Curriculum Associates' i-Ready® Assessment Named to the Mississippi Department of Education (MDE) Approved List of Dyslexia Screeners

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Mar 31, 2022, 11:46 ET

Districts across the state can use the program's Diagnostic and literacy assessments to screen kindergarten and first grade students for risk factors associated with dyslexia

NORTH BILLERICA, Mass., March 31, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The Mississippi Department of Education (MDE) recently named Curriculum Associates' i-Ready Assessment to its approved list of dyslexia screeners. With this approval, districts throughout the state can now use the program's online Diagnostic and offline literacy assessment tasks to screen kindergarten and first grade students for risk factors associated with dyslexia. Today, the award-winning i-Ready program serves more than 10 million students and 25 percent of all students in Grades K–8 in the United States.

"The recent MDE approval will help streamline the overall assessment process for Mississippi educators as they can now use i-Ready for both universal screening and targeted dyslexia screening," said Rob Waldron, CEO of Curriculum Associates. "By eliminating the need for multiple and redundant assessments, educators will have more time to deliver personalized instruction, and specialized supports as needed, to help all students succeed."

According to the MDE, each local school district is required to screen students for dyslexia using an instrument approved by the State Board of Education (SBE) in the spring of kindergarten and the fall of first grade. A panel of reading, dyslexia therapy, and speech-language pathology experts conduct a comprehensive review of all proposed instruments to determine which ones are included on the MDE Approved List of Dyslexia Screeners.

All approved screeners must provide an overall pass/fail score for each student screened, as well as pass/fail criteria for phonological awareness and phonemic awareness, sound symbol recognition, alphabet knowledge, decoding skills, encoding skills, and rapid naming.

Meeting these requirements, i-Ready supports educators in screening for potential risk factors associated with dyslexia. The combination of the Diagnostic and the additional tasks leverages the most current research on dyslexia screening and adheres to recommendations of the International Dyslexia Association. Districts can use the program as a screening tool to help educators determine if further assessment and specialized reading intervention may be appropriate for individual students.

More about i-Ready
i-Ready makes the promise of differentiated instruction a practical reality for Grades K–12 teachers and students. It combines powerful assessments and rich insights with effective and engaging instruction in reading and mathematics to address students' individual needs.

The program's Diagnostic provides educators with actionable criterion-referenced and normative data to deliver impactful, equitable learning experiences. Teachers administer the Diagnostic at the beginning of the school year to chart a course for their instruction and to personalize i-Ready instructional paths. A midyear and end-of-year Diagnostic help students and teachers measure growth and engage together in data chats. Teacher-led and personalized instruction continues throughout the year to help students address unfinished learning and access grade-level content.

All i-Ready district partners have ongoing access to Curriculum Associates' award-winning customer service. This includes dedicated support via the company's Customer Service team, professional development experts, account managers, sales representatives, and Technical Support team, as well as access to the free customer service portal.

To learn more about i-Ready, visit CurriculumAssociates.com/i-Ready.

About Curriculum Associates
Founded in 1969, Curriculum Associates, LLC designs research-based print and online instructional materials, screens and assessments, and data management tools. The company's products and outstanding customer service provide teachers and administrators with the resources necessary for teaching diverse student populations and fostering learning for all students.