La. Admin. Code tit. 28 § XXXV-111

Current through Register Vol. 50, No. 11, November 20, 2024

Section XXXV-111 - Multisensory Structured Language and Literacy Program Criteria

A.A multisensory structured language and literacy program utilizes all the senses to enhance student memory and learning and shall consist of specific content components to include:

1. phonological awareness;

2. phoneme-grapheme association;

3. phonics;

4. syllable instruction;

5. linguistics;

6. language-based instruction that integrates all aspects of language and comprehension

a. receptive language skills of listening and reading,

b. oral expression in word selection and sequencing,

c. written expression in spelling, mechanics, and coherence, and

d. handwriting;

7. Meaning-based instruction provided in words and sentences to extract meaning in addition to teaching isolated letter-sound correspondence.

B. Instructional methodology for a multisensory structured language and literacy program must be:

1. Explicit. Literacy instruction requires direct teaching of concepts with continuous student-teacher interaction and does not assume students deduce concepts.

2. Systematic. Material is organized and taught in a way that is logical and fits the nature of language which refers to the way sounds combine to form words and words combine to form sentences to represent knowledge. The ways are determined by a system of rules.

3. Sequential. The learner moves step by step, in order, from simple, well-learned material to that which is more complex, as the student masters the necessary body of language skills.

4. Cumulative. Each step is incremental and based on the skills already learned.

5. Individualized. Teaching is planned to meet the differing needs of individual learners, but may be of similar scope and sequencing.

6. Diagnostic. Teachers must be adept at individualizing instruction (even within groups) based on careful and continuous assessment, both informal (e.g., observation) and formal (e.g., with standardized measures). Content must be mastered to the degree of automaticity needed to free attention and cognitive resources for comprehension and oral/written expression.

7. Automaticity of Performance. Fluent processing of information that requires little effort or attention as in sight word recognition. Adequate practice with decodable text is to be provided for mastery of skills and application of concepts.

8. Simultaneous Multisensory. Instructional approaches use a simultaneous combination of internal visual, auditory, kinesthetic, and tactile learning pathways to achieve proficiency in language processing.

9. Synthetic to Analytic Phonics. A process of teaching letter sounds to create words.

a. Synthetic phonics first teaches letter sounds and then combines or blends the sounds to create words.

b. Analytic phonics uses prior knowledge of letters and the corresponding sounds to decode and form new words.

C. Program Implementation

1. Multisensory structured language and literacy programs are to be routinely provided within the regular school day within the framework of multi-tiered systems of support in:

a. regular classroom setting;

b. separate classroom setting;

c. individual or small group instruction;

d. any additional accommodations that are developed by the SBLC; or

e. any combination thereof.

D. Review of Student Progress

1. Progress monitoring data shall be maintained on students receiving instruction in a multisensory structured language and literacy program.

2. The SBLC shall conduct a periodic review of the data to determine the effectiveness of the program for the student.

La. Admin. Code tit. 28, § XXXV-111

Promulgated by the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education, LR 47724 (6/1/2021), Repromulgated LR 471289 (9/1/2021), Amended LR 501154 (8/1/2024).

AUTHORITY NOTE: Promulgated in accordance with R.S. 17:7(11), R.S. 17:392.1 and 392.3.