Here's What You Need to Know About Starting University With Dyslexia

Simulation of dyslexic vision (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

by Harriet Cameron, University of Sheffield, The Conversation: https://theconversation.com/heres-what-you-need-to-know-about-starting-university-with-dyslexia-50035

Going to university can be a test for anyone, fresh, or not-so-fresh from school. Students are not only expected to adapt to independent study and increased reading loads, but they also have to learn as soon as possible how to “do” the kind of academic writing and academic talk their given field demands. And for those students with dyslexia, this can be particularly challenging.

Dyslexic students are normally no different to their non-dyslexic peers in their understanding of their academic subject, but dyslexia can make things like reading course books, writing essays and remembering lecture points harder to do. And there can also be difficulties for dyslexic students in getting their words and ideas across in seminars and tutorials.

These things are hard partly because of specific cognitive difficulties with processing particular kinds of information, and partly because of the way schools and universities tend to structure and assess learning - through non-interactive lectures and timed, written examination. And because there is a lot of disagreement about what dyslexia actually means in terms of cognitive function, it can also be difficult to agree on what to do about it, in practice.

Grade driven learning

In today’s society being academically literate is particularly valued - with the most successful learner often seen as the one who gets the highest grades. High grades are often thought to go hand-in-hard with hard work, meaning lower grades are often thought to imply a lack of effort and a lack of academic ability - the twin-evils of “laziness” and “stupidity”.

But part of the challenge for dyslexia and learning isn’t so much that dyslexic people can’t keep up with complex ideas, it’s more that they may need to approach tasks in a different way to get the learning to make sense, and to “stick”.

So when a student with dyslexia finds their learning preferences don’t fit so well with the learning environments on offer, they will often use additional study aids - such as speech-to-text software, mind-mapping applications and “read and write text help” - in addition to attending regular tutorials with a specialist teacher to work on their academic literacy.

Having dyslexia can make learning difficult at university. Antonio Guillem/Shutterstock

But sometimes dyslexic students (and their peers) feel that using additional study help gives them an an unfair leg-up. This means that although dyslexic students have a right under the law to make use of things - like extra time in exams and specialist tuition - doing so can be a threat to their sense of self-worth and academic identity.

In other words, they can feel like they are not really “intelligent” if they can’t do the work without making use of adjustments. This can lead dyslexic students to play down their difficulties, and to refuse help. And students with dyslexia will sometimes try to go it alone, so to speak, to work hard and “just deal with it” - even though they will be disadvantaged by this approach. This can leave dyslexic students in a lose-lose situation.

Peer support?

Working out when to access support at university is further complicated by the uncertainty of how the students and staff they come across will react to a disclosure of dyslexia. Media representations of dyslexia have tended to be rather sensationalist, and often follow the “dyslexia as a myth” line without care for the details of the studies which they refer to.

Attitudes towards dyslexia among academic staff can also vary, and peers can react in unexpected ways - saying things like “that’s ridiculous, why do you get a printer just because you’re dyslexic?”.

Dyslexic students have to be ever-ready to explain what dyslexia means and how it affects them to whomever needs to know. They may need to declare it to their personal tutor one day, to an exams invigilator another, and to their housemate the next. And in each case they need to guess how their declaration will be received - which can be exhausting.

Dyslexic students may also find themselves stuck between contradictory ideas about who they are as a dyslexic, and what they should be doing about it. And in this sense they internalise the apparent “common-sense view” that they are solely responsible for the difficulties they experience.

Rethinking dyslexia

So, to dyslexic students who have just begun their university education, it is time for you to rethink the concept of disability - because it is not a dirty word. The disabling aspects of dyslexia are not inside you, but rather they are part of a particular educational set-up and learning environment.


 Don’t let dyslexia hold you back. Syda Productions/Shutterstock

To tackle this, work out which situations at university put you at a disadvantage compared to other students, and make use of any adjustments you need to help you. It’s not an unfair leg-up, it’s simply a small step towards evening the playing field.

You should also make use of specialist dyslexia tutors, because they not only there to help you develop academic skills and confidence, but more importantly they can also help you critically reflect upon what dyslexia means for you and your learning.

And finally, remember you are not to blame for some of the difficulties you may experience in university learning, so be kind to yourself. These difficulties are nothing to do with how worthy you are, or how “clever” you are - and you belong at university just as much as anyone else does.

