Bright Solutions for Dyslexia, Inc.

Sharing the latest research with those who need to know

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Myths About Dyslexia

Myths about Schools

Myths about Classroom Accommodations

Persistent Myths About Dyslexia

Yet most people are unaware of these results. So as a parent or advocate, you will encounter the following myths frequently.

Myth: Dyslexia does not exist.

Fact: Dyslexia is one of the most researched and documented conditions that will impact children. Over 30 years of independent, scientific, replicated, published research exists on dyslexia -- much of it done through the National Institutes of Health, funded by taxpayer dollars.

Some of that research is quoted on this webpage. More is quoted on our What We Now Know page. Even more research is contained in the books and websites on our To Learn More page.

Take a look at the Dyslexia Fact Sheet published by the International Dyslexia Association.

Myth: Dyslexia is a "catch all" term.

Fact: That was true back in the 1960's and 1970's before the research existed. But we now have a research-based definition of dyslexia, which is:

Dyslexia is a specific learning disability that is neurological in origin.

It is characterized by difficulties with accurate and/or fluent word recognition, and by poor spelling and decoding abilities.

These difficulties typically result from a deficit in the phonological component of language that is often unexpected in relation to other cognitive abilities and the provision of effective classroom instruction.

Secondary consequences may include problems in reading comprehension and reduced reading experience that can impede growth of vocabulary and background knowledge.

Myth: Intelligence and ability to read are related. So if someone doesn't read well, they can't be very smart.

Myth: Gifted children cannot be dyslexic or have a learning disability.

Fact: Dyslexia is not related to IQ. That means you can have a very high IQ and be dyslexic, you can have an average IQ and be dyslexic, and you can have low IQ and be dyslexic.

Many people with dyslexia are very bright and accomplish amazing things as adults. Take a look at our list of over 200 famous dyslexics.

Myth: People with dyslexia cannot read.

Fact: Everyone with dyslexia can read -- up to a point. But they will "hit the wall" in reading development by third grade, if not sooner.

When reading, they have great difficulty sounding out an unknown word -- despite being taught phonics.

They will often read a word fine on one page, but not recognize the very same word on the next page.

But it is spelling that separates kids with dyslexia from kids who struggle with reading for some other reason.

If the child and their parents spend hours and hours studying the spelling list, the child may be able to learn the list of 20 spelling words long enough to do "okay" on Friday's test. But , they cannot retain those spelling words from one week to the next.

They also cannot spell when writing sentences or paragraphs -- not even the high frequency words such as because, friend, or does.

That's why extreme difficulty with spelling is considered a classic warning sign of dyslexia -- and why the International Dyslexia Association publishes a Fact Sheet on Spelling.

Myth: People with dyslexia see things backwards.

Fact: People with dyslexia do not see things backwards. They see things the same way you and I do.

Dyslexia is not caused by a vision problem. That is why vision therapy does not work for this population. There is nothing wrong with their eyes.

Yes, they reverse their b's and their d's and say was for saw. But that's caused by their lifelong confusion over left versus right and by their difficulty reading by sounding out.

Myth: Dyslexia is rare.

Fact: According to the NIH researchers, in the United States, dyslexia impacts 20% of our population. That's 1 out of every 5 people.

But it does come in degrees. Some have it only mildly, some have it moderately, some have it severely, and some have it profoundly.

Very few children with dyslexia are in the special education system. Only 1 in 10 will be eligible for an IEP (when tested in second or third grade) under the category of Learning Disability (LD).

That means 9 out of 10 "fall through the cracks." Although the parents and the teacher know there's something different about the child, the child does not qualify for special education services, and most will no longer get help from the reading specialist after first or second grade.

Dyslexia is not rare. It is the most common reason a child will struggle first with spelling, then with written expression, and eventually "hit the wall" in reading development by third grade.

Myth: There is no way to diagnose dyslexia.

Fact: Professionals with in-depth training can accurately diagnose dyslexia as early as age 5.

To learn who should, and should not, test for dyslexia, the types of tests that are given, and the types of errors and difficulties that a tester is looking for, click here.

Myth: Dyslexia is a medical diagnosis.

Fact: Doctors do not test for dyslexia. Dyslexia is not classified as a medical problem.

