Reality of Dyslexia
Dear Ruth,I am the parent of 2 children with dyslexia. I've had them tested by teachers and doctors and I have to agree with them whole-heartedly. There is dyslexia out there. It is not something someone made up to link all disabilities together.
We were in Texas when my children were tested. They received good, effective help with a Phonics-based program designed specifically for dyslexics. Now that we are in Oklahoma, they have been lumped with all the other special education kids, and taught in a whole language way. Even after two years, my daughter has not achieved even half a grade level in reading, and they still refuse to believe that she was progressing well in Texas. Finally I had to order computer programs and workbooks myself, and she is now slowly moving ahead again.
I feel like this is evidence that dyslexia does exist. You need to realize that not all children are the same - there are disabilities out there that certain ways of teaching help more than others.
T.S.
Dear T.S.,
Thank you for your excellent and thoughtful observations. I certainly do agree that learners come in all varieties. The problem you mentioned, that of lumping children together in one big category, is a serious one.
The trouble is that the term 'dyslexia' is used by different people to mean different things. And there is more than one cause for persistent reading problems which people call 'dyslexia.' Someone with one point of view might diagnose ‘dyslexia’ and a teacher with another might apply a cookie-cutter ‘dyslexia’ solution that does not fit very well. (No wonder ‘dyslexia’ has a reputation for being permanent.) It is critical to analyze the source of the dyslexia so that the real needs of the learner can be addressed.
For this reason I like to leave the label alone as much as possible, and just address the individual learners' needs. I take a clinical approach: What specifically is difficult? How can I help them to learn it? It is much more productive to focus upon the learner’s potential and how to get them moving, than to keep in mind any notion that they have some inherent limitation. This is the approach I take with all of my clients. It is a philosophical decision.
The thing that most poor readers tend to have in common is poor auditory skill, particularly Phonemic Awareness--which produces a deficit in the ability to 'get' phonics as readily as normal readers do. I am sorry to hear that the special education program where you are is Whole Language only, because very often that means they are really only getting what I call 'Part Language.' Missing are the strong foundations most students need, including Phonemic Awareness, and systematic Phonics instruction.
I have no argument with some excellent systematic educational programs which cover all the bases, and are proven effective for teaching children with persistent reading problems. Occasionally these come with assumptions about the permanence of the children’s ‘dyslexia,’ though, and this is wrong. Since they have not even tried to identify and strengthen the individual’s specific weakness, they should make no predictions about its impossibility.
The major thing to realize about 'dyslexia' is that it is not necessarily forever. For example, children whose ‘dyslexia’ stems from poor Phonemic Awareness can learn this very teachable skill and go on to learn Phonics in a much more typical way.
Beyond Phonemic Awareness, we are learning to target specific weaknesses that are causing specific problems, to begin at a point of success and to exercise the brain intensively. As we do this, we are learning that people are capable of remarkable development in the very areas in which they were considered 'disabled.'
I am in total agreement with your disdain of the one-size-fits-all solution. Never has, never will.
Best Wishes,
Ruth Alice Jurey, M.S., C.C.C.
Speech/Language Pathologist
I wish
to encourage
belief
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human ability
to learn.
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