Harriet Cameron, Academic Director: specific learning difficulties in higher education, University of Sheffield

This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.

Seven Myths About Dyslexia Put to Rest

Dyslexia Action (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

by Serje Robidoux, The Conversation: https://theconversation.com/seven-myths-about-dyslexia-put-to-rest-49201

As researchers who study dyslexia, we often read articles or overhear conversations that completely misunderstand what dyslexia is - or how it can be treated.

Dyslexia is the term used to describe someone with reading difficulties - and it affects up to 10% of Australians.

A reader with dyslexia may have difficulty in reading unusual words like yacht; have difficulty with nonsense words like frop; misread slime as smile; struggle to understand passages; or struggle in a number of other ways when reading.

To coincide with Dyslexia Empowerment Week - aimed at raising awareness and understanding of the disorder - we highlight the seven most common misconceptions about dyslexia.

Myth 1: I’m a bad speller because I’m dyslexic

Some researchers and organisations include spelling problems in their definition of dyslexia. This can be a problem because spelling and reading are different skills even if they are both based on written language. There are some processes involved in both spelling and reading, so some people will have problems with both skills. But research has clearly shown that many people are good readers, but poor spellers; or good spellers, yet poor readers. To avoid grouping different kinds of problems together, it is less confusing to use the distinct terms dysgraphia (or spelling impairment) for problems in spelling, and dyslexia (or reading impairment) for reading problems.

Myth 2: I have trouble with (insert problem here), because I’m dyslexic

Reading problems are about problems with reading. That may seem obvious, but sometimes problems in other areas become so strongly associated with reading difficulties that they start to be talked about as if they were the same as having a reading difficulty. For example, some people with reading problems also have problems with some aspects of memory. This can lead people to say things like, “David forgets his lunch box a lot because he’s dyslexic”, but this assumes a connection between the two problems. If dyslexia leads to poor memory, then everyone who has a reading problem should also have memory problems, but this is not at all the case. In the extreme, one website claims that Leonardo da Vinci had dyslexia not because of any evidence that he had trouble reading, but because he could write backwards and reversed (as in a mirror image). This is clearly using the term far too broadly.

Myth 3: Dyslexia is the same for everyone

Though it may not feel like it to many of us, reading is a very complex task which involves many sub-skills and processes. It requires identifying and ordering letters, mapping letter patterns to sounds, and accessing knowledge stored in memory (among other things). This means that the process can fail in a variety of ways, so as researchers we will almost never say “dyslexia” or “reading impairment” without first discussing what kind of problem we mean. Does the reader have trouble with new words they have never seen before? Do they mistake broad for board more often than others their age? Do they read have as though it rhymes with save? Do they have trouble understanding what they have read? These are different problems, which don’t necessarily go together.

Myth 4: There is one way to treat dyslexia

Since dyslexia is not one problem, there also isn’t a single solution. The particular nature of the reading problem a person has determines the treatment they need. Based on current evidence, effective treatment of a struggling reader requires first identifying the specific reading problems the reader has, then designing a reading-based program to develop the skills that have fallen behind.

Myth 5: Gymnastics can cure dyslexia

Treatments like physical exercise, coloured lenses or coloured paper are not helpful for two reasons. First, they assume that all dyslexias are the same. Second, they have nothing to do with reading. There are many more “snake oil” treatments out there, and many of them have been adopted by school boards and education administrators with no reliable evidence to support them. Currently, the evidence favours treatments that are based on developing reading skills that target the specific reading problem.

Myth 6: Phonics is a waste of time

This one is a particular challenge in Australia, where many teaching programs do not emphasise phonics in early reading education. As a result, some children who appear to have a form of dyslexia are struggling because of classroom teaching methods. Phonics helps children learn to read by teaching them how to convert letters into sounds and then blend those sounds into words. Effective teaching methods for reading should always include systematic teaching of phonics, particularly in the early years.

Myth 7: Dyslexia runs in my family, so I just have to live with it

Research has found that genetics can play a role in reading difficulties. Sometimes the phrase “genetic cause” is mistaken for “there’s nothing anyone can do”. This isn’t true for reading difficulties. No matter the source of the dyslexia, there are treatments that can help - provided the problems are clearly identified, and the treatment is targeted. 

