MIDLAND, Texas — Dyslexia is treated, not cured.
At MISD, they have 20 specially trained teachers to help, each serving 2-3 campuses and rotating through classrooms and students.
But only only 2 have qualifications to diagnose dyslexia.
MISD tells me 900 students are served and of those, almost 250 are currently going through their dyslexia program.
"One thing we do know about dyslexia is that it's not based on a student's intellectual ability, but rather it's a neuroscience, a piece of the brain that does not make sense that these students shouldn't be able to read because they are actually very high performing students," Jennifer Warren, MISD special services executive director said.
Both MISD and ECISD use a program called Take Flight to help their students.
It's based on dyslexia research from the Scottish Rite hospital in Dallas and the district purchases this curriculum.
This year, part of that curriculum purchased is online and interactive for students and parents that wanted that option.
In the program, students progress through reading books, working on semantics.
It follows the logic of learning a language and students are re-assessed every year.
"You may adjust the therapy that they are receiving, you may adjust the accommodations, but once they graduate the label of dyslexia does not go away, so they are allowed to have their accommodations all the way through not just high school, but into the secondary and those accommodations can follow them to college," Warren said.
MISD said the key is catching it early.
That's why they screen twice a year in kindergarten and first grade.
Once students are finished with the program, teachers discuss accommodations they might need like extra time or having their teacher read them instructions.
"I knew that my daughter was going to have the help she needed. As a parent that's very comforting and then as an administrator I know that we're doing what's right for kiddos because I know that if it's good for my child, it's going to be good for everyone else," Warren said.