(Summary at the bottom)
We would like to dedicate this week to something important: Dyslexia Awareness Week. Dyslexia Awareness Week is an annual event run by the British Dyslexia Association to raise awareness and further understanding of dyslexia. This year it is celebrated on October 6th to the 12th.
What is dyslexia?
Dyslexia is a common learning difficulty that primarily affects reading, writing, and spelling. It is a specific learning difficulty, meaning it impacts certain skills needed for learning, particularly language-related tasks.
Dyslexia is not an intellectual disability, and does not affect someone's intelligence. It is a lifelong condition that can create daily challenges, but with the right support, individuals can strengthen their reading and writing abilities and succeed at school, work, and beyond.
Types of dyslexia
Since dyslexia is a broad term that encompasses several subcategories, we would like to highlight the four primary types:
- Phonological dyslexia.
This is also called dysphonetic or auditory dyslexia. People with this type of dyslexia have difficulty processing the sounds of the individual letters and syllables and cannot match them with the written forms.
- Surface dyslexia
This is also called dyseidetic or visual dyslexia. This type of dyslexia is marked by difficulty recognizing whole words, which probably results from vision issues or visual processing difficulties in the brain. With trouble recognizing the words, these people may have a hard time learning and memorizing words.
- Rapid naming deficit
The person finds it difficult to name a letter, number, colour, or object quickly and automatically. The processing speed is low and takes time to name them.
- Double deficit dyslexia
The person with double deficit dyslexia shows deficits in both the phonological process and naming speed. The majority of the weakest readers will fall under this category.
Dyslexia is caused by an overburden of impairments in reading abilities that the person cannot adjust to effectively.
Misconceptions
As we know, dyslexia is a common learning difficulty. Although much has been learned about dyslexia in the recent years, there is also a lot of inaccurate information about it. Many myths about dyslexia are widespread and persist over time. Here are a few of the most common myths.
- “Reading and writing letters or words backwards is a symptom for dyslexia.”
It is very common for children to write letters backwards when they are first learning to read and write. This happens to many children, regardless of whether they have dyslexia.
Some people with dyslexia may keep writing or reading letters backwards longer than others, but this is not what mainly defines dyslexia.
- “People with dyslexia need to try harder to read.”
Research show that the brain functions differently for people who have dyslexia. They also show that reading changes the brain over time, so trying harder does not make a difference. Also, not all people who struggle with reading have dyslexia.
- “When children learn how to read, dyslexia goes away.”
Dyslexia is a lifelong learning difficulty, and it affects more than just basic reading. This will not go away once a child has learned to read. People with dyslexia will continue to struggle with spelling, as well as writing after they have learned to read.
- “Dyslexia pairs with vision problems.”
Dyslexia is a neurological condition, not an eye problem. Having trouble with vision does not make a person more likely to have dyslexia.
- “People who have dyslexia will never learn how to read or write.”
Identifying dyslexia in the developing stages of childhood has statistically shown the greatest advantages in minimising the impact of dyslexia in daily life. This is because helpful tactics can be implemented while the brain is still in development, and the individual with dyslexia can more easily learn to adapt and create coping mechanisms.
- “Dyslexia only happens with English.”
There are people all over the world who have dyslexia. It is not only in the English language. Reading issues is often overlooked in children who are multilingual because of teachers and/or parents thinking they are struggling due to learning a new language.
Struggles of dyslexia
Everyone having a dyslexia diagnosis will not always struggle with the same problem. Some have problems reading and writing, but there is more to it than that: Below we have listed some common struggles.
- Some letters might disappear when they read, or some might be added. The same goes with entire words.
- Some struggle with reading words out loud.
- Letters might be moving around.
- Some struggle with finding the right words to express thoughts or answer questions.
- Some struggle following instructions.
- Some have trouble understanding lectures or participating in verbal conversations.
Impact on individuals
The impact that dyslexia has can be severe. Here are a couple of examples of them:
• Avoidance of tasks
People with dyslexia may avoid activities involving reading or writing to prevent frustration.
• Emotional impact
Dyslexia can lead to a negative self-image, frustration, and feelings of hopelessness due to academic struggles.
• Lifelong condition
Dyslexia is a lifelong condition, but with proper support, interventions, and accommodations, individuals can significantly reduce challenges and improve their skills.
What can I do to help individuals with Dyslexia?
To make your text more readable there are multiple things you can keep in mind:
- Use direct language with simple sentences.
- Use bullet points, lists, and headlines to break up text.
- If you are creating graphics: Avoid white backgrounds.
- Make use of larger font sizes.
- If you can, use dyslexic friendly fonts like sans-sherif.
- Avoid using all capital letters.
Resources
Within IG we have written many posts that touch upon this subject. You can read about disability awareness here:
Here you can find more about accessibility awareness:
And finally, here you can read up about ableism and bullying:
Here you can read more about signs of dyslexia within adulthood:
https://www.bdadyslexia.org.uk/advice/adults/am-i-dyslexic/signs-of-dyslexia
We have only gone through a little bit of dyslexia. If you wish to be more educated on this topic, you can read about it over here:
https://www.dyslexia.yale.edu/
If you would like to know more about accommodations, you can visit this site:
https://dyslexiahelp.umich.edu/dyslexics/living-with-dyslexia/school-college/learning-disability-help/
Perhaps you might be interested to see what it is like for people who struggle with dyslexia. We would like to highlight the following people:
https://www.tiktok.com/@aprilmcmurtrey
https://www.youtube.com/@learnreadingofficial
https://www.tiktok.com/@drjacobsanthouse
https://www.youtube.com/@drjacobsanthouse
Summary
• October 6th until the 12th is Dyslexia Awareness Week.
• Dyslexia is a common learning disability that primarily affects reading, writing and spelling.
• There are four primary types of dyslexia.
• There are unfortunately many misconceptions when it comes to dyslexia.
• The struggles of people with dyslexia can have a big impact on their lives.
We hope that everything has been informative enough to give you a more of an understanding regarding the topic. Share your thoughts with us here!
With love,
The Inclusivity Group