Researchers in The Reading Program of the ARC Centre of Excellence in Cognition and its Disorders (CCD) at Macquarie University also contributed to this article - see here for a list of signatories.


Serje Robidoux, Postdoctoral research fellow

This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.

Understanding the Dyslexic Learner's Weaknesses

Dyslexia Awareness Hotline (Photo credit: Scott M)

by Candace Mondello

Dyslexic learners, or students, have many strengths, but for some reason the focus in the classroom seems to remain attuned on their weaknesses.

Perhaps this is because dyslexic learners weaknesses frustrate educators who don't understand how to address the situation effectively.

Also, it can appear to outsiders, that dyslexic learners as a group aren't trying their best, give up too easily, don't care about academics, or even purposely sabotaging their learning.

How Can this Group Be So Misunderstood?

Let's look closely at the specific weaknesses that plague dyslexic learners and discuss why these behaviors and practices can be misunderstood by educators and frustrating to the learner.

• Auditory Processing: The misconception is that these learners aren't listening. They tend to be the students who constantly say, "What did you say?" or "What are we supposed to do?" Although this can be aggravating when trying to motivate a classroom full of students, it's not the dyslexic learners fault. As the teacher speaks, most students process the information immediately and are already taking action before the teacher has completed the instructions. The dyslexic student is generally five words behind in short sentences, ten or more words behind in long instructions. It's not uncommon for a dyslexic learner to still be contemplating the first few words of the teacher's instructions while the rest of the class has moved on. The best way to describe it is if you're in a foreign language class and the teacher is speaking exclusively in the foreign language. If you aren't fluent, you're only catching words here and there and trying to piece together the gist of the conversation.


• Phonemic Awareness: Related to auditory processing, some, but not all, these students have difficulty differentiating the distinct sounds made by each letter. It's not automatic for them; they need to consciously remind themselves of each sound as they go.


• Auditory Discrimination: Also related to auditory processing, some, but not all, dyslexic learners have difficulty hearing words in sentences correctly. Think of the comedians who replace negative phrases with another phrase: For example, the person says, "Mind your business." The other character says, "What did you say?" The comedian replies, "I said, I'd do the dishes." It's very typical for dyslexic learners to mishear instructions.


• Memorizing: Dyslexics severely struggle with all memorizing: sequences (alphabet, numbers, lists), visual memory (like the memory game), and in math, multiplication tables. These students may be able to play instruments, but they will have trouble reading music.


• Directionality: Most people think that people with dyslexia don't know their right from their left. It may appear that way, but that's not exactly the case; it more closely relates to their inability to memorize and interpret. For example, a dyslexic will have to concentrate hard to interpret mirror images. With their letters, like b, d, p, q, they forget which way they are supposed to go in the quick decision time they have. They will SEE the b just like everyone else, but when they go to write it down, they can't remember which way the stick and the round part go. They can confuse vertically or horizontally - so a b could be written as a "d," or a "p." A "d" might be written as a "b," or a "q." The dyslexic learner is constantly making decisions based on the mirror images of the letters. Can you imagine how frustrating and confusing this can be to a child?


• Rapid Naming: Students with dyslexia will never be quick to answer questions. The process that they brain goes through to catalogue and retrieve information prevents them from performing quickly. It's best to warn these students ahead of time that you'll be calling on them to answer a question (and be specific what the question will be so they have time to process and prepare an answer).


• Reading and Spelling: These are classic signs of dyslexia. The student who can't read or spell no matter how much an adult works with them. It isn't necessarily the inability to read, as it is the inability to perform quickly. A dyslexic learner will substitute similar words under pressure. For example, if the word in the story is pony, but this learner isn't familiar with the word pony, he or she may substitute "horse" because it fits in the context of the story. Dyslexic learners may also substitute a word that is shaped the same as the word they are trying to figure out - for example, if the word is "trait" they may say "treat" because that is a familiar word. Dyslexic learners focus on the appearance of words - meaning the overall shape of words than the actual letters (zeroing in on the above or below the line shape).


• Organization: Dyslexics will stand out as students who are disorganized. But it won't be in just one area of their life, it will present in many areas.

* Time: Dyslexic learners are not able to estimate the time it takes to complete a project. They are usually far behind, appear to have not planned at all, or will become so engrossed in the task that they have no concept that they've done a task for hours.

