Dyslexia Rough Draft

Description of Dyslexia

Dyslexia is a learning disability that is characterized by decoding, spelling, and word
recognition difficulties. The condition makes it hard for individuals to perform ordinary
learning processes such as writing, drawing, and reading (Rahman et al., 2018). It is
important to note that the learning problems that people with dyslexia face are not a result of
lack of educational opportunity or low intelligence. Individuals with dyslexia often
demonstrate high levels of intelligence in other areas. Thus, the condition is not one of
intelligence. According to Sutton & Shields (2016), the condition has a neurological origin.
Since Rudolf Berlin described the condition and developed the neurological concept
of dyslexia in 1887, the condition has long been considered as a hidden disability (Stein,
2018; Sutton & Shields, 2016). However, the use of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in
modern times has revealed differences between dyslexic and non-dyslexic individuals. There
exist significant differences between neural functioning of the brain of dyslexic and non-
dyslexic individuals. The differences between the brain of a normal and a dyslexic person are
both structural and functional. Compared to normal individuals, a dyslexic person has a
smaller volume and thickness of gray matter which houses the network associated with
reading (Catts & Petscher, 2018). The tracts of white matter that integrate reading networks
also have lower structural connectivity among dyslexic individuals compared to non-dyslexic
individuals (Catts & Petscher, 2018). In regard to functional differences of the brain,
individuals with dyslexia have left occipito-temporal and left temporo-parietal parts of the
reading network, which are the visual word area of the brain, exhibit markedly reduced print
responses (Catts & Petscher, 2018). Therefore, the gray matter, white matter, and the
functioning of the left occipito-temporal and left temporo-parietal parts of dyslexic
individuals are different from those of normal individuals.

3
These differences are not limited to any particular culture, region, race or language
since the condition is a universal one (Sutton & Shields, 2016). According to Protopapas &
Parilla (2018), dyslexia is the most common learning disability in the world. It affects
children across all educational approaches, writing systems, and languages (Protopapas &
Parilla, 2018). What creates dyslexia is not differences in culture, language, writing system,
socio-economic background, region, or educational opportunities. What creates the condition
is differences in structure and functions of parts of the brain that are related with reading and
writing. Due to these differences, individuals with dyslexia develop learning difficulties that
are associated with a language’s phonological elements (Sutton & Shields, 2016). The
learning difficulties significantly reduce the reading experience of students and contributes to
poor development of vocabulary, reading comprehension, and deeper knowledge acquisition
(Sutton & Shields, 2016). In most instances, dyslexia is exhibited in childhood and becomes a
life-long condition. However, there are instances when the condition emerges later in life or
even reduces or resolves itself later (van Viersen, de Bree, & de Jong, 2019). This resolving
in later life could be because of resolving of underlying cognitive deficits that dyslexia is
associated with such as verbal short-term memory, rapid automatized naming, and
phonological awareness (van Viersen, de Bree, & de Jong, 2019). However, in most cases
persons with the condition have to live with it for all of their lives.
Effects of Dyslexia

Dyslexia is a learning disability that has profound effects on other aspects of life of a
child with the condition. In particular, dyslexia has a major impact on a child’s self-esteem
and social skills. Self-esteem is described as the value that individuals ascribe to themselves
or the idea that they have of themselves (Sako, 2016). Usually, a child’s self-esteem is
influenced by the feedback that they receive from the people that they deem to be important
to them. These people include their parents, peers, and teachers. Since dyslexia makes

4
learning difficult, children with the condition, especially if it is undiagnosed, may receive
negative feedback from their peers, parents, and teachers. For instance, teachers and parents
may regularly express their displeasure with progress of their schoolwork. Their peers may
also bully them because of their inability to read and write as effectively as their peers. Over
time, the children may start feeling that they are inferior to other children who do not have
learning difficulties (Sako, 2016). Therefore, if the condition is not detected early, it may
result in children losing self-esteem which may have negative effects on their ability to
achieve in life.
The condition can also result in frustrations and anger. Frustrations occur when one is
unable to meet expectations. Since dyslexia is not an intelligence problem, dyslexic children
may demonstrate high levels of intelligence but frustrate their teachers, parents, and even
themselves by their inability to read and write effectively like their peers. If the condition is
not diagnosed early, parents and teachers of such children may feel that the children’s
inability to read and write well is be due to their laziness, lack of seriousness, or poor attitude
toward their studies. This inability to achieve goals and meet expectations of parents and
teachers may create frustrations, anxiety, and even frequent outbursts of anger and rage
(Sako, 2016). If their condition is not detected and addressed, the frustrations may result in
not only loss of confidence over time but also loss of interest in learning due to repeated
failure to meet expectations of their parents and teachers. If a dyslexic child loses interest in
learning, they may struggle in school throughout their learning years. Such struggles may in
the end result in them dropping out of school.
Even though dyslexia is primarily a learning problem, it impacts many other aspects
of a child’s life that are not related to academics. For instance, the condition also a major
impact on the social life of a child. Children need to develop social skills in order to have a
healthy social life. Unfortunately, dyslexia makes it hard for children to develop appropriate

