2025 Kansas MTSS & Alignment Symposium

In this interactive session, participants will explore high-impact instructional practices designed to support English learners at all proficiency levels. Grounded in research and classroom application, the session will focus on scaffolding strategies that make content accessible while promoting language development, and fostering student engagement, comprehension and confidence. Our goal is that you will leave this session with ready-to-use strategies to enhance your ESOL instruction and elevate outcomes for multilingual learners.

Rising enrollment of emergent bilingual (EB) students has sparked concerns about representation and access in special programs, including intervention programs within multi-tier systems of support. Building on research emerging from two national research centers focused on improving outcomes for EBs at-risk for reading difficulty, this session: (1) systematically reviews research on screening, progress monitoring, and special education identification with EBs to summarize what is known and where there are open questions; (2) synthesizes recommendations for instruction and intervention for EB students, particularly those with significant risk for reading difficulties; and (3) consider additional questions related to the reading and language needs of diverse EBs, including newcomers and EBs with interrupted formal educations.

This is an opportunity to ask your questions in an informal Q & A session.

This two-part presentation addresses the nature of dyslexia and best practices for identification and treatment within the context of multi-tier systems of support (MTSS). It begins with a review of definitions of dyslexia, highlighting key commonalities and differences, and focusing on implicit classification hypotheses. The presentation then reviews empirical evidence for proposed definitional attributes, focusing on key sources of controversy, including the role of IQ and instructional response, as well as issues of etiology and immutability. The session includes specific recommendations for assessment and identification developed at the Texas Center for Learning Disabilities and documented in an influential practice guide. 

The second session focuses on instructional practices to address the reading, language, and behavior needs of students with dyslexia. The session highlights evidence-based practices for all students with dyslexia, then outlines strategies to intensify intervention based on individual student data. The session concludes by addressing several myths and misconceptions around dyslexia.

This two-part presentation addresses the nature of dyslexia and best practices for identification and treatment within the context of multi-tier systems of support (MTSS). It begins with a review of definitions of dyslexia, highlighting key commonalities and differences, and focusing on implicit classification hypotheses. The presentation then reviews empirical evidence for proposed definitional attributes, focusing on key sources of controversy, including the role of IQ and instructional response, as well as issues of etiology and immutability. The session includes specific recommendations for assessment and identification developed at the Texas Center for Learning Disabilities and documented in an influential practice guide.

The second session focuses on instructional practices to address the reading, language, and behavior needs of students with dyslexia. The session highlights evidence-based practices for all students with dyslexia, then outlines strategies to intensify intervention based on individual student data. The session concludes by addressing several myths and misconceptions around dyslexia.