* Space: Dyslexic students are often incapable of keeping track of their possessions. They are the ones with messing lockers, binders, backpacks, bedrooms, and have pockets full of "stuff." They often lose things: keys, homework, books for class, pen or pencil, and their agenda book. It is beyond their grasp to keep track of these things.

* Planning and management: Dyslexic learners minds are working so hard on keeping up with instructions, knowing which class they are supposed to be in, or which book they are supposed to have with them. If they have to follow rotating schedules, it can put their mind in overload.

• Written Expression: Students with dyslexias have the bleakest writing in the class. They usually use short, choppy sentences with minimal descriptors; and even that minuscule offering took them forever to put on paper. But if an educator takes the time to talk with the dyslexic learner, they'll discover that this student fully grasps the concept, has a complete, fully developed response that he or she can convey with astounding accuracy. This practice alone causes educators to assume that they students are lazy. However, most often the dyslexic learners brain is moving way faster than their hand can document. So along the way, they edit their own explanations down to the most simplistic explanation - thus the short, choppy sentences.


• Dysgraphia (or handwriting): Dysgraphia is simply (dys - difficulty with and graphia - writing); so, difficulty with writing. Dyslexics grip pencils with a death grip, their hands hurt, educators will often see them shaking out their hand. Their writing is hardly legible - sometimes the letters are cramped way too close together, other times the letters are huge and spread far apart. They also have a tendency to write up or downhill.

With a set of weaknesses like these, it's a wonder that dyslexic learners have been able to adapt and survive in classrooms where students are pushed to perform quickly, in teams, and with increasing accuracy. It appears to the dyslexic learner that mistakes are bad, so they tend NOT to be risk-takers - opting to stay within their comfort zone. In fact, they may have learned the hard way (by being ridiculed in class) to play it safe.

If you think your child or a student in your class may be dealing with dyslexia, show them some sympathy and take steps to provide scaffolding support for them to be able to demonstrate their intelligence.

Have more questions about helping your child get the BEST education possible? If your child struggles in school - this blog is your resource for finding the answers and getting results. Candee has been an educator in the public system for a decade. She LOVES helping parents connect with their child's education. Go to her website Dyslexia Testing Online and talk with her!! http://www.dyslexiatestingonline.com

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How Our Auditory System Affects Learning - Underlying Causes of Autism and Processing Disorders

Autism spectrum (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

by Maggie Dail

Today, we are faced with many labels or conditions that affect learning.

Many have a partial underlying cause in our auditory system including autism spectrum disorders, ADD/ADHD, developmental delay, dyslexia, central auditory processing disorder, and auditory processing disorder.

Hypersensitivities to sound may cause an individual to shut out sounds as a defensive mechanism and behave as if he were deaf.

On the other hand the same sensitivity may cause another to scream and hold her ears.

Learning will be impeded until these sensitivities are normalized.

Another difficulty arises when there is fluid in the ear. Since the Eustachian tubes in young children are more horizontal, fluid can build up and bacteria can form in this warm moist environment.

Pressure from the fluid can cause pressure and pain - an ear ache. Repeated ear infections during the first two years of life can greatly affect development of the auditory system. During an infection, the individual hears as if under water and the sounds are not consistent.

This in turn can cause receptive auditory problems as well as speech problems. Treating these ear infections without antibiotics or tubes will greatly enhance learning.

Difficulty following oral directions and learning to read using phonics represent just two problems reflected by low auditory sequential processing. When an individual has low auditory sequential processing they cannot remember a series of information long enough to use that information.

For example, an individual should be able to look up a phone number or be told a phone number long enough to dial the phone.

When parents ask their children to do a short list of chores and within minutes they have forgotten what it was they were to do and they engage in another activity - often play, parents often assume that this is disobedience. It could be disobedience, but it could also be low auditory sequential processing.

When a child sounds out a relatively short word, but at the end cannot say the word, it is often due to low auditory sequential processing. Optimally, the solution for these difficulties is not accommodating a deficit, but increasing the auditory sequential processing.

Another major underlying cause for many of these children (and adults) is metabolic - diet / nutrition related. Often these children have what is called "leaky gut syndrome" meaning that nutrients cannot be easily absorbed for use in the body.

Many options arise to consider. Elimination diets often remove the offending foods. Other diets work to resolve the issue; some by fixing the leaky gut and others by restoring a balance among nutrients. Families should research the alternatives and find the one that fits their family.

