Dyslexia March 27, 2008
Have you tried reading an article or story that after a paragraph, you just realize that you don’t get it? And then you read it again but it seems that your mind isn’t working? When you give directions and you say right while your hand points to the left or vice versa? Ever confused “before” and “after”? Missed to see misspellings or grammatical errors after a couple of proofreading? Misread words? Sometimes, you can’t seem to multiply numbers automatically? (what’s the use of calculators anyway hehe)
I’m totally GUILTY of all of the above. If you can’t empathize with me then you must be superior/gifted. Good on you mate! But for those who know what I’m talking about, don’t worry! We’re normal!
Good news for us: we’re not really stupid. Language is just NOT a natural process like eating and sleeping. We need to LEARN to count, talk, write, read and consequently understand…and the learning doesn’t really stop when we finish elementary, highschool or college. As long as these errors don’t disturb you to function normally (like passing your course), it’s not something to be alarmed about.
If it does affect you big time, then you might have learning difficulties. Nevertheless, don’t despair; you can learn to cope up with the problem by learning some techniques/strategies…I’m writing about this because a lot of people aren’t aware of the disability yet and as an advocate, I’m kind of bound to give information about it in my own little way.
Back in PI, I happened to work as a Resource Teacher for kids with specific literacy needs especially for remedial reading/writing. No maths please, I need remediation on that too LOL. Yes, you probably have heard of the word “dyslexia”. You can even hear it from an 80’s song “Dyslexic Heart” – well, figuratively used though.
In a nutshell, dyslexia is a learning disability characterized by problems with reading, spelling, writing, speaking, or listening. The condition has nothing to do with a person’s intelligence. In fact, you should have at least an average IQ before you can be considered to have the problem. Many are even very intelligent but have serious troubles in:
- Understanding sounds in words, sound order, or rhymes
- Identifying single words
- Spelling
- Transposing (reversing) letters in words
- Handwriting
- Reading comprehension (understanding)
- Delayed spoken language
- Confusion with directions or handedness (right-versus left-handedness)
- Confusion with certain concepts, such as “up” and “down,” “early” and “late,” and so on
- Mathematics
There is indeed a discrepancy between their IQ and achievement.
To reiterate, people with dyslexia are NOT dim-witted. They just think differently and can see things in a different and unique perspective. To some extent, this may even be a gift or advantage. Some famous people with dyslexia include Leonardo da Vinci, Albert Einstein, Walt Disney, Thomas Edison, John F. Kennedy, Tom Cruise…the list can go on.
So, don’t be too judgmental about anyone who has a disability because you’ll never know; he/she may discover or contribute something extraordinary to our society; or even if he/she cannot do something phenomenal, he/she has the same rights as everybody else - especially to live in this world without discrimination.
Only the brave dare look upon the gray-
upon the things which cannot be explained easily,
upon the things which often engender mistakes,
upon the things whose cause cannot be understood,
upon the things we must accept and live with.
And therefore only the brave dare look upon difference without flinching.
~Richard H. Hungerford
Are you brave enough?????
