DYSLEXIA, A LANGUAGE-BASED LEARNING DISORDER

We often hear that dyslexia is a learning disorder that causes students to reverse letters while reading. But, as is true for most other learning difficulties, dyslexia is not a simple condition. Because it is a language-based learning disorder, students with dyslexia find many different aspects of reading difficult, with some young children struggling to learn to read at all.

Statistics indicate that about 10% of people suffer from dyslexia. Typically, these individuals will have trouble with spelling, decoding and word recognition, each of which can manifest itself in various ways related to language. For example, difficulties with spelling often mean that writing ability will be below average. Decoding issues can affect oral language as it will cause mispronunciation and extra time will be needed for students to sound out words. Problems with word recognition often cause reading speed to be low due to a below average ability to recognize words. Poor word recognition will also will affect comprehension – a child cannot understand what they are reading if they cannot recognize all the words on the page.

Language and reading are essential parts of education. With this in mind, let’s look at  a few ways that tutors, teachers, and parents can tackle some of the difficulties related to dyslexia:

• Phonology – There should be a strong focus on learning the sounds of language, with educators spending significant time teaching the sounds of each letter. Then it is possible to progress to the sounds of individual words as well as their segments. Rhyming is also a great way to work on phonology.
• Syntax – Basic understanding of syntax is key to being a strong reader. It is a great idea to practice all the basic rules of syntax starting with the shortest and easiest sentences. Creating interesting and simple activities to focus on grammar rules can be a good way to ease students into learning to read and write.
• Vocabulary – The more words a student can identify, the easier it is for them to communicate, read, speak, and write. Spending time learning new vocabulary words and understanding the context in which the new words most often appear will help students develop the knowledge they need to navigate the world of reading. The more familiar a student is with the content, the less taxing it will be to spend the time they need to do the rest (decoding, sounding out, etc.).

Generally speaking, individualized educational approaches work best to help support students with learning disorders, and this is also true for dyslexia. Each learning difficulty manifests in unique ways in each child and the severity of need will always be different. Educators should modify their approach to best meet the needs of each student.

For more info: https://dyslexiaida.org