Doctors have no training in how to test for reading, spelling, and writing problems. And there is no medical solution (no pill or operation) for those types of academic struggles.

That is also why medical insurance does not cover anything having to do with dyslexia. Dyslexia is not classified as a medical issue.

The International Dyslexia Association publishes a Fact Sheet on Testing.

Myth: Dyslexia cannot be diagnosed until third grade.

Fact: Professionals with in-depth training can accurately diagnose dyslexia as early as age 5.

Myth: Most children outgrow early reading and spelling problems. It is just a developmental delay.

Fact: Independent, scientific, replicated research on reading development shows just the opposite. It shows that if a child is struggling with reading, writing, and spelling in mid-first grade, that child has better than 90% odds of still struggling with those skills in eighth grade and on into adulthood if someone doesn't step in and do something.

That means less than 10% of the time will a child outgrow those struggles.

That also means waiting is the worst thing you can do. The child is only going to get further and further behind.

Myth: Retaining a child will improve their academic struggles.

Fact: Retention is a failed educational policy. It has never improved academic struggles.

That's why these organizations are against retention:

The National Association of School Psychologists:
"Through many years of research, the practice of retaining children has been shown to be ineffective in meeting the needs of children who are academically delayed."

The American Federation of Teachers:
"Social promotion and grade retention are mechanical responses to an educational problem. The scandal is how little attention they give to preventing failure in the first place."

The U.S. Department of Education:
"Neither social promotion nor retention is appropriate for students who do not meet high academic standards."

The National Joint Committee on Learning Disabilities (NJCLD):
"The weight of the evidence of literally hundreds of studies shows that retaining children does NOT produce higher achievement."

For links to these studies, go to:
www.wrightslaw.com/advoc/articles/promote.retain.htm

Myth: Children outgrow dyslexia.

Fact: Dyslexia is a lifelong issue. That means waiting -- due to a false hope that it will disappear as the child gets older -- is the worst thing you can do.

It will not go away. The child will only get further and further behind -- unless that child gets the right type of intervention or tutoring.

All the experts agree: waiting is the worst thing you can do.

There are effective research-based methods that will bring their reading, spelling, and writing skills up to -- and beyond -- grade level.

Although it is never too late to greatly improve their skills, early intervention is the best way to prevent or minimize the damage to their self-esteem, their emotional distress, and their fear of going to school.

Myth: Dyslexia is caused by a lack of phonics instruction.

Fact: That is not true. Phonics is not the answer for a child with dyslexia. The teacher can use the best phonics program in the world, but it will not prevent a child with dyslexia from "hitting the wall" by third grade.

Most parents already know that phonics does not help. Most parent have already tried Hooked on Phonics -- and it did not improve their child's reading or spelling.

Children with dyslexia can learn phonics. They just can't apply it. That's why a classic warning sign of dyslexia is a child who can not sound out an unknown word -- despite being taught phonics.

Myth: Dyslexia affects four times more boys than girls.

Fact: Although more boys are sent for testing than girls, research shows that dyslexia impacts just as many girls as boys.

So why are more boys sent for testing than girls? It's because of their behavior.

It seems when boys in first, second, or third grade can't do classroom assignments or homework, they get frustrated and act out their frustration. Parents and teachers notice that behavior and then try to figure out why they are behaving that way -- by sending them for testing.

But often, when girls in first, second, or third grade can't do the work, they tend to get quiet, move to the back of the room, and try to become invisible. So they don't get noticed as early. Often, their dyslexia is not discovered until high school or even college.

Myth: Any child who reverses letters or numbers has dyslexia.

Fact: Most children will reverse some of their letters and some of their numbers while they are learning. Up to a certain point, that is considered perfectly normal.

But those reversals should be gone after two years of handwriting instruction and practice.

But letter or number reversals that continue after two years of handwriting and practice are a classic warning sign of dyslexia.

If a child truly has dyslexia, however, the child will have many of the other classic warning signs of dyslexia.

Myth: Every child who struggles with reading is dyslexic.

Fact: Dyslexia is not the only reason a child will struggle with reading, but it is the most common reason.

How can you tell whether dyslexia is the cause of the child's reading struggles?

