Establishes pilot program in DOE to provide assistive technology to elementary and middle school students with dyslexia and related conditions.

S3363

SENATE, No. 3363

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�

INTRODUCED FEBRUARY 5, 2026

Sponsored by:

Senator� SHIRLEY K. TURNER

District 15 (Hunterdon and Mercer)

SYNOPSIS

���� Establishes pilot program in DOE to provide assistive
technology to elementary and middle school students with dyslexia and related
conditions.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

���� As introduced.

��

An Act

establishing an assistive technology pilot
program in the Department of Education.

����
Be It
Enacted
by the Senate and General Assembly of
the State of New Jersey:

���� 1.��� The Legislature finds
and declares that:

���� a.���� Dyslexia is a specific
learning disability that is neurological in origin and is characterized by
difficulties with accurate or fluent word recognition and by poor spelling and
decoding abilities;

���� b.��� With 10% of the
population in the United States suffering from dyslexia according to studies
conducted by the National Institutes of Health, dyslexia is the most common
learning disability in children, and it persists throughout life;

���� c.���� The difficulties that individuals
with dyslexia typically experience are the result of a deficit in the
phonological component of language that is often unexpected in relation to
other cognitive abilities and the provision of effective classroom instruction;

���� d.��� Individuals with
dyslexia typically do not have difficulty with comprehension, but rather the
task of reading itself.� Dyslexia compromises the ability to comprehend written
material, and students with dyslexia often struggle with written expression,
including spelling, grammar, and handwriting, due to difficulties with encoding
language.� Assistive technology that can scan and read the material aloud, or
deliver human or text-to-speech narration of the written material, while the
students read along on a laptop, tablet, or other device, is an invaluable tool
which can help students with dyslexia and related conditions to access
curriculum content at grade-level and greatly increase their academic success,
independence, confidence, and self-esteem; and

���� e.���� Assistive technology
tools often also include support for study skills, such as the use of voice
notes to answer summary questions, or the extraction of highlighted text for
vocabulary words and review.� Similarly, accommodations for writing can allow
students who currently limit their writing to just the words they know how to
spell, to fully express what they think, and communicate more clearly what they
know.� Assistive technology to support writing includes the use of
text-to-speech for review, specialized spell-check software that takes into
account the kinds of phonetic misspellings and letter omissions that students
with dyslexia often make, and the use of speech-to-text to help students get
their ideas out quickly and easily.� All of these assistive technology tools
need to be paired with instruction, often more explicit instruction than is
included in class.

���� 2.��� As used in this act:

���� �Assistive technology device�
means any item, piece of equipment, or product system, whether acquired
commercially off the shelf, modified, or customized, that is used to increase,
maintain, or improve functional capabilities of a child with a disability. An
assistive technology device does not include a medical device that is
surgically implanted or the replacement of such a device.

���� �Assistive technology service�
means any service that directly assists a student with a disability in the
selection, acquisition, or use of an assistive technology device, including:

���� a.���� the evaluation of the
needs of the student, including a functional evaluation of the student in the
student�s customary learning environment;

���� b.��� purchasing, leasing, or
otherwise providing for the acquisition of assistive technology devices;

���� c.���� selecting, designing,
fitting, customizing, adapting, applying, maintaining, repairing or replacing
assistive technology devices;

���� d.��� coordinating and using
other therapies, interventions, or services with assistive technology devices,
such as those associated with existing education and rehabilitation plans and
programs;

���� e.���� training or technical
assistance for the student or the family of the student; and

���� f.���� training or technical
assistance for professionals, including individuals providing education and
rehabilitation services, employers, or other individuals who provide services
to, employ, or are otherwise substantially involved in the major life functions
of the student.

���� �Dyslexia� means a specific
learning disability that is neurobiological in origin.� It is characterized by
difficulties with accurate or fluent word recognition and by poor spelling and
decoding abilities.� These difficulties typically result from a deficit in the
phonological component of language that is often unexpected in relation to
other cognitive abilities and the provision of effective classroom
instruction.� Secondary consequences may include problems in reading
comprehension and reduced reading experience that can impede growth of
vocabulary and background knowledge.

���� �Student with dyslexia or
related conditions� means a student attending a public school who exhibits a
deficit in the areas of reading or writing, despite having normal intelligence,
characterized by difficulty with phonological processing, spelling, rapid
visual-verbal responding, word decoding, fluency, or comprehension.