Neurodevelopmentalists look for underlying causes of the missing pieces in development and recommend activities and resources for families, guiding them to solutions.

Maggie operates the Center for Neuro Development in Lakewood, Washington, along with her husband Ronnie. Maggie earned a M.A.in Special Education from Adams State University in 1989.

She has been in an internship / independent study leading to certification with the International Christian Association of Neurodevelopmentalists. They offer local, on site services as well as long distance consultation. They work with homeschoolers as well as those who attend school.
http://www.centerforneurodevelopment.com

Free E-Book: Unlocking Learning Potential: From Gifted to Challenged
http://www.centerforneurodevelopment.com/free_e_book

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Eight Multi-Sensory Reading Activities To Reinforce Alphabet Knowledge

Dyslexia Awareness Hotline (Photo credit: Scott M)

by Carol Fraser Hagen

Children and adults who are dyslexic learn differently.

That's why it's important that both parents and teachers incorporate multi-sensory reading activities, when introducing the twenty-six letter names and shapes of the alphabet.

Multi-sensory reading activities use all the senses, sent to the brain - visual, auditory, touch and body movement.

Here are eight multi-sensory reading activities that help dyslexic learners learn the alphabet:

1. Touch - Trace and cut out both the upper and lower case letters of the alphabet, out of sandpaper. After introducing a letter name and shape, have your child trace the letter's form with two fingers. The rough surface of each sandpaper letter helps children learn and retain letter shapes.

2. Touch - Pour a bag of rice, dried beans or peas into a shallow pan. Model for your child how to trace the alphabet letter they are currently learning, in the pan. The sensation of the dried food supports children's retention of letter shapes and names.

3. Visual - Mix Elmer's glue with colorful craft fabric paints. On a piece of construction paper have your child draw letters of the alphabet in different colors. The variety of colors of glue helps children hold onto each alphabet letter's name and shape.

4. Visual - Put together a collection of crayons, colored pencils, and glitter pens. Draw in pencil on either notebook paper or construction paper the upper and lower case letters of the alphabet. Instruct your child to trace over each letter. Using color helps children memorize the shapes and names of alphabet symbols.

5. Auditory - Sing the alphabet song with your child. Parents and teacher need to sing the song slowly. Children need to hear distinctly, all twenty-six-letter names, as you sing together.

6. Auditory - Read alphabet books aloud to your child. While reading parents and teachers need to take time to point out how illustrations and pictures reflects each letter name of the alphabet. Typically the storybook images are the first letter--such as "z" for zebra.

7. Body Movement - Find a large flashlight. Turn the lights down. Using big sweeping arm movements show your child how to write a letter on the wall. Have your child do the same using their arm. Tapping into arm muscles, by making big sweeping motions, helps children learn alphabet shapes.

8. Body Movement - Using a long piece of clothes-line or a jump-rope help your child make a big letter of the alphabet. Using the body muscles through movements helps children remember alphabet shapes through muscle memory.

Multi-sensory reading activities are easy to make and take just a few minutes to do. When parents and teachers take additional time to include one, every time they teach a letter name and shape, they will find dyslexic leaners who learn differently, identifying letter names and symbols much more easily. Also, these multi-sensory reading activities work equally well with adult dyslexic learners.

Carol Fraser Hagen is a former elementary Reading Specialist, now a Dyslexia Therapist in the Midwest. In addition to tutoring dyslexic learners Carol writes freelance articles on teaching reading. Carol holds a bachelors degree in Secondary Education, a Masters Degree in Special Reading and an Educational Specialist in Curriculum and Instruction.

In addition to writing about reading education Carol is a freelance writer and a published children's writer. For more tips, resources, and articles on reading education drop by Carol's website http://www.carolfraserhagen.com

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The 5 Secrets Of Learning That No-One Ever Told You

hemispatial neglect (Photo credit: Will Lion)By Diana Vogel

Secret Number 1 - Brain Hemisphere Dominance

Everyone knows that we have two brain hemispheres - the left and the right; Logic and Gestalt.

The left hand hemisphere or the logic hemisphere handles our ability to see the bits and pieces that make up information - our ability to see the trees in the forest. It controls our ability to sequence information and put it in an orderly pattern. It helps us to see logical progressions and to recognise patterns such as number facts (multiplication tables) and rhymes.

