Intervention is the key to dealing with dyslexia
Kim Wilson first suspected something was up when her son Kent started learning to read.
He would sound a word out with her assistance, but not recognise the same word if it appeared in the next sentence. It was puzzling as Kent was very bright.
“He seemed to grasp all of the other subject areas very well but the struggle continued with reading,” said Ms Wilson.
She took him to a private tutor but progress was slow. When Kent entered primary three the teacher suggested he be tested for dyslexia.
“I immediately called the Reading Clinic,” the Progressive Labour Party MP said. “They did the assessment and it was determined he had dyslexia.”
Dyslexia is a language disorder where people typically have normal to above average intelligence but struggle with reading and spelling.
Ms Wilson said if there is anything she has learned since her son’s diagnosis it’s that as a parent you have to be a voracious advocate.
“This is something I am very passionate about because I am living it,” she said. “And I am not the only one as 15 to 20 percent of children are thought to have dyslexia.”
She knew other people who had had to leave Bermuda to seek adequate assistance for their dyslexic children, but fortunately, Kent could be accommodated here. The nine-year-old is tutored by the Reading Clinic three times a week and is given extra time on tests and examinations in school.
“The school has been very accommodating,” Ms Wilson said. “We have had hiccups. We had an exam, and the teacher said everyone had to hurry. They rushed my son and he was guessing. He is allowed to have extra time, so he should not be rushed. Plus this was not a timed test. I spoke up and he was allowed to retake it.”
The Reading Clinic urged her to tell her son about his diagnosis so that he would understand what it was and would be better able to advocate for himself.
“He did have lower self-esteem because he thought he was stupid,” said Ms Wilson. “He could see that other children were reading at a higher level.”
Many children with dyslexia are unusually creative and innovative. This has led some researchers to suggest dyslexia may be as much of a gift as it is a liability.
“He is so incredibly smart, particularly with science and out-of-the-box thinking,” said Ms Wilson. “That is one of the reasons the teacher suggested he be tested because he was not reading at the level you would expect for his intelligence level.”
She’s grateful that his dyslexia was picked up fairly quickly as many children struggle for years before getting a proper diagnosis.
“Dyslexia is neurological,” said Ms Wilson. “You are born with it. It is something that will never go away. We just have to reinforce the strategies that he is learning at the Reading Clinic. My son will probably always have challenges with reading, but there are a lot of other things he excels in.”
She continued: “The sooner the diagnosis the sooner the child can start to learn the strategies needed to assist in improving their reading. Parents should also work together with the school to carefully monitor the progress being made by the child.
“It is also important for parents to implement the strategies at home as the consistent use of the strategies will make them more familiar for the child.”
She said she would like to see a support group set up for parents of children with language disorders such as dyslexia. She would also like to see a requirement that children who exhibit signs of dyslexia be tested for it.
“Early diagnosis and intervention is the key,” Ms Wilson said. “With the statistics showing that 15 to 20 percent of the population has dyslexia, it saddens me to know that there are, no doubt, countless children who struggled with reading, passing though the education system without a proper diagnosis nor the requisite support. Some children who exhibit poor behaviour in school do so to disguise their reading challenges.”
For more information visit www.readingclinic.bm or call 292-3938.
n In the past dyslexia was thought to be a visual problem, but researchers now believe it is a language disorder. Many people with dyslexia often have normal vision.
n People with dyslexia have great difficulty sounding out and recognising words. This affects their reading and spelling accuracy, which in turn may limit their comprehension.
nIndividuals with dyslexia also may have difficulty in other areas such as handwriting, organisational skills, arithmetic, sequencing, memory for words, distinguishing left from right and following directions.
nOne in ten people is affected by dyslexia to some degree, with four percent being severely affected.
n Dyslexia affects people of all levels of intelligence.
n Dyslexia runs in families and can be genetically inherited.
nDyslexia affects both girls and boys equally; however, boys may be more severely affected.
nUnrecognised dyslexia may affect a child’s self-concept. The child may feel stupid and be self-critical.
nDyslexia cannot be cured, however with the right support many difficulties can be overcome.
nPeople with dyslexia have great strengths such as enhanced creativity, being able to ‘think outside the box’ and often develop good problem-solving skills.
