The California Commission on Teacher Credentialing (CTC) has awarded a $21K Dyslexia Grant to Preparation Programs to the UC Santa Barbara Gevirtz School. These competitive awards, given on a one-time basis, support the updating of program curriculum and course offerings to align with the common trunk Teacher Performance Expectation (TPEs), new Education Specialist TPEs, and include pedagogy on dyslexia for both general and special education programs.
The grant was written by a team including director of the Teacher Education Program Tory Harvey, credential analyst Katie Tucciarone, lecturer, supervisor, and extensive Support Needs program coordinator Natalie Holdren, and associate teaching professor and Mild/Moderate program coordinator Amber Moran.
This new pedagogy is crucial for the state. Currently, about 37 percent of students in special education in California have a learning disability, usually dyslexia, according to the California Department of Education. When dyslexia is not addressed, students can become disengaged with school, develop behavior problems and are more likely to drop out.