Rough Draft

Dyslexia and the Modern Childhood

In studying the American childhood it is important to study a full spectrum of the experiences children experience as they grow and how it affects them as a child and into adulthood.  In looking at this spectrum we must acknowledge the affect that learning disabilities and specifically the disorder known as dyslexia can effect all aspects of an individual’s childhood.  This disorder currently affects anywhere from 5 to 10 percent of our population.  Although dyslexia has been studied for well over 100 years now little is known about the causes the disorder and how it affects the child in educational and social growth.  In this paper we will examine the trends over the last forty years that must be identified and dealt with so growth in knowledge of this disorder does not hurt the development of this portion of our young population. 
             The word dyslexia itself is coined from the Greek. It simply means that a child displays poor ability to cope with language. The term that is now favored is developmental dyslexia, this is for two reasons first the child shows no signs of being handicap until they are confronted with reading and writing and the second reason is the child’s impairment gradually becomes worse as the growing demands of our literate society become greater. (Clarke, 35) Now in understanding this it is very important that one does not confuse dyslexia with all reading and writing problems. In fact the majority of individuals found to have dyslexia are actually found to be of normal to above normal intelligence. (Clarke 36)

Developmental Dyslexia was first identified in 1896 by an English doctor named Dr. W. Pringle Morgan. Another English doctor, James Hinshelwood, began studying the syndrome soon after and his work produced some devastating conclusions when they where published in 1917. Dr. Hinshelwood noted that “dyslexic children were likely to be harshly treated as imbeciles or incorrigibles and either neglected or punished for a defect for which they are in no wise responsible.”(Clarke 33) Although we have moved away in some ways from Dr. Hinshelwood’s conclusions on the dyslexic child we are still dealing with some of the same problems we have had over the last four decades.

Gender

There are more boys diagnosed with dyslexia by a ratio of 3:1 and this seems to be weighted in an unfair manor.  From my research it appears that girls are under diagnosed for a couple of reasons.  First girls tend to mature in reading and writing skills much faster than boys and this creates a focus on the slower developing boys in a classroom setting.  Secondly learning disability referrals are in some ways inadvertently used to create order and harmony within the classroom which once again creates a focus on the more disruptive male students.  It is unfortunate to see that girls are falling through the system but it is more understandable when looking closer at the facts.

Herman Epstein in 1975 performed a study in which girls were found to have greater prosperity than boys to reading and writing which could account for the higher percentage of dyslexic boys to girls consistently found within the education system of the

United States

.  To expound the study examined the rate of progress in reading and writing skills within groups of boys and girls and found that within the first years of learning up to the age of 7 girls progressed at much faster rate than their male counterparts.  The study continued to follow the same children and the trend continued to show that girls progressed further in reading and writing proficiency.  At the age of 15 the girls from the study began to plate while the boys experienced a steady growth of ability until the gender gap was found to close by the age of 18.  Due to boys slow development in reading and writing skills there is more attention paid to their "deficiency" in comparison to their female counterparts which would lead to increased attention from the instructor to possible problems in learning such as dyslexia.

Similarly gender bias within the classroom can lead to the skewing of the ratio of boys to girls that are found to have a learning disability or dyslexia.  According to "Gender Bias and Special Education" by K. Anderson the behavior of boys within the classroom demand more of a teachers attention and therefore more of there learning difficulties are observed. (Annals of Dyslexia 152) This is not all to be the fault of the teachers, where overcrowded classrooms and mounting responsibilities are part of our modern public school systems.  While boys are shown to be more aggressive with their frustration girls are found to be quite and meek.  As

Anderson

states the "girls good behavior frees the teacher to work with the more difficult to manage boys."(Annals of Dyslexia, 155)  Through the girls’ good behavior they go unnoticed and with that lack of the teacher’s attention their possible need for special education are overlooked.

Socioeconomic

In my research I have found numerous studies of individuals who have overcome the difficulties in learning that are associated with dyslexia.  The problem that is found with this is that the vast majority of the individuals that overcome the educational barriers that are associated with dyslexia come from social classes that can afford the early testing and resources that can help them reach success early while others are relegated to struggle and fall behind their peers.  Many have argued that dyslexia is not a socioeconomic disorder. With this being said it must also be understood that although dyslexia within a child may not be socioeconomically determined the problems faced by many dyslexics are socioeconomic based. In my examinations of the higher classes I have found very high levels of achievement throughout their scholastic endeavors and through adulthood.  The middle class has a fighting chance for success despite there school systems stagnate response to the issues of dyslexia and learning disabilities.  The position of those that fall in the lowest socioeconomic bracket is as you might expect, their struggles  paints a much bleaker picture for success due to fluctuations in funding and attention to problems in curriculum and special education.  Unfortunately all students should have a clear and bright future but a low socioeconomic status, as we will see, can muddy that outlook.

