Mauna Duggan and Dr. Lakshmi Sankar

Duggan’s and Sankar’s innovative teaching idea, “Optimal Overlays,” is designed to increase reading fluency among exceptional education students — many who are below grade level in reading. The use of colored overlays is research-based and has been shown to assist those who struggle with reading. Students will be screened for their optimal overlay color(s). Each exceptional education student will use their individual colored overlay(s) to read a myriad of math, reading and other subject matter books throughout the school year. A pre-test (before using overlays) and post-test (after using colored overlays for a period of time), and using a DIBELS (Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills) assessment, will determine if there has been a significant increase in reading fluency with the use of colored overlays. If so, this study may lead to screening all exceptional education students across Troup County for the use of colored overlays in order to increase their reading fluency.