Statistics show that one in five children have dyslexia. How many of those go undiagnosed? What can be done to help teachers recognize the signs of dyslexia as early as possible?

Clarke County Superintendent of Schools Gerald Stephens and Washington County Superintendent of Schools Tim Savage, said they are willing to tackle the problem head-on, but each conceded that it will not be easy.

Stephens said currently, there is no program in place in the Clarke County school system to deal with dyslexia.

"It wasn't even included in the special education program until a few years ago," he said. "We do know that early intervention helps. If parents recognize their child is struggling and pass that information along to us, we can tackle it."

Stephens explained that reading is the most common area where dyslexia is usually discovered. "Most of the time the children who are diagnosed with dyslexia are really bright students," he said. "Often they attempt to hide it because they are afraid of being made fun of."

He went on to say that a number of teachers have attended training sessions where speakers addressed the issue, but no formal training has been received. "I have spoken to our special education coordinator about ways to start looking for the signs of dyslexia," he said. "We simply cannot let these students fall through the cracks. We need to develop a plan to deal with it. We need help from the state, but in the meantime we will develop methods of recognizing dyslexia and treating it on our own."

Stephens said he has plans to begin actively seeking out training sessions for teachers within the system. "We are willing to let our people attend sessions wherever they are in the state," he added.

That may not be as far away as he thinks. Superintendent Savage said a number of the educators in the Washington County school system have already received some training from Dr. Denise Gibbs with the Scottish Rites Foundation. "We are in the process of integrating dealing with dyslexia into our special education program and have had our reading coaches and counselors take part in the training," he said. "We are committed to providing these services to the students who need them. We will make accommodations based on the individual needs of the student.

Savage and Stephens both agreed that the largest stumbling block is staffing and resources for dealing with dyslexia. Both agreed that a big problem is that not every student has the same degree of dyslexia, therefore each individual doesn't need the same level of intervention.

Savage said he plans to have another training session scheduled with Dr. Gibbs in the near future. A joint training session for educators from both Clarke and Washington counties may be a good possibility.