The right hand hemisphere or Gestalt hemisphere handles our emotions, our ability to see the big picture - the reason why. It helps us to make sense of the bits and pieces in a meaningful and emotionally relevant way. The Gestalt hemisphere handles intuition and it is what allows us to make intuitive leaps - those flashes of brilliance when seemingly unconnected information comes together into something amazing. It governs our ability to relate to others with compassion and empathy. It is our creative side, our artistic and musically inclined self. Without it, the bits and pieces supplied by the logical hemisphere are meaningless pieces of information.

To learn effectively we need access to both hemispheres of the brain. In children with high stress levels (aka a learning difficulty,) one of the hemispheres is not functioning as it should. It is suppressed by the dominant hemisphere and its gifts are locked away. These children (and adults) are at a disadvantage - they are operating with only half of what they need to learn effectively.

Hence some are dreamers - they can see the big picture but have no way of knowing how to accomplish their dream. Sometimes they are called lazy. Others are so bogged down in the details they get lost in what is called analysis paralysis - they can see the bits and pieces but can't quite grasp how to put them all together into a cohesive whole.

Regaining the use of the whole brain - what I call brain integration - is the first step we take when working with a new student.

Secret Number 2 - The Ability To Move Forward

For so many students (and their parents!) feeling stuck, clumsy, confused and lost is a daily experience. It isn't necessarily a physical feeling - although it can be. Mostly it is a mental feeling, one of being stuck in mud, it is a struggle and hard work.

Of thinking you have the answer and then beginning to doubt yourself. Of being unsure that you heard the instructions properly, so you need to check, double check, triple check before you feel confident to move forward with the activity.

Our ability to move forward determines how we approach different situations. If we feel stuck, our self-esteem and self-confidence are eroded over time and our insecurity increases. As it increases we become fearful of making mistakes, of "getting it wrong", of being laughed at.

On the other hand, if we can move forward without fear - we can sometimes have what I term bull at a gate syndrome. We can rush in where angels fear to tread. Sometimes we can lack the caution which allows us to assess the situation fully. We can have what situations like the one that faced Po in Kung-fu Panda 2. We can see our objective - Gongman City Palace, but not see the wolves prowling the streets, we leap into action without seeing the dangers that lie before us. As Mantis said: "What are you doing? The streets are crawling with wolves!"

A balance between the two extremes - feeling stuck and fearlessly moving forward - are needed for our children to learn. They need to be able to make a decision and see it through. In order to do this, our children need the foundation of Secret Number 1!

Secret Number 3 - Ability To Communicate

What is communication? For many people it is our ability to read and write, to speak clearly and succinctly. However, it is so much more than that. Communication is more non-verbal than verbal. It is the way we hold our self, the tone, the pitch, the delivery speed. It is our body stance, our facial expressions, the way we use or hold our hands. These visual cues are what bring meaning and depth to our communications.

Beyond this, communication encompasses our style of presenting information. Are we logical communicators? If so, we start at the beginning and plod through every detail of what has happened, useful for writing reports, but boring in a conversation!

If we are an emotional communicator, we bring in the full range of expressive language options. We rant, we rave, we may be incoherent at times (especially when excited or angry). We tell the story from an emotional point of view - telling what stood out at the time, not necessarily in a logical progression. So we have difficulty sequencing events as we jump around following the emotional trail. This event reminds me of that one (which may have happened a long time ago) which reminds me of something that I thought I heard yesterday and so on.

When it comes to learning, if we are limited in our communication - meaning our communication is controlled by the hemisphere which is suppressed under stress - we may know the answer but have difficulty expressing it. We have difficulty getting our ideas from our head onto the paper. Sometimes we can talk our way through it, but often we feel tongue-tied. We grow frustrated with our inability to express what is inside of us.

This can go on until we literally explode. The child who is limited in their ability to communicate can feel as though they are living inside a pressure cooker. Once they hit critical levels, steam has to be let out - often in the form of tears, tantrums, escapism, or total shut down where they withdraw inside of themselves completely.

For those around them, this situation is just as frustrating. After all, when they are relaxed and integrated these children show us glimpses of what they are capable of. And these tantalising glimpses leave us frustrated that they aren't performing at their best, especially when we don't understand why.