5
social skills. For instance, dyslexic children often have difficulties understanding sarcasm and
jokes. They also often miss social cues and have trouble finding the appropriate or right
words to express their thoughts and ideas (Sako, 2016). Therefore, due to these factors, they
may have problematic social interactions. For instance, they may avoid being with their peers
or avoid social events that bring them in contact with many people. As a result of these
factors, they may end up living an isolated life.

Technological Advances in Detection and Treatment

Research has revealed that children whose dyslexia condition is detected early have
better outcomes than those whose condition is detected later in life (Catts & Petscher, 2018).
In most cases, diagnosis of dyslexia happens when a child is found to have chronic and
repeated reading failure. This approach of waiting-for-failure to detect the condition poses
major problems for the child. By the time that their condition is detected, the child may have
already developed low self-esteem and other problems associated with dyslexia which may
take time to correct or may never be corrected at all. Thus, it is important to detect the
condition as early as possible and then put in place measures that help the child cope with the
condition.
Due to developments in technology, parents and teachers do not need to take a
waiting-for-failure approach to detect dyslexia in their children. In particular, neuroimaging
technology has made it easier to detect dyslexia even before a child starts formal learning in
kindergarten. Thanks to neuroimaging, it is now known that the structure and functioning of
the brain of children with dyslexia is different from that of children without dyslexia.
Knowledge of these structural and functional differences between the brain of dyslexic child
and that of a child who is not dyslexic helps to detect the condition when the child is still very
young.

6
In regard to the structure of the brain, individuals who are dyslexic often exhibit
reduced thickness or volume of the gray matter (Catts & Petscher, 2018). This is the region of
the brain that has the network that is associated with reading. In addition to low volume of
gray matter, dyslexic individuals also have a lower structural connectivity in the tracts of
white matter that integrate reading network components (Catts & Petscher, 2018).
In regard to functional differences of the brain, individuals with dyslexia have left
occipito-temporal and left temporo-parietal parts of the reading network that exhibit
markedly reduced print responses (Catts & Petscher, 2018). The left occipito-temporal and
left temporo-parietal parts of the brain form the visual word form area of the brain (Catts &
Petscher, 2018). Advances in neuroimaging technology have made it possible for these
structural and functional differences of the brain to be identified early thus resulting in early
detection of dyslexia.
Neuroimaging has also led to the development of personalized intervention measures
for children with dyslexia. Studies have shown that having accurate brain measures of
individuals is key to the development of interventions that work for dyslexic children (Catts
& Petscher, 2018). Cainelli & Bisiacchi (2019) found that most of the interventions meant to
help children with dyslexia usually have considerable weaknesses. Most of the
treatment/rehabilitative processes that have been developed thus far have been found to
address some, but all, of the problems that dyslexic individuals go through when learning.
For instance, an intervention may improve reading skills of a child but fail to improve other
skills and abilities, such as visual-motor abilities, attention, and working memory.
The development of neuroimaging technology will go a long way in improving the
effectiveness of treatment methods for dyslexic children. Brain measures allow specialists to
determine the exact learning problem that a child has, the extent of the problem, and the most

7
appropriate intervention measure to address the problem (Catts & Petscher, 2018). Thus,
continued advancements in neuroimaging technologies are likely to lead to the development
of highly effective treatment measures for dyslexic individuals. It is worth noting that
dyslexia occurs on a spectrum. There are some people whose condition is severe while others
have a mild condition. Due to these differences in severity of the problem, there is no single
intervention that suits all dyslexic individuals. Neuroimaging helps to determine the
intervention measure that is appropriate for each individual.

Recommendations for Treatment Options and Coping Mechanisms
Rehabilitative programs for dyslexia often focus on phonological mechanisms and
literacy components. These programs are usually run by teachers and speech therapists either
with or without the supervision of psychologists (Cainelli & Bisiacchi, 2019). While helpful,
these rehabilitative programs are usually very resource-demanding as they require a lot of
money and time (Cainelli & Bisiacchi, 2019). The high cost and time-consuming nature of
the programs have led to the development of various strategies that help dyslexic children to
learn just as normal children do.
One of these strategies is intensive training to help dyslexic children to develop
relevant reading skills. This strategy is based on the fact that children with dyslexia do not
have deficiency in their cognitive capabilities (Sutton & Shields, 2016). Thus, with intensive
training, they can become proficient at reading and writing just as their peers who are not
dyslexic.
In regard to teaching children with dyslexia, it is recommended that teachers employ a
multisensory methodology of instruction. The methodology adopted should include
kinesthetic, auditory, and visual strategies (Sutton & Shields, 2016). In addition, the
strategies adopted should address all the six elements of reading. These elements include