Dyslexia will impact way more than just reading. It will impact their spelling (trouble retaining spelling words from one week to the next; not able to spell even the high frequency words like because, friend or does when writing sentences), their speech (mixing up sounds in multisyllable words such as animal, spaghetti, helicopter, cinnamon, consonant, caterpillar. hamburger, magazine, hospital -- and trouble making the R and L sounds correctly), and cause extreme difficulty memorizing sequences and random facts (the sequence of the alphabet, the letters in their last name, the days of the week, the months of the year -- and random facts such as multiplication tables), to name just a few of the classic warning signs of dyslexia.

The more warning signs a child has, the more confident you can be that dyslexia is the cause of their academic struggles.

Myth: If a dyslexic child reads out loud for 20 minutes a day, it will improve their reading.

Fact: Reading out loud will not teach a dyslexic child how to sound out unknown words. They will continue to try to memorize the shape of a word, and use picture clues or context clues to guess at the words.

If a child cannot easily and accurately sound out unknown words, especially multi-syllable words, by the time the child starts third grade, that child will "hit the wall" in reading development.

Reading out loud for 20 minutes a day will not teach that missing skill -- reading by sounding out -- which is called decoding. It is also called word attack.

The inability to decode is caused by weak phonemic awareness skills. Part of the research-based definition of dyslexia is a child who lacks age appropriate phonemic awareness skills.

Myth: Dyslexic children will never read well, so it is best to teach them to compensate.

Fact: People with dyslexia can become excellent readers, decent spellers, and good writers if they receive the right type of intervention or tutoring.

Independent, scientific, replicated research recommends an Orton-Gillingham based system as the most effective way to improve the reading, writing, and spelling skills of people with dyslexia.

That's why the International Dyslexia Association publishes two Fact Sheets on Orton-Gillingham.

There are seven well-known Orton-Gillingham based systems. The Barton Reading & Spelling System is one of the best. To watch a 20-minute demo, click here.

Myth: If you don't teach a dyslexic child to read by age 9, it is too late.

Fact: It is never ever too late to greatly improve the reading, spelling, and writing skills of someone with dyslexia.

Myth: Children with dyslexia are just lazy. If only they tried harder...

Fact: If students with dyslexia do not receive the right type of tutoring and classroom accommodations, they often struggle in school -- despite being bright, motivated, and spending hours on homework assignments.
 

I will not allow you to defeat me
 
excerpt of an article by John Colby Whitsante
published February 11, 2008
in the Huntsville, Alabama newspaper
 
John Colby Whisante has dyslexia. Even though he sometimes fails, he will not give up on his education. He wrote this open letters to educators:
 
You have questioned my abilities and my need for help. You have even questioned my diagnosis of dyslexia.
 
You have no concept of the effort and time it takes for me to achieve my accomplishments because you have never allowed me what I need to show my full potential.
 
I could give up and walk away from getting an education, but I am not a quitter. I may fail in the beginning, but I will keep on trying until I succeed. I will not allow you to defeat me.
 
As my school official, you have choices. You can assist me in getting an education by making accommodations that have been proven to help me, or you can allow me to fail and hope I will go away. Even if you turn your back on me, I will not go away.
 
To read the entire article, go to:
www.dys-add.com/IWillNotAllowYouToDefeatMe.pdf

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Myths about Schools

Myth: Schools test children for dyslexia.

Fact: Most public schools do not test children for dyslexia because federal education law does not yet require them to diagnose why a child is struggling.

Most public schools only test to see if a child is far enough behind to be eligible for special education services.

There is a big difference between eligibility testing and true diagnostic testing.

Most children with dyslexia will not be eligible for special education services.

Myth: Public schools do not admit that dyslexia exists.

Fact: Some public schools still try to deny that dyslexia exists -- despite more than 30 years of independent, replicated, scientific research that has been conducted on dyslexia by the National Institutes of Health and other researchers around the world.

But as more parents, teachers, and administrators are becoming aware of that research, and the fact that dyslexia impacts 20% of children in the United States, states are starting to pass statewide dyslexia laws.

The dyslexia laws in some states require public schools to screen children for dyslexia, for free, during kindergarten, first, or second grade.

The dyslexia laws in other states require teacher training colleges to offer courses on dyslexia -- and to require teachers in schools to get in-services on dyslexia.