Secret Number 4 - Visual Input

Visual Input isn't just what we see. It is how we see it, how we then relate it to previous memories and how we then decide to act upon that information.

For the child that is visually limited, the visual world is a confusing place. They can see, but the ability to interpret is not functioning. They can stare at a page of writing or maths and not comprehend what it is they are meant to do. It is as if we had placed a foreign language in front of them and then demanded that they tell us what it means.

To us, the language is what we are familiar with, we converse in it, we know that the child knows how to speak this language; they have shown that they recognise some words, some of the time.

So why can't they read and recognise those words?

The answer lies again, in integration. When the hemisphere that is responsible for visual input is suppressed, it is as though that information doesn't exist. We record it but we can't do anything with it (doctors call the Visual Processing Disorder).

When we work on the integration between hemispheres, we allow the information to be "seen", to be recognised and used. Hence we can teach someone to read, to decode, to follow sentences in a short span of time when they are integrated and accessing all information that is available to them.

No discussion of visual input would be complete without mentioning Irlen Syndrome. This syndrome which affects the visual cortex is highly prevalent in our society - especially among students with the so-called learning difficulty.

Irlen isn't a dysfunction of the eyes. It is a misfiring of the two nerves that lead from the eyes to the visual cortex. Normally these two nerves fire in sync and present a clear picture to the visual cortex for processing. When Irlen is present, one of the nerves is firing slower than the other creating a distorted message - kind of like looking at a 3-D TV screen without 3-D glasses on ...

The brain needs to work hard to straighten this image out, to even out the distortions. But often it can't and the images move, swirl, vibrate and pulse causing fatigue, nausea, eye strain, avoidance problems as well as focusing issues. For people with Irlen, the world is a visually tiring place.

Often, they have no idea that this is not the experience everyone has when they look at a book, or computer screen or anywhere else that requires them to focus. For them it is just how the world is, so they don't mention it unless asked direct questions. It is often a surprise to parents to hear that the words on a page move, blur, disappear, swirl, dance, jump or rearrange themselves for their offspring.

Secret Number 5 - Auditory Input

The final secret to learning is Auditory Input. Like Visual Input, there is more to Auditory Input than hearing. When we think of Auditory, we think of the sounds that we hear - usually words.

For the student with a limited ear, they hear but don't differentiate sounds. It is just one large jumble of noise that has no particular meaning. We could be talking to them, perhaps in our frustration raising our voice to almost shouting, and they would still be blissfully unaware that we are even talking. Like the eye that is limited, noise goes in (the ears work fine) but no associations are attached to them.

For people with a functioning ear, but who are not in an integrated state, the ear continually scans the environment looking for danger. This means that for people like my son, the noise of the wind outside the classroom window is just as important as the teacher's voice. He can't focus exclusively on the teacher's voice - his ear is continually straining to catch the sound of the predator he KNOWS is hiding ready to leap.

When we are in fight or flight mode (stress by any other name), we descend to the level of instinct. Survival is our main concern. Not learning. Not seeing things from different points of views. Nothing but survival is able to capture our interest.

Learning of any description is impossible when we are concerned for our safety. It seems laughable I know - after all our kids are in school, what harm can come to them there? But the body doesn't know that school is a safe environment. It feels the adrenalin and cortisone pulsing through our veins. It knows that we are primed to run for our life or fight our way out - so this MUST be a dangerous environment with predators lurking, otherwise we wouldn't have adrenaline or cortisone pumping through our system ...

So our children are edgy, easily distracted, jumping or turning towards every sound ... (sounds like ADHD, doesn't it?). They are tense, ready to fight, ready to run. Small things can set them off - and later they don't know why.

Depending on the combination of senses available to our child (which of the 32 Learning Profiles they have) many responses are possible. Running from the room when the tension becomes too much (looking for a safe place), verbal aggression when approached incorrectly by the teacher or another student (fight my way out of here), a feeling of constriction and being trapped, anxiety attacks, fidgeting, easily distracted by noise when they are meant to be focusing on the task at hand etc.

These children are labelled ADHD, ADD, Auditory Processing Disorder or Sensory Processing Disorder. Very few doctors or specialists recognise that these kids are highly stressed individuals who need to be shown safe, effective stress release methods that they can employ every day, in every situation.

