Dyslexia: Myth or Fact?

Myth or Fact

Dyslexia can be a very confusing, more often than not a misunderstood learning condition for those who have it.

Here are 4 definitions for dyslexia:

A simple definition for dyslexia is as follows:
Dyslexia is an inherited condition that makes it extremely difficult to read, write, and spell in your native language, despite having at least average intelligence.

A definition from the International Dyslexia Association:
Dyslexia is a neurologically-based, often familial, disorder which interferes with the acquisition and processing of language. Varying in degrees of severity, it is manifested by difficulties in receptive and expressive language, including phonological processing, in reading, writing, spelling, handwriting, and sometimes in arithmetic.

A definition from the National Institutes of Health
Dyslexia is a specific learning disability that is neurological in origin. It is characterized by difficulties with accurate and/or fluent word recognition, and by poor spelling and decoding abilities. These difficulties typically result from a deficit in the phonological component of language that is often unexpected in relation to other cognitive abilities and the provision of effective classroom instruction.
Secondary consequences may include problems in reading comprehension and reduced reading experience that can impede growth of vocabulary and background knowledge.
A definition from Microsoft Encarta Dictionary 2003 ©
Dyslexia: learning disability marked by difficulty in recognizing and understanding written language.

There are many myths floating around in regards to dyslexia. Do you know what is myth and what is fact? Now that you have the definition for dyslexia fresh in your mind why don't you try to discern what is myth and what is fact from these simple statements.

1.Dyslexia doesn't exist.
2.Accommodations do not mean changing the curriculum.
3.People with dyslexia see things backwards
4.Dyslexia is rare.
5.Professionals with in-depth training can accurately diagnose dyslexia as early as age 5.
6.Children with dyslexia are just lazy
7.Most reading and resource specialists are highly trained in dyslexia and its remediation methods
8.Children with dyslexia cannot learn to spell the traditional way.

How did you do? Did you easily pick out the myths from the facts? Or were you unsure what was just a fact and what was just a myth.? Answers to the questions are at the end of this post.

Do you know any famous people who have been diagnosed as having dyslexia?

Here are a few famous people who also have dyslexia.
Actors: Henry Winkler, Whoopi Goldberg, Zsa Zsa Gabor, Jack Nicholson, Jamie Olvier, Walt Disney, Robinn Williams, Woody Harrelson, Orlando Bloom, etc.
Sports: Magic Johnson, Billy Blanks, Mohammad Ali, Stan Wattles, Nolan Ryan, Bruce Jenner, etc.
Military: General George Patton, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Napoleon Bonaparte.
Writers: Agatha Christie, Richard Cohen, Edgar Allen Poe, F. Scott Fitzgerald, John Grisham, Mark Twain, etc.
Artists: Charles Schultz, Ansel Adams, Scott Adams,
Musicians: Cher, John Lennon, Tony Bennet, Aimee Osbourne
Enterpreneurs & Business Leaders: Charles Schwab, Bill Hewlett, Paul J. Orfalea, David Murdock, Tommy Hilfiger,
Science & Medicine: Thomas Edison, Henry Ford, Steven Hawkings, Jack Horner, Nicolai Tesla,
Politicians: Winston Churchill, Franklin D. Roosevelt, John F Kennedy,

There are many, many more famous people who have dyslexia. I chose to list the ones that general population might easily recognize. To see who else has dyslexia visit
http://www.dys-add.com/symptoms.html#famous

Because no two people with dyslexia are exactly alike, getting an accurate diagnosis can be a bit of a challenge. Dyslexia has four different levels: mild, moderate, severe, profound. Some people with dyslexia can also have another underlying condition that can make the presentation of symptoms confusing as to what is a true dyslexia issue versus dyslexia with another condition for example, ADD/ADHD, etc.

You may recognize the topics from the quiz above. Here is some more in depth information and the answers to the quiz.

1. Dyslexia Doesn't exist.
Dyslexia is one of the most researched and documented conditions that will impact children. Over 30 years of independent, scientific, replicated, published research exists on dyslexia. Much of documentation and research was done through the National Institutes of Health and funded by taxpayer dollars.

