" CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF DYSLEXIA – A LEARNINGDIFFICULTY.Table of ContentsIntroduction ................................................................................................................................................... 2Dyslexia ........................................................................................................................................................ 3Key Characteristics of Dyslexia .................................................................................................................... 4Strategies for Supporting Children with Dyslexia ........................................................................................ 5Debates Associated with Classification of Dyslexia ..................................................................................... 6Educational Provision for Dyslexia .............................................................................................................. 7Conclusion .................................................................................................................................................... 8References .................................................................................................................................................... 9 1 INTRODUCTION:Learning means acquiring new or modifying or enhancing existing skills, values, knowledge,preference or behaviour by means of synchronising information. Learning is a process wherewhat is already known is built up on and given a shape. Human learning occurs as part of personal development, school, training or education. The studythat states how learning occurs is included in neuropsychology, learning theory and educationalpsychology. It may be possible that learning occurs due to classical conditioning or habituation,and with or without conscious awareness.As opined by Levete (2007), learning difficulty affects the way a person learns. It may not bejust pertaining to school but could be from any area of life. It affects the way a personunderstands information provided and how they communicate their own thoughts and feelings.The difficulties may involve understanding complex or new information, learning new skills,independent coping of situations and occurrences, etc. Learning difficulty is a general term that is used for varied conditions with diversified symptomsand severities. Dyslexia is a well recognised name, while the lesser known ones includeAsperger’s Syndrome, Dyspraxia, etc. 2 DYSLEXIA:Dyslexia is associated with the difficulty pertaining to learning to read fluently with accuratecomprehension even though the individual possesses normal intelligence. Difficulty withphonological awareness and decoding, rapid naming, speed processing, auditory short termmemory, language skills, orthographic coding, verbal comprehension are included in this.The three proposed cognitive subtypes of Dyslexia includes auditory, attentional and visual.According to research literature, Dyslexia is considered to be a receptive language based learningdifficulty and also affects the expressive language skills of individuals, (Reid 2007). DEVELOPMENTAL PHASE SIGNS OF DYSLEXIAPre School Years ? Poor language of expression? Poor skills of rhyming? Delayed or problematic speech? Disinterest and difficulty in learning lettersEarly School Years? Poor awareness of phonetics? Poor word skills? Problem in copying? Careless spelling? Poor knowledge of sound-letterMiddle School Years ? Poor decoding skills? Poor word knowledge? Slow reading? Phonetic or non phonetic spellingAdolescence and Adult Years? Slow writing? Poor fluency in reading? Poor organisation? Poor work expression3 KEY CHARACTERISTICS OF DYSLEXIA:A brain based type of learning difficulty that specifically affects an individual’s ability to read isDyslexia. These individuals typically possess the ability to read at a significantly lower level ofexpectation even though they possess normal intelligence. As suggested by Moragne (1997),although Dyslexia varies from individual to individual, its common characteristics includephonological processing, difficulty with spelling and rapid responding both visual and verbal. Some early symptoms that can be later diagnosed as Dyslexia include letter reversal, mirrorwriting, delay in speech and easy distraction by noises in the surrounding. The later age symptoms includes poor spelling ability, difficulty identifying or creating rhymingwords, phonological awareness, segmentising words into individual sounds, blending of soundsto form words, etc. Some other symptoms are inability to guess whole words, and the tendencyto add or omit words or letters while reading or writing. Symptoms in teenagers and adults include difficulty in memorizing, summarizing stories,learning foreign language and in reading aloud. Individual who are affected by Dyslexia can be identified by writing skills, reading accuracy andfluency that by no means match the level of intelligence they possess, (Marshall,2004).While reading the following signs may help in identifying Dyslexia in an individual:? Repetition or omission of words or whole lines? Laboured or hesitant reading? Reliance on context or phonics? Difficulty in decoding shorter words? Difficulty reading multi syllabic words ? Confusion between visibly similar words or alphabets? Complain regarding words being blurred or moving.While writing the following symptoms may help in identifying Dyslexia in an individual:? Confusion between upper and lower case? Difficulty in taking notes or copying? Poor spelling which is often resulting in inability to read what has been written? Slow, laborious and inconsistent writing? Disparity in written and spoken abilities4 ? Poor handwriting and untidy workStudies reveal that the children born to parents with Dyslexia have a heightened risk of literacyimpairment. However, families share not only the genes but also the environment, thus making itdifficult to disentangle the contribution of genes in comparison to environmental factors onreading behaviour.Functional brain imaging studies conducted during reading indicate that individuals affected withDyslexia typically show less activity than controls in the left hemispheretemporo - parientalregion. However, the casual status of brain differences pertaining to Dyslexia are debatable asthe development of the brain shows considerable plasticity and both its function and