Dyslexia is neurodevelopmental disorder that is a type of learning difficulty in which the person has difficulties with language, words and reading. In ICD-11 the term used is developmental learning disorder with impairment in reading (ICD-11: 6A03.0). Characteristically they have difficulty reading and spelling for no obvious reason with normal intelligence and achieving well in other areas. Dyslexia was first described by Oswald Berkhan in 1881 with the term dyslexia being first used Rudolf Berlin in 1883. The word ‘dyslexia’ comes from the Greek language, meaning difficulty with words. Estimates of the prevalence of dyslexia are around 5%, but could be much higher – the actual prevalence will depend on the definitions used.
Dyslexia can be associated with sensory and auditory processing disorders, ADHD and other learning and developmental difficulties.
Dyscalculia is specific mathematics disability involving difficulties in computation and understanding maths concepts.
Dysgraphia is disorder of written expression and they have difficulties writing.
A large number of famous people have dyslexia, including: Orlando Bloom, Richard Branson, Tom Cruise, Leonardo da Vinci, Walt Disney, Jim Carrey, Whoopi Goldberg, John Lennon, Jamie Oliver, Steven Spielberg, Henry Winkler and Albert Einstein.
Signs and Symptoms of dyslexia:
Dyslexia exists on a continuum and not all signs and symptoms will be apparent in all of those with it and the severity of each symptom will vary from child to child:
Preschoolers: development of speech is delayed; slow learning new words; have problems with pronunciation; difficulty learning shapes and colours; may have a problem with the retelling a story in the right sequence of events.
Primary school children: often confuses letters when writing, such as ‘d’ with ‘b’ or ‘m’ with ‘w’; will often write words backwards (eg ‘pit’ for the word ‘tip’); make an effort to avoid reading aloud in class; doesn’t like reading books (usually hate reading and homework can be a battle for the parents); reads below their expected level for their age; a lack of phonological awareness; not understanding rhyming words; can pronounce basic syllables but struggle more with polysyllabic words.
High school children: poor reading skills; poor spelling; slow writing skills; difficulty summarizing a story; learning a foreign language is difficult.
Adults: problems with reading and spelling; don’t like and avoids reading books; avoids writing tasks; may have a better than average memory; often may be talented in some fields such as mathematics, art or design.
Causes of dyslexia:
This is still largely unknown, but has a strong genetic component. It is present at birth.
There is some sort of issue in the way the ‘brain works’ that affects phonological awareness. MRI studies show that those with dyslexia use different regions of the cerebral cortex when reading.
Diagnosis of dyslexia:
There is no specific test for dyslexia. Assessment is by a multidisciplinary group.
Diagnosis is based on a number of assessments such as reading level, history of reading and other developmental milestones, vision and hearing tests; memory testing; psychological testing; academic ability testing.
Management of dyslexia:
There is no known cure for dyslexia.
Support for those with dyslexia include specialist tutoring; using a phonics-based reading program to better teach the link between spoken and written sounds; more emphasis on a seeing, listening, doing and a speaking approach to learning.
There are various commercially available online programs that are designed to facilitate reading skills.
Arrangements are often made with the child’s school to facilitate learning and obtain extra assistance such as vary the teaching style; sitting at the front of the classroom to avoid other distractions; more repetition and practice; etc.
Older students will usually be granted extra time for assessments such as exams if requested.
Specific fonts have been developed (Dyslexie and OpenDyslexic) which were claimed to help those with dyslexia read, but the evidence does not support this.
Commentary:
- This website is can be used by those with dyslexia to let people see what it is like when they are trying to read. It shows how much more comprehension, effort and time is needed to read.
- This:
External Links:
Podiatrists with dyslexia (Podiatry Arena discussion)
Related Topics:
Leonardo DaVinci
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