dyslexia

The DC Law 23-191 Addressing Dyslexia and Other Reading Difficulties Amendment Act of 2020 (“the Act”) required: 

Dyslexia training provided by OSSE 
Universal screening and intervention for reading difficulties 
Family communication for students flagged for risk of dyslexia

Dyslexia Awareness and Screening Modules for Educators
DCPS supports all educators in completing the dyslexia awareness and screening modules provided by OSSE.

In SY23-24, 92% of educators completed this training.
As of 06/16/25, we are at 77% of our educators having completed this training and are working to ensure everyone completes the training by the end of the school year.

We also created an internal dyslexia working group to evaluate and refine systemic and school specific supports for students with dyslexia at all grade levels.

Screening for Students and Family Communication
DCPS continues to use DIBELS as our early literacy screener for students in K-2. In alignment with DC Council’s Addressing Dyslexia and Other Reading Difficulties Act of 2020, we added RAN (Rapid Automatized Naming) to our early literacy assessments starting school year 2023-24. Kindergarteners and first graders who score well below on their composite and well below on RAN are flagged as being “at risk” for reading difficulties. This can include difficulties related to dyslexia. Being identified as at risk for reading difficulties is not a diagnosis of reading difficulty.

For questions, please reach out to your child’s teacher or email [email protected].

Access the Dyslexia Guides here: 

Structured Literacy Training for Educators

Kindergarten educators are now mandated to demonstrate competency in structured literacy during SY2026-2027. DCPS must track educator completion of required trainings and provide annual reporting on training compliance to OSSE.

There are currently two pathways for meeting this requirement (see below).

Pathway #1

Complete an approved structured literacy training during SY25-26 or SY26-27.

For teachers who have not already completed an approved training by August 2025:

DC Reading Clinic will be the DCPS approved trainer for SY25-26.

Pathway #2

Provide proof of prior completion of an approved structured literacy training within the last five years.

Teachers must share proof of completion by uploading their evidence to this linked form.

OSSE’s list of approved vendors is linked here.

For Kindergarten teachers who have not already completed training by August 2025 (or are in the process of training) through an approved vendor, they are required to participate in a 3-day training run by DC Reading Clinic in SY2025-2026. These trainings will run in person on District PD Days.

High Quality Instructional Materials

We believe that high quality instructional materials (HQIM) that are research based, build knowledge building and that are culturally relevant are critical for student success. OSSE has identified HQIM as:

Sequential, comprehensive materials that are evidence-based and aligned with District of Columbia content standards.

DC Law 23-191 Addressing Dyslexia and Other Reading Difficulties Amendment Act of 2020 outlines that “each LEA shall adopt a science-based reading program.” OSSE has curated a list of approved core and supplemental HQIM curricula. OSSE has reviewed DCPS' K-2 foundational literacy curriculum (Fundations) and determined it meets OSSE's HQIM indicators.

DCPS uses the following resources for comprehension, writing, and small group literacy:

Comprehension & writing: Passport to Learning
Small group literacy: DCPS Needs Based Small Group resources

If an LEA has adopted or is currently implementing a core literacy program(s) not included on the Science-Based Literacy Programs List, they must:

Use OSSE’s HQIM rubric to analyze and evaluate literacy programs for alignment to the essential components of literacy instruction.
Submit completed rubrics with evidence to OSSE for review and approval.

In Summer 2024, DCPS reviewed these curricular materials with a steering committee comprised of 11 school-based stakeholders (including classroom teachers, instructional coaches, special educators, and reading specialists). We also collaborated with external EdReports-trained literacy expert.

We used OSSE’s High-Quality Instructional Materials (HQIM) Rubric to audit our materials and submitted evidence of alignment to the science of reading to the Office of the State Superintendent of Education (OSSE).

As of June 16, 2025, DCPS has received OSSE’s feedback and are working to address next steps.

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Implementing DC’s Dyslexia Legislation