structure areshaped by usage. Schools and the environment at home contributes to the risk of a child developing Dyslexia. Astrong social gradient is observed regarding reading disorder. It has been often noted that poorreaders belong to large families. In scenarios where the parents have a literacy problem, less thanoptimal reading related experience is obtained at home.The deficits in low level visual or auditory processinghave been implicated by various theories.The result of research are missed and typically only a section of the people with Dyslexia areaffected. STRATEGIES FOR SUPPORTING CHILDREN WITH DYSLEXIA:Prior to the twentieth century, children with learning difficulties were often considered asunteachable. In the beginning of the twentieth century it was recognised that children withlearning difficulties and previously considered uneducable could in fact learn but at their ownpace. Notable in the quest for new learning strategies were the work of Bessie Stillman and AnnaGillingham who published the first teaching method which was directed specifically to helpchildren with reading difficulties including Dyslexia, (Snowling 2000).There are numerous techniques that can be adopted to teach Dyslexic children. Not all affectedwith Dyslexia will respond to the same techniques so it is of utmost importance to customise thestrategies as per the particular child’s need. There are a number of teaching aids, programs, etc that can be used with a child suffering fromDyslexia. It has to be chosen on the basis of how positive the one aiding the child is and how far5 is the improvement on the child’s confidence which will enhance its success rate, (Abraham,2004).Tuitions provided should be multi-sensory in nature. They should involve listening, speaking,touching, looking with as much variation as possible. Shaywitz (2003)suggested that by meansof this it can be determined whether the child is a visual learner, that is a person who learns bestby seeing, an auditory learner, that is a person who learns best by listening or a kinaestheticlearner, that is a person who learns best by feeling or doing. As opined by Farrell (2006), iff a student has Specific Learning Difficulties (SpLDs) and hasapproached the Disability Team for support, a full assessment of their academic supportrequirements and a detailed report pertaining to specific recommendations will have to be sent tothe nominated disability contact in the school or the facility. There are standardised adjustments that have to be accommodated by the academic departmentsin order to extend support to a child with any SpLDs like Dyslexia.DEBATES ASSOCIATED WITH CLASSIFICATION OF DYSLEXIA:Dyslexia as a topic has completed a complete circle from earlier times when it was consideredwholly as a medical problem .Today, in accordance to the profession of medicine, psychologistsand educationalists work in collaboration to search for the origin and treatments of Dyslexia. Inrecent times, dramatic developments have taken place in the use of technology in order toenhance the study of Dyslexia.This development was possible by the invention of FunctionalMagnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) and Positron Emission Topography (PET). In comparisonto earlier times, researches pertaining to Dyslexia are being conducted within the spheres ofeducation and psychology, (Moragne 1997). Deficit in two major areas associated with reading can be caused by Dyslexia, phonologicalprocessing and sight word recall and retention. It has been often noted that a person sufferingfrom Dyslexia experience significant difficulty in one of the said areas while less or no difficultyin the other. According to the Boder Classification System of Dyslexia, Dyslexia can beclassified into Dysphonetic Dyslexia, where a child cannot spell or read because of the inabilityto break down phonetic words into their sound parts. Dyseidic Dyslexia is where the child isunable to spell or read because of the inability to remember whole or irregular sight words.6 Dysphoeidetic Dyslexia is where a child cannot spell or read either phonetically or eidetically.This is Mixed Dyslexia and the severest form because it includes both types, (Wiltshire 2003).There is no doubt that identification of Dyslexia and helping children overcome the problemsassociated with it require considerable knowledge and adequate expertise. The introduction ofthe Inclusion Development Program by the National strategies provides a foundation on the areason which professional expertise have to be built. EDUCATIONAL PROVISION FOR DYSLEXIA:Individuals affected with Dyslexia, especially school children can gain benefit from varioussupport techniques. These include support from specialist teachers like one-to-one literacy,computer tools enabled with text-to-speech facility, coloured glasses, word prediction andspelling correction tools in electronic devices, etc. As per the Discriminations Act 1995 (UK), itis the legal duty of schools and other institutions to not discriminate unfairly against individualssuffering from Dyslexia. In order to provide appropriate support, educational institutions have toalso detect the condition if not already stated by the family of the student. The Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (UK) includes those who suffer from Dyslexia.Additional legislations have been incorporated in the following years, which widen the scope ofthe Act of the year 1995. Special educational Needs (SEN) is an aspect of the UK school education that focuses onstudents primarily with learning difficulties and or disabilities. Across the school educationsystems of the UK, provision for SEN is widely varied with a mixed economy of teams thatprovide learning support. All schools have a legal duty to maintain a SEN coordinator or anequivalent position. Originally published in the year 2001, the SEN Code of Practice providesnon binding guidance on the shaping and maintenance of provisions. Authorities mostly operateon a graduated approach which is based on the level of need and requirement of additionalsupport (Prior 1996). Special Educational Needs and Disability Act 2001 (SENDA) is an act of the Parliament of theUnited Kingdom. According to this act, schools, colleges, universities, Adult EducationProviders, Local Education Authorities and Statutory Youth Service need to make reasonableprovision to ensure people having SpLDs receive the same opportunities as those who are not7 "