Dyslexia is a learning disorder that affects both children and adults. Its symptoms are different with age, and severity can vary as well. Generally, people with dyslexia have difficulty breaking down words into simple sounds. They struggle to learn how sounds relate to letters and words, which leads to slow reading and poor reading comprehension.
Dyslexia is often known as a reading disability. It’s most often identified in childhood when reading problems first become apparent. But dyslexia can go undiagnosed for years or even decades.
Dyslexia is not connected with intelligence. It is a neurobiological disorder that affects the parts of your brain involved in language processing.
Keep reading to learn more about the causes, risk factors, types and how dyslexia symptoms can vary with age, plus what symptoms to look out for and when.
What is Dyslexia?
Dyslexia is a learning disorder that involves difficulty reading due to problems identifying speech sounds and learning how they relate to letters and words (decoding). Also called reading disability, dyslexia affects areas of the brain that process language.
People with dyslexia have normal intelligence and usually have normal vision. Most children with dyslexia can succeed in school with tutoring or a specialized education program. Emotional support also plays an important role.
Essentially, dyslexia is a specific learning difficulty that affects all the skills required for reading, writing and spelling despite normal intellegence. It is sometimes compounded by poor working memory, poor processing speed and poor organization and concentration. Dyslexia is a lifelong difficulty often experienced as a cluster of symptoms that may change in different stages of a person’s life.
In classrooms, dyslexics may be perceived as lazy or unmotivated and often function significantly below their potential. Their difficulties cannot be explained by visual or hearing impairments, emotional/ behavioral disorders or lack of conventional instruction. Elementary grade children with dyslexia may have trouble recognizing words that begin with the same sound, difficulty remembering spoken directions, difficulty with remembering simple sequences like reciting the alphabet and difficulty understanding the rhyming of words. They also often experience difficulties learning to read, spell and express their thoughts in writing.
In the workplace, dyslexics often struggle with what may appear to be basic tasks. They easily become frustrated or overwhelmed with long forms, sequential processes or ‘planning meetings. They may have difficulty focusing or staying on task and though they possess strong work ethic, they may be considered as not working up to their potential. Dyslexics in the workplace may also be unknowingly late to meetings because they read the time wrong; they may miss deadlines for written documents because it takes them longer than average to read and write; their written work may be riddled with errors because they cannot pick up typos, and they may be slow at copying text and numbers.
Dyslexia affects approximately 20% of every population. That means approximately 38 million Nigerians and 260 million suffer from dyslexia.
Types of Dyslexia
Here are the three main types of dyslexia:
1. Primary dyslexia - This is the most common type of dyslexia, and is a dysfunction of, rather than damage to, the left side of the brain (cerebral cortex) and does not change with age. There is variability in the severity of the disability for Individuals with this type of dyslexia, and most who receive an appropriate educational intervention will be academically successful throughout their lives. Unfortunately, there are others who continue to struggle significantly with reading, writing, and spelling throughout their adult lives. Primary dyslexia is passed in family lines through genes (hereditary) or through new genetic mutations and it is found more often in boys than in girls.
2. Secondary or developmental dyslexia - This type of dyslexia is caused by problems with brain development during the early stages of fetal development. Developmental dyslexia diminishes as the child matures. It is also more common in boys.
3. Trauma dyslexia - This type of dyslexia usually occurs after some form of brain trauma or injury to the area of the brain that controls reading and writing. It is rarely seen in today's school-age population.
Other types of learning disability include:
4. Visual dyslexia - is sometimes used to refer to visual processing disorder, a condition in which the brain does not properly interpret visual signals.
5. Auditory dyslexia - has been used to refer to auditory processing disorder. Similar to visual processing disorder, there are problems with the brain's processing of sounds and speech.
6. Dysgraphia - refers to the child's difficulty holding and controlling a pencil so that the correct markings can be made on the paper.
Causes
Dyslexia tends to run in families. It appears to be linked to certain genes that affect how the brain processes reading and language, as well as risk factors in the environment.
Risk Factors
Dyslexia risk factors include:
• A family history of dyslexia or other learning disabilities
• Premature birth or low birth weight
• Exposure during pregnancy to nicotine, drugs, alcohol or infection that may alter brain development in the fetus
• Individual differences in the parts of the brain that enable reading.
Complications
Dyslexia can lead to a number of problems, including:
• Trouble learning - Because reading is a skill basic to most other school subjects, a child with dyslexia is at a disadvantage in most classes and may have trouble keeping up with peers.
• Social problems- Left untreated, dyslexia may lead to low self-esteem, behavior problems, anxiety, aggression, and withdrawal from friends, parents and teachers.
• Problems as adults - The inability to read and comprehend can prevent a child from reaching his or her potential as the child grows up. This can have long-term educational, social and economic consequences.
