The Lansing School District approved a subscription-based reading system for second grade through high school students. | PxHere.com
The Lansing School District approved a subscription-based reading system for second grade through high school students. | PxHere.com
The Lansing School District Board of Education approved a pair of purchases for the special education department during a May 4 meeting.
The board heard from Special Education Assistant Director for Middle Schools Cari Otis, who presented and explained the items being requested. These included a district license for an online program called Goal Book, as well as Wilson Reading System. According to Sergio Keck, Deputy Superintendent of Special Populations of Lansing School District, the Wilson Reading System costs $198,000 and Goal Book is $65,000 per year subscription.
“Goal Book helps ensure a student’s IEP (individualized educational plan) program is aligned to standards and differentiated according to their unique needs,” Otis said at the meeting. “It uses universal design for learning foundations to determine a student’s present level, and then it takes that present level information and connects it to state standards, specific to our state.
The program is set up to align goals, lessons and strategies to help students with their IEP and educational journey based on levels within state standards. It is research- and evidence-based and endorsed by the Council of Administrators of Special Education.
Wilson Reading System curriculum is intended for grades two through 12. Wilson Reading comes with curriculum materials like student workbooks, teacher guides, flashcards and textbooks. Students can start at whichever grade level they test into, regardless of their age. It is a building curriculum and also a major source of aid for students who struggle with dyslexia.
“It's a Tier 3 curriculum, so it's for our most intensive students,” Otis said. “It supports college and career readiness by providing students who have a language-based learning disability or those who are not making sufficient progress in Tier 1 or Tier 2 instruction.”
This was the first request by the special education department in several years, according to information presented at the meeting. It would be funded by money through the general funds, which made it necessary for board approval. Previously much of the curriculum materials were bought with grant funds, but those funds have decreased since the pandemic slowed. The Goal Book is a one time-purchase, and Wilson Reading will have an annual subscription fee.
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