Dyslexia

Dyslexia

According to the British Dyslexia Association, dyslexia is a specific learning difficulty that mainly affects the development of literacy and language related skills. It is likely to be present at birth and to be lifelong in its effects. The word 'dyslexia' comes from the Greek and means 'difficulty with words'. It tends to be resistant to conventional teaching methods, but its effects can be mitigated by appropriately specific intervention, including the application of information technology.

Dyslexic people process information differently. For them letters and words cannot have the significance that non-dyslexic readers give to them which enables the assumptions of how words are written and spelt. This skill is needed to enable automatic reading. When non-dyslexic readers look at letters, we learn the shapes of words dyslexics tend to focus on individual characters rather than words, or even the spaces between words. Therefore they can have difficulties with speech processing, rapid naming, working memory, and processing speed.

For some dyslexics text can appear to move on the page, which gives them discomfort when reading, this is called Visual Stress. The reading abilities of those with dyslexia may not match up to their other cognitive abilities.

What difficulties does it cause?

• Hesitant or slow reading and writing
• Misreading, this makes understanding difficult 
• Putting letters and figures the wrong way round
• Difficulty with sequences
• Poor organisation or time management
• Erratic spelling
• Poor memory and concentration
• Difficulty organising thoughts clearly
• And therefore poor self-image

However, some describe a person with dyslexia as having a different kind of mind - someone who is often gifted, over-productive - and who learns in a different way. They often have specific strengths, which may include:

• Innovative thinking
• Excellent troubleshooting
• Creativity
• Lateral thinking
• Intuitive problem solving

According to Dyslexia Action approximately 10% of the UK’s population is affected by dyslexia to varying degrees and about 4% is severely affected.


Libraries and dyslexia

Dyslexia in the workplace

Additional sources of information

Further reading