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#3 cont. (again)

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GrayFoxDown
, 06-11-2007 at 02:47 AM (1158 Views)
I'm not a doctor and, as I wrote in a PM to kilted exile, he may very well be right about the seriousness of dyslexia...and I totally wrong; he appears sincere in his interest and information.

Due to the fact that I come from days long gone by, when dyslexia was either unknown or improperly understood, I'm quite ignorant of this disease. I attended Catholic parochial school where sicknesses that impaired a child's learning were usually dismissed as being ridiculous and the child ruled (in a subtle manner, of course) as being either lazy, inattentive, or an idiot. In short, you either passed or failed your studies...no buts, ifs or maybes: you were out! And the school I attended (Our Lady of Guadalupe in Brooklyn, NY; 1960-68) was relatively lenient and progressive. I didn't have many problems in grade school, and had even less when I went on to high school and college (probably because I was lucky or the weather was just right).
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    The 'seriousness' of dyslexia has been realised only recently. I have many students who were dismissed or dropped out because they were treated as 'either lazy, inattentive, or an idiot' while they were young but now, with specialised help, most of them do amazingly well and carry on their studies.

    Having said that, it is a condition which is hard to diagnose as well. The check-list is extensive and includes things like 'unable to remember phone numbers' (*blinks*). There are days when I could tick 70% of the list even though I know that I am not dyslexic.

    Recently, we (as teachers who are working with dyslexic adult learners), have also realised that there are few people who consider themselves dyslexic and volunteer to take diagnostic tests because it is 'OK' to make spelling mistakes if you are dyslexic or you get extra time in exams etc. However, this is a very small number and the problem is a genuine and a really taxing one. And it is definitely not a new, 'fancy' word for 'laziness' or 'lack of dicipline'.