Most people have a vague idea of what it is, or know someone who has it, or have heard about famous sufferers such as actor Tom Cruise, who seem to get by well enough despite their problems with reading. But for most of the past century, researchers have been unable to agree on what causes dyslexia.
When children or adults fail to learn to read fluently — despite normal intelligence, instruction and opportunities to do so — they are diagnosed with developmental dyslexia. Exactly why they should fail has led to speculation about a host of possible causes. Over the past few years, however, brain-imaging studies have supplied fresh evidence that the fundamental problem lies in the brain's ability to process 'phonemes'. These are the speech sounds that enable us to tell one word from another — 'pet' and 'bet', for instance, are distinguished by the sounds of their initial consonants.
Dyslexia is a neurodevelopmental disorder that is characterised by slow and inaccurate word recognition. Developmental dyslexia causes difficulties with accurate and/or fluent word recognition and spelling. Learning difficulties associated with dyslexia may be caused by:
- Visual problems through not being able to recognise shape and form.
- Reading speed, accuracy or comprehension.
- Phoneme segmentation (cannot see or hear the components and then put them together to create meaning and to spell the words).
Dyslexia often presents at about the age of 7 or 8 years as the child's difficulties become clear in the school setting. Common signs of dyslexia include:
- Hesitant and inaccurate reading.
- Need to re-read materials to gain an understanding.
- Difficulty with sequences - eg, putting dates in order.
- Erratic spelling.
- Reversal of letters (occurs in all children but less frequently than in those with dyslexia).
- Auditory language problems or visual spatial problems, which may contribute to difficulties with reading and spelling.
- Inability to distinguish sounds or shapes on the page.
- Associated features include poor spelling and handwriting, and mathematical difficulties.
There are a number of educational methods that can help people with dyslexia overcome their difficulties with reading and writing:
- Children with dyslexia require specialist teaching; many schools now have specialist provision for dyslexic children.
- Providing supportive home and school environments is essential. Parents and teachers should be strongly encouraged to praise and support the child.
- Teaching should be multi-sensory (include visual, auditory, movement and tactile elements), as children with dyslexia learn better when they can use as many different senses as possible - eg, writing the letter in the air at the same time as saying the letter and its sound. Teaching should also be highly structured.
- Phonics: the sounds that the letters represent are emphasised so that the child gradually connects the visual pattern of words to the auditory pattern of words.
- Computers: many children with dyslexia find it easier to work with a computer than write in a book, with the additional benefit of using the spell checker. Computer software programs are available to teach phonemic recognition and can provide effective adjuncts to tutoring and classroom intervention.
- Eye checks: regular eye checks are particularly important for any child or adult who has difficulties with reading or spelling and who may be dyslexic. Eye problems do not cause literacy problems, but can be a contributory factor.
- Colour overlays: some people with dyslexia are light- or colour-sensitive (Meares-Irlen syndrome) - eg, bright sunlight or fluorescent light may cause particular difficulties, black print on shiny white paper may be uncomfortable for the eyes, whiteboards may be too shiny, pattern glare may also be a problem. Transparent colour overlay filters (eg, Irlen coloured overlay lenses) have been widely used to improve reading performance. It may also be helpful to have coloured paper for writing and adjust the colours and brightness on computer screens.
- A number of other educational methods have been studied - eg, exercise-based therapy, which remains controversial.
There are many therapies that have been reported helpful in dyslexia. To date, each therapeutic endeavor has been often poorly understood and thus incompletely explained. And the absence of a theory that can bring all the helpful therapies under a common "umbrella" together has thus far resulted in a fragmented therapeutic approach. To make matters worse, since the effectiveness of most of these varied therapies tends to refute the thinking-brain processing theories of dyslexia, conflict was created rather than resulting in unbiased meaningful/comprehensive understanding.
--------------------------------------------
Follow us on Facebook
www.thefilipinonurse.net
The filipinonurse.net is always on the lookout for interesting stories about Filipino Nurses worldwide. If you know of a Filipino nurse who should be featured here, please feel free to send us a message via our Facebook Page.
0 Comments