As of June 2009, the following states have statewide dyslexia laws: Texas, Mississippi, Louisiana, California, Colorado, and Washington.

The following states have dyslexia laws making their way through the legislature: Kentucky, Ohio, and New Jersey.

If your child's school still denies that dyslexia exists, try to educate them on the latest research. Either give them a copy the book Overcoming Dyslexia by Dr. Sally Shaywitz, or have them go to the Reading Rockets website and in the search box near the top of the screen, type in dyslexia, then click on the Go button.

By the way, the Reading Rockets website is funded by the U.S. Department of Education. So if the U.S. Department of Education admits that dyslexia exists, so should every public school that it governs.

The Florida Center for Reading Research published a detailed report on dyslexia in an effort to educate the schools and legislators in Florida.

To download and read that report, go to:
www.dys-add.com/FCRRReptonDysl.pdf

Myth: Teachers are not allowed to say the word dyslexia on campus.

Fact: Some schools are reluctant to use the "D" word.

excerpt of an article in Perspectives on Language and Literacy
published by the International Dyslexia Association
Winter Edition, 2008

The entire Winter 2008 issue of Perspectives is devoted to demystifying the "D" word -- why and how the term Dyslexia should be used.

It contains many outstanding articles. In the opening article, Louisa Moats (the theme editor of this issue), states:
In some circles, especially some public school environments, dyslexia is such a contaminated term, associated with what are perceived as unreasonable demands by zealous parents or advocates, that its use is discouraged or banned.

This issue contains articles written from many different viewpoints, ranging from Diana Hanbury King (whose first mentor was Anna Gillingham), to Jack Fletcher and Reid Lyon, but the most revealing article was written by Ed Steinberg and Daphne Pereles who both work for the Colorado Department of Education. Ed Steinberg is the Assistant Commissioner of Education, and Daphne Pereles is a supervisor with the Exceptional Student Leadership Unit.

In their article, entitled Disconnect, the Real "D" Word: A School Practitioner's Perspective on Dyslexia, they shared many important points, including:

... we ascribe the lion's share of responsibility [for the disconnect] to the schools and the practices around services for students with learning disabilities. Indeed, disputes and controversy over the term dyslexia seem to us to represent a smoke screen obscuring the real issues in the education of students with LD. Hiding behind the smoke screen is the inordinate emphasis the system has placed on eligibility for special education services, with eligibility being the big event in the educational life of the student.

It has been our experience that much of the up-front controversy surrounding dyslexia (i.e., dueling evaluations, schools' refusal to accept a dyslexia diagnosis) serves to obscure the stark reality that our schools have strayed so far from a focus on a systematic, explicit approach to teaching reading and remediating reading disabilities that, in reality, we often do not know what to do after a student is staffed into special education with dyslexia.

Our experience is that the vast majority of special educators have not been trained, either in preservice licensing or postemployment experience, to teach reading in this way [research based, explicit, systematic, cumulative, and structured] to remediate dyslexia.

Adding to this is the lack of focus surrounding many school districts' professional development programs, (i.e. the "smorgasbord" approach in which teachers can choose what they want from an array of offerings rather than receiving instruction in what they need.)

Coupled with this scenario is a culture in many schools in which teachers resist implementing evidence-based reading programs with comments such as, "It's too prescriptive," "I don't like canned programs," or "I have a different philosophy."

To read the entire article, go to:
www.dys-add.com/Disconnect-IDAPerspectives.pdf

Members of the International Dyslexia Association can read and download all of the articles from the Winter 2008 issue of Perspectives (and other issues, as well) on the Members Only section of the IDA website: www.interdys.org
 

Myth: If a child is not eligible for special education services or an IEP, the child does not have dyslexia.

Fact: Dyslexia comes in degrees, ranging from mild to moderate to severe to profound.

Only children who are severe or profound are eligible for special education services under the category of Learning Disability or LD.

That's why most children with dyslexia do not receive special education services.

Yet even children with mild dyslexia will "hit the wall" in reading development by third or fourth grade -- and they will have extreme difficulty getting their wonderful thoughts and ideas down on paper in acceptable form. Not only will there be many misspelled words (even high frequency words such as because, friend, and does), but they will not capitalize correctly (not even consistently capitalizing the first word in each sentence) and they won't consistently put periods at the end of their sentences.