���� A student does not need to be
classified for special education programs and services to be considered a
student with dyslexia or related conditions.�

���� 3.��� a.� The Commissioner of
Education, in consultation with the Office of Information Technology, shall
establish a three-year assistive technology pilot program.� The purpose of the
program shall be to provide elementary and middle school students who have dyslexia
or related conditions with access to assistive technology and assistive
technology services in the classroom.� The assistive technology and assistive
technology services included in the program shall:

���� (1)�� deliver written material
in an accessible auditory or text-to-speech format to assist students to read
at grade level; or

���� (2)�� allow students with
dyslexia or related conditions to more effectively complete written
assignments.

���� Under the pilot program, the
commissioner shall provide a grant to each of the pilot districts to finance
the costs associated with the acquisition of the assistive technology,
assistive technology services, and the training of teachers in the use of the
technology.

���� b.��� A school district that
wants to participate in the pilot program shall submit an application to the
commissioner.� The application shall provide information on the number of
students in the district who have dyslexia and related conditions, the
grade-levels of those students, the grade-level reading ability of those students,
the assistive technology and assistive technology services to be acquired under
the program, and plans for the training of teachers in the use of the assistive
technology and assistive technology services.� The application shall detail how
the use of the assistive technology and assistive technology services will
serve to advance the academic achievement of students with dyslexia and related
conditions.

���� In the evaluation of the
applications, the commissioner shall consider a school district�s use of
existing hardware and connectivity and the incorporation of software and
applications that support the goals of the pilot program and New Jersey�s
Tiered System of Supports.

���� c.���� The commissioner shall
select seven districts to participate in the pilot program, including: two
districts in counties of the first class; two districts in counties of the
second class; two districts in counties of the third class; and one district in
a county of the fifth class.� The commissioner shall seek a cross section of
school districts from urban, suburban, and rural areas of the State.��

���� d.��� At the conclusion of the
pilot program, the commissioner shall submit a report to the Governor and,
pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1), the Legislature.� The
report shall include: the number of students who participated in the pilot program;
the grade-levels of those students; the grade-level reading ability of those
students prior to participation in the pilot program; the impact of the pilot
program on enabling those students to access and work on grade-level content;
the number of teachers trained in the use of the assistive technology; and the
commissioner�s recommendation on the feasibility of implementing the program on
a Statewide basis.

���� 4.��� This act shall take
effect in the first full academic year next following the date of enactment.

STATEMENT

���� This bill establishes a
three-year assistive technology pilot program in the Department of Education.�
The purpose of the program is to provide assistive technology and assistive
technology services to elementary and middle school students with dyslexia and
related conditions.� The assistive technology and assistive technology services
will:

�

deliver written material in an accessible auditory or
text-to-speech format to assist students to read at grade level; or

�

allow students with dyslexia or related conditions to more
effectively complete written assignments.

���� Under the pilot program, the
Commissioner of Education will provide a grant to each of the pilot districts
to finance the costs associated with the acquisition of the assistive
technology and assistive technology services and the training of teachers in
the use of the technology.

���� A school district that wants
to participate in the pilot program will submit an application to the
commissioner.� The application must provide information on the number of
students in the district who have dyslexia and related conditions, the
grade-levels of those students, the grade-level reading ability of those
students, the assistive technology and assistive technology services to be
acquired under the program, and plans for the training of teachers in the use
of the assistive technology and assistive technology services.� The application
is required to detail how the use of the assistive technology and assistive
technology services will serve to advance the academic achievement of students
with dyslexia and related conditions.

���� The commissioner will select
seven districts to participate in the pilot program, and is required to seek a
cross section of school districts from urban, suburban, and rural areas of the
State.

���� Under the bill, the
commissioner will submit a report to the Governor and the Legislature at the
conclusion of the pilot program. The report is required to include: the number
of students who participated in the pilot program; the grade-levels of those students;
the grade-level reading ability of those students prior to participation in the
pilot program; the impact of the pilot program on enabling those students to
access and work on grade-level content; the number of teachers trained in the
use of the assistive technology; and the commissioner�s recommendation on the
feasibility of implementing the program on a Statewide basis.��