8
comprehension, fluency, vocabulary, phonics, phonological awareness, and oral language
(Sutton & Shields, 2016). Employing strategies that address all these elements ensures that
the child develops high levels of literacy.
Another recommended strategy is to use dyslexic-friendly fonts. Studies have shown
that the use of three-dimensional fonts increase the ease of reading for children with dyslexia.
Apart from three-dimensional font, disfluent font has also been found to help dyslexic
children to develop reading skills faster. A disfluent font is one that is purposely made in a
way that it is hard to read (Sutton & Shields, 2016). The font improves reading skills of
dyslexic children because it requires them to develop deeper processing which in turn results
in better recall and retention for the child (Sutton & Shields, 2016). ‘Dyslexic’ font is another
font that has been found to aid dyslexic children in developing effective reading skills. The
font helps dyslexic children to learn fast because its altered letter shapes are purposely
created to aid the reading of dyslexic children.
Apart from the use of appropriate fonds, learning resources used by students and
teachers should have familiar and consistent layout, clear labelling, and color coding (Sutton
& Shields, 2016). Additionally, there should be less copying of the board and taking dictated
notes. Dyslexic students often have difficulty in copying notes from the board or taking notes
by dictation (Sutton & Shields, 2016). To minimize note-taking by dictation or copying from
the board, dyslexic students should be provided with PowerPoint presentations or copies of
the notes of teachers so that they spend more time engaging with the content.
Individuals with dyslexia can also cope better with their condition through use of
assistive technologies. For instance, voice recognition technologies can help dyslexic children
to transcribe their thoughts from speech to text. Such technology helps the child to produce
text of higher quality because it enables them to bypass difficulties in handwriting and

9
spelling (Sutton & Shields, 2016). There are also other technologies such as Natural Reader
which convert written text to spoken words. This technology allows dyslexic children to
bypass reading difficulties and helps them to gain a deeper understanding of their learning
materials (Sutton & Shields, 2016). Therefore, through use of various assistive technologies,
dyslexic children can bypass their learning difficulties and effectively engage their learning
materials just like other students.
Teachers can also help dyslexic students by creating a classroom environment that is
‘dyslexia-friendly’. Dyslexic students have been found to experience difficulties writing,
locating equipment, sitting still, concentrating, listening and looking (Sutton & Shields,
2016). Therefore, teachers should have such students sit nearest to the board. Teachers should
also ensure that there is no background noise that may affect the concentration of dyslexic
children. Additionally, wall displays should be large and well-spaced, and classroom
equipment should be neat and clearly labelled.

Preventive Measures for Dyslexia

Despite great technological advances, there is still no way that has been developed
that can prevent children from developing dyslexia. However, it has been found that some of
the neurological problems which result in children developing dyslexia could be related to
prenatal factors. For instance, children who have low birth weight or who are born
prematurely are at a higher risk of developing dyslexia than children who experience no
problems at birth. Thus, it is important for mothers to strictly follow healthy pregnancy
recommendations that healthcare professionals provide them. While following the
recommendations may not necessarily prevent the child from developing dyslexia, they could
partly neurological problems which are related to prenatal factors from developing.

10

References

Cainelli, E., & Bisiacchi, P. S. (2019). Diagnosis and Treatment of Developmental Dyslexia
and Specific Learning Disabilities: Primum Non Nocere. Journal of Developmental &
Behavioral Pediatrics, 40(7), 558-562.
Catts, H. W., & Petscher, Y. (2018). Early Identification of Dyslexia. Achieving Literacy, 33.
Rahman, M. A., Hassanain, E., Rashid, M. M., Barnes, S. J., & Hossain, M. S. (2018). Spatial
blockchain-based secure mass screening framework for children with dyslexia. IEEE
Access, 6, 61876-61885.
Protopapas, A., & Parrila, R. (2018). Is dyslexia a brain disorder?. Brain sciences, 8(4), 61.
Sako, E. (2016). The emotional and social effects of dyslexia. European Journal of
Interdisciplinary Studies, 2(2), 233-241.
Sutton, J., & Shields, M. (2016). Dyslexia: 10 strategies. Teach Journal of Christian
Education, 10(2), 5.
Stein, J. F. (2018). Does dyslexia exist?. Language, Cognition and Neuroscience, 33(3), 313-
320.
van Viersen, S., de Bree, E. H., & de Jong, P. F. (2019). Protective factors and compensation
in resolving dyslexia. Scientific Studies of Reading, 23(6), 461-477.