Stereotypes Of Dyslexia

The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines dyslexia as a disorder in the brain that makes it difficult for an individual to write, read, and spell. People who have been diagnosed with the learning disability are often thought to be “lazy, dumb, careless, ‘not trying hard enough,’ or [have] behavior problems” according to Ronald D. Davis, founder of the Davis Dyslexia Correction Center.

I am a student that has had to work hard for as long as I can remember in achieving my goals, dreams, both personal as well as academically. After many years of testing, I was diagnosed with dyslexia in my sophomore year of high school. Dyslexia is a congenital language process disorder. It can hinder reading, writing, spelling and sometimes speaking. Dyslexia is not a sign of poor intelligence

There is often a child in a class that cannot read, spell, speak, or do math as well as they should for their age level. He or she grows up thinking they are stupid, or are going to be unsuccessful in life because they are not “smart” like their classmates. He or she is not stupid, they are usually incredibly smart, and are possibly just dealing with dyslexia. Dyslexia is a type of learning difference that can affect a person’s ability to read, write, speak, and do math. Dyslexia is very common, with one out of every five U.S. school children suffering from dyslexia. Dyslexic children often discover that their parents or a close relative also have some form of learning disability, supporting the idea that dyslexia is hereditary. Dyslexia is

     Dyslexia is a disorder in which someone has difficulty reading, which is not caused from a

According to Hull Learning Services (2013), dyslexia continues to be a subject of great debate. The word dyslexia is originated from the Greek dys- meaning ‘difficult’ and -lexia meaning to do with language. There are multiple definitions of dyslexia, because the matter in which in manifest in children and adults vary greatly. Definitions of dyslexia often focus on difficulties with the processes of writing, reading, spelling and general organization of everyday tasks. Dyslexia has been defined as the inability to acquire literacy despite normal intelligence. Other definitions have described dyslexia in terms of a list of symptoms. The symptoms often included are laterality problems; reversals in numbers, letters and/or words; reading

The most recent definition of Dyslexia was published in the DSM-52 as a specific learning disorder; ‘a pattern of difficulties characterised by problems with accurate or fluent word recognition, poor decoding and poor spelling abilities. Dyslexia is understood to be a genetic disorder as many family risk studies on dyslexia have proven3; there is a 50% risk that a child will develop reading difficulties if they have a parent with dyslexia.

Dyslexia is a term regularly bandied about the educational community and is a word that is likely to have been heard by most of the general public. For all its popularity, dyslexia is a term that is shrouded in confusion and ambiguity. This confusion was experienced first hand during SE1 and has been observed as something trainee teachers and teachers alike encounter regularly (PLL, 5/11/11], Appendix 1, pg2).

Several studies have shown that when dyslexia is undiagnosed, it can cause a lot of frustrations and anxieties in the individuals involved (Riddick & Edwards as cited in Glazzard, 2012). Dyslexia is a ‘hidden’ disability, as there are no obvious external signs for people to recognize (Riddick as cited in Glazzard, 2012). It is not like some other disabilities, as for example down syndrome, or cerebral palsy which people can recognize from the moment they see them. People can get confused and assume different reasons for the children’s poor performance in school. That is why, when dyslexia is undiagnosed, the characteristics like ‘stupid’, ‘thick’, and ‘lazy’ are commonly used to describe students with dyslexia. People who are not aware about dyslexia cannot find any other explanations for them who are not doing well at school. Lack of assessment may result in low self-esteem compared to non-dyslexic students (Humphrey as cited in Glazzard, 2012 ). On the other hand, lack of appropriate help and support can have long-term effects for people with dyslexia when reaching adulthood (Morgan & Klein,

     Children with dyslexia give many signs to help identify them. Some of the clues include, not knowing whether to use the left or right hand after being reminded repeatedly, leaving out capital letters or losing using them in the wrong places reading a word correctly but does not comprehend, forming letters numbers badly, and forgetting to dot I’s and cross t’s (Make the Connection). They may spell the same word several different ways if they don’t have the visual memory to know what is right or the kinaesthetic memory for it to feel right as they are writing (Information on Dyslexia). These are some clues to look for in writing. Some other indications are late developer, easily distracted, problems with tying shoe laces, problems telling time, short term memory problems, holds pen too tightly, and has problems with sequences. Some examples of sequences that a person with dyslexia might have trouble with include alphabet, months of the year, and nursery rhymes. Some dyslexics are also good at other things that may be traits of having the disease such as, good long term memory, good visual eye, and very

A common misconception about dyslexia is that it is related to intelligence, which it is not.

The National Centre for Learning Disabilities says that dyslexia is a neurological and often genetic condition, and not the result of poor teaching, instruction or upbringing. Dyslexia is a specific reading disability due to a defect in the brain's processing of graphic symbols according to the MNT Knowledge Centre. It is a learning disability that alters the way the brain processes written material. It is typically characterized by difficulties in word recognition, spelling and decoding. People with dyslexia have problems with reading comprehension.

Dyslexia is a lifelong struggle with constant challenges with reading and speaking. About five to ten percent of the United States population deals with the learning disorder dyslexia (Van den Honert, n.d.). It is a neurological condition that is mainly caused by genetics but there are some rare cases in which it is acquired. Dyslexia interrupts the normal processes of reading and speaking (Van den Honert, n.d.). All of which are used in daily life and this makes life and school so much harder for dyslexics. They must learn to live with the condition for their entire life and there is not really a treatment for it. With the constant struggle and reminder of their

People with dyslexia are slow, but that doesn’t mean that they are not intelligent. I think that people with this disorder have the most creative and outgoing minds in the world. People with dyslexia may have intelligent levels over one hundred. Brilliant mind come with brilliant ideas. Athletes, writers, actors, and even characters have or had dyslexia. Here are some of the brilliant minds you may know: Albert Einstein, Thomas Edison, Benjamin Franklin, Mozart, John Lennon, Tom Cruise, Magic Johnson, and Walt Disney. All of these dyslexics have come to be some of the greatest minds and just look were that put them. Don’t put people with dyslexia down encourage then to go on because some day they could do great things for are world. (Sollier)

The characteristics of a dyslexic person can be very different from one person to the other, just as the characteristics of students without disabilities are different. These students show a different combination of learning problems. “Such characteristics are learning style, motor dexterity, time/math, memory/cognition, language/reading skills, behavior and vision. Sometimes the dyslexic youngster has early or late developmental stages, such as crawling, walking or talking” (Grolier’s).

Of the three previously mentioned diseases, Dyslexia impairs a person’s ability to read, write, and spell (NINDS 2003). Although they are of normal intelligence, their reading level is below average. They will usually have “trouble with phonological processing (the manipulation of sounds) and/or rapid visual-verbal responding.” (NINDS 2003). Children with dyslexia complain they cannot read their textbooks, do not have enough time to finish tests, cannot take notes, and are unable to read their own handwriting (GVSU 2000). Dyslexia does not affect every person the same way, and signs of the disorder may not be prevalent until later, when grammar and more in-depth writing skills are introduced. Dyslexia can also create a difficulty in processing vocabulary and thoughts correctly when speaking, and understanding what one says when they are spoken to. Dysgraphia is another neurological disorder that focuses on writing. When a child with this disorder is first introduced to writing, they will make unnecessary spaces between their letters, and some letters will be