Once again, brain integration and moving from a stressed state to the integrated state can and does have a marked impact on the behaviour of these students. When they feel safe, integration occurs, the unsettling behaviours diminish and viola we have a student who can focus, who can learn.

So what does this all mean for your child?

If we truly want our children to learn to the best of their ability then we need to understand how learning occurs for them. It is unfair to label children who are stressed with "disorders". Stress is not a disorder; it is a sign that something in a person's environment is amiss.

We, as parents, educators and carers need to teach our children how to manage themselves and their response to stress. We cannot expect to teach children with a one-size-fits-all approach, especially when the world that they live in is rapidly changing and filled with uncertainty.

Learning about your child's unique learning profile isn't difficult. Applying that knowledge also isn't hard. It simply means that we need to change the way we view our child and their education - to learn to recognise the signs of stress and to remind our children of what they can do to relieve that stress. This, as parents, we can do. It is easy, and it benefits us all.

Diana Vogel

Diana Vogel is a sought after speaker, tutor, parent educator and author who is passionate about teaching parents and their dyslexic children the life skills that they need to maximise their chances of success. The mother of 2 wonderful boys, one of which is dyslexic, Diana has seen both the positive and negative sides of the dyslexia coin.

To learn more about Diana and the work that she does go to http://www.TheKidWhisperer.com.au

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Diana_Vogel
http://EzineArticles.com/?The-5-Secrets-Of-Learning-That-No-One-Ever-Told-You&id=6872121

What's The Bottom Line on Dyslexia?

Image via Wikipediaby Bruce D Price

In truth, the debate swirling around so-called “dyslexia” is one of the most interesting intellectual debates in America for the last 50+ years.

A student said to have “dyslexia” unquestionably has some sort of reading problem. The real question is: what is the nature of this problem?

The Education Establishment likes to act as though it’s an open-and-shut case that the child with a reading problem is in some way a damaged child. That is, the child was born defective, got hit on the head, took the wrong drugs, had a disease, or almost drowned. In short, it’s the child’s fault that the child has a problem. The child is not normal.

Now consider these scenarios. You teach a child to read with any number of techniques that don’t work very well. For example, every other letter is a different color. The child has to read with one eye. The child has to be hanging by one foot. Every other page is all lower case or all upper case. The child has to memorize English words as graphic designs...

Exactly. They are all silly ways to teach children to read, especially the last one. It’s called Whole Word, look-say, or sight-words. 70 years of statistics show that it does not work. The country has 50 million functional illiterates. Many of those victims experience bizarre difficulties as side-effects, for example, the words flip or they drift on the page. Such difficulties are usually referred to as “dyslexia.”

One can settle this debate strictly from the point of view that it’s humanly impossible for all but the most exceptional memories to retain even 3,000 sight-words. But you really need 10,000 at a minimum, and 50,000 to go to college. Most of you reading this article are thought to have vocabularies of at least 200,000 words and names. You didn’t get to that level memorizing sight-words (even if you were supposedly taught to read with sight-words, you quickly saw through to the phonetic heart of the language).

Now, all of the above is admittedly my own conclusions. But I would stress that I’m in agreement with all the phonics gurus, Samuel Blumenfeld, Marva Collins, Mona McNee, Don Potter, Siegfried Engelmann, and many more. All of them take the position that virtually all children will normally learn to read in the first or second grade. Problem readers, if they occur, are well under 1%.

Meanwhile the public schools are saying that up to 20% or even 25% of children might be afflicted by “dyslexia.”

My read on this is that the schools want an alibi. They don’t want to admit they are using bad methods. They want to blame everything on the students. It can’t be emphasized too much. This approach is a classic blame-the-victim strategy.

Compare: cut off a man’s feet and then criticize him for being a slow runner.

This is a very serious issue with huge ramifications. If schools officials can hide behind “dyslexia,” these officials can go right on using Whole Word, all the while demanding more money.

Many young teachers are trained to teach “sight-words” and then to blame any problems they encounter on “dyslexia”!

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For a more complete analysis of this subject, please see “Dyslexia: The Evil Myth” at this link: http://www.fastpitchnetworking.com/pressrelease.cfm?PRID=64893

For the very short verison, see YouTube video “The Strange Truth About Dyslexia.” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VeFLLnRWROQ


About the Author


BruceDPrice

Bruce Price founded improve-Education.org in 2005.