Symptoms
Signs of dyslexia can be difficult to recognize before your child enters school, but some early clues may indicate a problem. Once your child reaches school age, your child's teacher may be the first to notice a problem. Severity varies, but the condition often become
Before School
Signs that a young child may be at risk of dyslexia include:
• Late talking
• Learning new words slowly
• Problems forming words correctly, such as reversing sounds in words or confusing words that sound alike
• Problems remembering or naming letters, numbers and colors
• Difficulty learning nursery rhymes or playing rhyming games
School Age
Once your child is in school, dyslexia signs and symptoms may become more apparent, including:
• Reading well below the expected level for age
• Problems processing and understanding what he or she hears
• Difficulty finding the right word or forming answers to questions
• Problems remembering the sequence of things
• Difficulty seeing (and occasionally hearing) similarities and differences in letters and words
• Inability to sound out the pronunciation of an unfamiliar word
• Difficulty spelling
• Spending an unusually long time completing tasks that involve reading or writing
• Avoiding activities that involve reading
Teens and Adults
Dyslexia signs in teens and adults are similar to those in children. Some common dyslexia signs and symptoms in teens and adults include:
• Difficulty reading, including reading aloud
• Slow and labor-intensive reading and writing
• Problems spelling
• Avoiding activities that involve reading
• Mispronouncing names or words, or problems retrieving words
• Trouble understanding jokes or expressions that have a meaning not easily understood from the specific words (idioms), such as "piece of cake" meaning "easy"
• Spending an unusually long time completing tasks that involve reading or writing
• Difficulty summarizing a story
• Trouble learning a foreign language
• Difficulty memorizing
• Difficulty doing math problems
Diagnosis
There's no single test that can diagnose dyslexia. A number of factors are considered, such as:
• Your child's development, educational issues and medical history - The doctor will likely ask you questions about these areas and want to know about any conditions that run in the family, including whether any family members have a learning disability.
• Home life - The doctor may ask for a description of your family and home life, including who lives at home and whether there are any problems at home.
• Questionnaires - The doctor may have your child, family members or teachers answer written questions. Your child may be asked to take tests to identify reading and language abilities.
• Vision, hearing and brain (neurological) tests - These can help determine whether another disorder may be causing or adding to your child's poor reading ability.
• Psychological testing - The doctor may ask you and your child questions to better understand your child's mental health. This can help determine whether social problems, anxiety or depression may be limiting your child's abilities.
• Testing reading and other academic skills - Your child may take a set of educational tests and have the process and quality of reading skills analyzed by a reading expert.
Treatment
There's no known way to correct the underlying brain abnormality that causes dyslexia — dyslexia is a lifelong problem. However, early detection and evaluation to determine specific needs and appropriate treatment can improve success.
Educational Techniques
Dyslexia is treated using specific educational approaches and techniques, and the sooner the intervention begins, the better. Psychological testing will help your child's teachers develop a suitable teaching program.
Teachers may use techniques involving hearing, vision and touch to improve reading skills. Helping a child use several senses to learn — for example, listening to a taped lesson and tracing with a finger the shape of the letters used and the words spoken — can help in processing the information.
Treatment focuses on helping your child:
• Learn to recognize and use the smallest sounds that make up words (phonemes)
• Understand that letters and strings of letters represent these sounds and words (phonics)
• Comprehend what he or she is reading
• Read aloud to build reading accuracy, speed and expression (fluency)
• Build a vocabulary of recognized and understood words.
If available, tutoring sessions with a reading specialist can be helpful for many children with dyslexia. If your child has a severe reading disability, tutoring may need to occur more frequently, and progress may be slower.
Individual Education Plan
In some countries, schools have a legal obligation to take steps to help children diagnosed with dyslexia with their learning problems. Talk to your child's teacher about setting up a meeting to create a structured, written plan that outlines your child's needs and how the school will help him or her succeed. This is called an Individualized Education Plan (IEP).
Early Treatment
Children with dyslexia who get extra help in kindergarten or first grade often improve their reading skills enough to succeed in grade school and high school.
Children who don't get help until later grades may have more difficulty learning the skills needed to read well. They're likely to lag behind academically and may never be able to catch up. A child with severe dyslexia may never have an easy time reading, but he or she can learn skills that improve reading and develop strategies to improve school performance and quality of life.
What Parents Can Do
You play a key role in helping your child succeed. Take these steps:
• Address the problem early - If you suspect your child has dyslexia, talk to your child's doctor. Early intervention can improve success.
• Read aloud to your child - It's best if you start when your child is 6 months old or even younger. Try listening to recorded books with your child. When your child is old enough, read the stories together after your child hears them.
• Work with your child's school - Talk to your child's teacher about how the school will help him or her succeed. You are your child's best advocate.
• Encourage reading time - To improve reading skills, a child must practice reading. Encourage your child to read.
• Set an example for reading - Designate a time each day to read something of your own while your child reads — this sets an example and supports your child. Show your child that reading can be enjoyable.
What Adults With Dyslexia Can Do
Success in employment can be difficult for adults struggling with dyslexia. To help achieve your goals:
• Seek evaluation and instructional help with reading and writing, regardless of your age
• Ask about additional training and reasonable accommodations from your employer or academic institution
Academic problems don't necessarily mean a person with dyslexia can't succeed. Capable students with dyslexia can be highly successful, given the right resources. Many people with dyslexia are creative and bright, and may be gifted in math, science or the arts. Some even have successful writing careers.
Prognosis
The prognosis for children with dyslexia is variable and dependent on the cause. In the case of primary dyslexia, the earlier the diagnosis is made and intervention started, the better the outcome. It is also important to focus on the child's self-esteem, since dealing with dyslexia can be extremely frustrating. Lastly it is important to recognize that many well-known and successful individuals have suffered from dyslexia, including Albert Einstein, Steven Spielberg, Whoopi Goldberg, Jamie Oliver, Anderson Cooper, Keira Knightley, Octavia Spencer, just to name a couple.
Conclusion
• Dyslexia is a difficulty in learning to read.
• Dyslexia can be related to hereditary factors or other factors that affect brain development.
• The precise cause of dyslexia is not fully understood.
• Diagnosis of dyslexia involves reviewing the child's processing of information from seeing, hearing, and participating in activities.
• Treatment of dyslexia ideally involves planning between the parent(s) and the teachers.
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