2. Accommodations do not mean changing the curriculum.
Accommodations are either a slight change in the way the teacher presents information, a slight change in the way the teacher has students practice new skills so they can master them, or a slight change in the way the teacher tests students to determine if they have mastered the skill. Examples of reasonable accommodations are: allowing the student to give an oral report instead of one in a written format, allowing a student to tape record the teachers presentation of materials to the classroom for note taking purposes, allowing a student to dictate the answers on a test to a scribe who then writes what the student says, etc. Remember when it comes to accommodations, no student wants to be different and they most definitely don't want to have dyslexia. They would rather be able to do the same assignments, the exact same way, just as their peers do.

3. People with dyslexia see things backwards.
People with dyslexia do not see things backwards. Dyslexia isn't caused by a vision problem. Which is probably why vision therapy isn't a complete cure all for dyslexics. Yes, they reverse their b's and their d's and they can say was for saw and saw for was. This happens because of a long time confusion over left versus right and by the difficulty reading by sounding out words.

4. Dyslexia is rare.
According to the NIH researchers, in the United States of America, dyslexia impacts 20% of the population. That's 1 out of every 5 people. It is the most common reason a child struggles first with spelling, then with written expression, and eventually “hit the wall” in reading development by 3rd grade.

5. Professionals with in-depth training can accurately diagnosis dyslexia as early as age 5.
Dyslexia cannot be officially diagnosed using one single test. That's because of dyslexia having 4 versions of difficulty. Also, Dyslexia can impact many different areas in a child's life. That's why a professional with in-depth training will use from 10 to 12 tests to investigate every area that might be impacted by dyslexia and also why they can diagnosis at a much younger age.

6. Children with dyslexia are just lazy.
To the unaware mind it is possible to consider that as an answer for the poor showing with schoolwork and reading. If students are undiagnosed, do not receive the right type of tutoring and accommodations in the classroom they often struggle in school. They're often bright, highly motivated and spend hours on homework assignments. Another factor that should be considered is maybe just maybe the student has heard so often that they're lazy and they have had enough negative experiences even though the reality is they are really working harder than most everyone else in the class. That they simply quit trying.

7. Most reading and resource specialists are highly trained in dyslexia and its remediation methods.
Sadly, that is not true. Not even recent graduates with Master degree in Reading have had a single course in dyslexia, its warning signs, and appropriate remediation methods. Most literacy coaches, Reading First coordinators, and Resource specialists have had no training in dyslexia or appropriate remediation methods.

Children with dyslexia cannot learn to spell the traditional way.
Sadly this is true as well. Their spelling will not improve just because a teacher marks a word wrong.
It will not improve if the teacher writes the correct word in red. It will not improve it if the student writes the correct word 100 or more times. It will greatly improve once they have been taught spelling using a very different approach.

Dyslexia is a catch all term
That was true at one time because of lack of research. Now there is a research-based definition of dyslexia, which is:

Dyslexia is a specific learning disability that is neurological in origin.
It is characterized by difficulties with accurate and/or fluent word recognition, and by poor spelling and decoding abilities.
These difficulties typically result from a deficit in the phonological component of language that is often unexpected in relation to other cognitive abilities and the provision of effective classroom instruction.
Secondary consequences may include problems in reading comprehension and reduced reading experience that can impede growth of vocabulary and background knowledge.

What We Now know about Dyslexia (from NIH Results Released in 1994)

These research results have been independently replicated and are now considered to be irrefutable.

Dyslexia is the most commonly shared characteristic of juvenile justice offenders.
Reading failure is the most commonly shared characteristic of juvenile justice offenders
Dyslexia affects at least 1 out of every 5 children in the United States.
Dyslexia represents the most common and prevalent of all known learning disabilities.
Dyslexia is the most researched of all learning disabilities
Eligibility for special education services is not a valid diagnostic marker for dyslexia

Resources.
http://www.dys-add.com/myths.html
http://www.dys-add.com/symptoms.html#famous

Answers 1. M 2 F 3 M 4 M 5 F 6 M 7 M 8 F

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