Let’s start this subject out on a happy note, dyslexic children of wealthy families get along just fine and are found to have high levels of achievement in adulthood.  In these independent and upper class suburban schools we find the parents to be very active and involved in the curriculum of there children.  As J. Chall points out in Learning to Read: The Great Debate the parents of these children do not ask for results they demand them.(Chall, 289)  Along with the parents demanding results from the school the parents also can afford the tutors and supplies needed to help their child overcome their education block.  We find these children to be the ones that obtain the early testing that helps them adjust to school and methods that they will be taught in at an early age.  Many of these children go on to be successful this can be illustrated by a study following the post graduate life’s of a

Baltimore

for boys.  In this study performed by Fenucci, Gottfred and Childs it was found that "these men had benefited from having been placed in a school environment that provided systematic instruction and encouraged accomplishment."(Annals of Dyslexia, 134)  The study also shows a much higher rate of these individuals receiving bachelor degrees and performing at higher level jobs than the individuals with dyslexia that could not afford the luxury of this type of schooling. 

Middle income schools are not as proficient at recognizing and assisting in compensating learning.  Unfortunately there are no special schools for the dyslexic middle class students.  Instead there educational burdens fall on the parents and the overtaxed school system.  Throughout educational history we find that middle class schools experience limited funding for programs and testing for dyslexia.  Therefore the responsibility to find tutors and educational resources for a dyslexic child falls directly on that child’s parent.  Along with this we have a middle class outlook on the educational system that if it isn't broke don't fix it. As Chall states "the middle socioeconomic group seems to remain quite satisfied with the status quo."(Chall) This trend has been consistent and "until the schools in the middle of the distribution commit themselves to improving reading instruction, reform efforts will remain a fringe movement, local and temporary."(ODS, 273)

Of course the students who are in the direst need of help are the ones that are looked over the most.  Parents are found to not play a strong enough role in deciding curriculum in urban schools which leaves innovation to be triggered by public concern over achievement.  Although "innovation" in these schools does exist during periods of concern it is short lived as funding for these schools does not remain consistent.(Annals of Dyslexia, 272)  Parents of low socioeconomic status are less available to the needs of their child and may be ignorant to the enrichment opportunities offered at the school.  As one might figure the lower the economic status of the individual the lower the amount of consistent help that is made available for dyslexia and other learning disabilities.

Methods of Teaching

Following the observation of possible dyslexia a process of testing ensues. The first step within this process is called a screening test. These tests are used on large numbers of children to identify possible reasons for their learning difficulties in school. They can be used to identify any number of learning disability ranging from ADHD, emotional problems, delayed learning and dyslexia just to name of few. If a child is flagged from this test to have dyslexia the next step would be the comprehensive tests for Dyslexia. This test examines the whole child and test areas of development in reading, spelling, drawing, math/science, and overall intelligence. On top of these tests the child is also tested for vision, laterality, visual scanning, and sequencing. These results are then compiled to create a profile on the child that can then be used to identify any possible links to developmental dyslexia.

Once a positive diagnosis of dyslexia is found a plan for educating the child must be established. Educators must create simultaneous multisensory instruction in which the dyslexic learner is able to use all their senses to learn and retain information. The instruction for the child is intense with leaving ample time for practice which is important because it is through repetition that the dyslexic learner makes progress. Synthetic and Analytical phonics are used in breaking down the words. The educator must be continually aware of their student’s ability in understanding and applying phonic rules to their learning.

The problem with educating the dyslexic reader first lies in with reading levels continually falling throughout the country how are we able to properly identify the dyslexic reader and provide help. Many school administrators according to M. Adams have spoken of there dissatisfaction with the courses that teach reading curriculum at the colleges and universities.(Adams, 269) These young teachers as one administrator would put it “are filled with all good intentions, often with high ideals for developing concepts, appreciation and interests but with little specific knowledge about how to proceed.”(Chall, 296) So with young teachers coming out of school with an improper background of knowledge to teach reading in the classroom not only are the disabled readers at a disadvantage all the students in this type of class setting will be put at a disadvantage. With these schools of higher learning failing to provide the educators of the last couple decades with the proper techniques and research for in class reading they must also hold the blame for the current problems we find in identifying the dyslexic readers within our schools.

Conclusion

            As you can see there is more that needs to be done to educate parents and professionals within our schools in identifying and properly educating dyslexic children within our schools.  No child should struggle and feel like they are not intelligent just because they learn a different way from others.  The effects of this disorder can linger far outside the walls of the classroom and have a damaging effect on a child’s perception of self and the world around them.