Myth: Most reading and resource specialists are highly trained in dyslexia and its remediation methods.

Fact: Sadly, that is not true.

Not even recent graduates with a Masters degree in Reading have had a single course in dyslexia, its warning signs, and appropriate remediation methods.

Most literacy coaches, Reading First coordinators, and Resource Specialists have had no training in dyslexia or appropriate remediation methods.

Myth: Most teachers know the warning signs of dyslexia, so they would warn a parent if their child had symptoms of it.

Fact: Most teachers have had no training in dyslexia or its classic warning signs.

New Study: Most Teachers Don't Know Symptoms of Dyslexia

excerpt of a study by
the No To Failure project
in conjunction with the charity Xtraordinary People
published on www.EducationGuardian.co.uk

Supported and funded by the DfES, this unique No To Failure project has united all the leading charities and specialists in this field (in the United Kingdom) to create maximum impact.

Did you know that 1 in 5 children continue to leave primary school each year unable to read, write or do math properly? Many of these children are dyslexic and may not be receiving the help they need.

However, if supported by dyslexia trained teachers, these children can succeed.

NUT research found that fewer than 14% of teachers felt very confident they could recognize a dyslexic child, and fewer than 9% felt very confident they could teach a dyslexic.

77% of teachers said they wanted extra training in dyslexia.

To read more about the study and the No To Failure project, go to:
www.xtraordinarypeople.com/no_to_failure/

To read about the U.K. government's new Dyslexia Support initiative, go to:
www.dys-add.com/UKDyslexiaInitiative.pdf

To read about New Zealand government's acknowledgement of dyslexia, and their plans to change classroom and teacher training, go to:
www.dys-add.com/nzdyslexia.pdf

 

Myth: Most reading specialists know the latest research on dyslexia, can tell who is dyslexic and who is not, and use research-based reading programs that work for dyslexic students.

Here are the facts:

Colleges Don't Prepare Teachers

New Study: What education schools aren't teaching about reading

Authored by Kate Walsh, Deborah Glaser, and Danielle Dunne Wilcox
Published by the National Council on Teacher Quality
June 2006

Excerpts from the Executive Summary:

Over the last 60 years, scientists from many fields including psychology, linguistics, pediatrics, education, neurobiology, and even engineering have been studying the reading process. This science of reading has led to a number of breakthroughs that can dramatically reduce the number of children destined to become functionally illiterate or barely literate adults. By routinely applying the lessons learned to the classroom, most reading failure could be avoided. It is estimated that the current failure rate of 20 to 30 percent could be reduced to the range of 2 to 10 percent.

To do so, elementary classrooms must incorporate certain research-based practices, including:

* Early identification of children at risk of reading failure.

* Daily training in linguistic and oral skills to build awareness of speech sounds called phonemes.

* Explicit instruction in letter sounds, syllables, and words accompanied by explicit instruction in spelling.

* Teaching phonics in the sequence that research has found leads to the least amount of confusion, rather than teaching it in a scattered fashion and only when children encounter difficulty.

* Practicing skills to the point of "automaticity."

Regardless of social class, race, or income, roughly a third of all kindergartners require this explicit, systematic approach to learn how to read.

Yet the resistance from many educators to change has been palpable.

So the National Council on Teacher Quality decided to examine what aspiring elementary teachers are learning about reading instruction during their formal undergraduate training. Our analysis provides the most comprehensive picture to date of what elementary teacher candidates are learning -- or failing to learn -- about the teaching of reading.

In our final sample of 72 colleges, after examining the syllabi and textbooks of 223 required reading courses for students who aspire to teach kindergarten through fifth grade, [a few of] our findings include:


Finding #1: Most education colleges are not teaching the science of reading

* Only 11 out of 72 colleges (15%) were found to actually teach all the components of the science of reading.

* Nearly a third (32%) make no reference to reading science in any of their courses.


Finding #2: Even courses claiming to provide a "balanced" approach ignore the science of reading

The notion of "balanced literacy," which many colleges claim to promote, was developed in the 1990s. This approach was an effort to retain the best practices of the whole language method (presumably preserving the important role of good literature) while injecting greater emphasis on decoding (phonemic awareness, phonics, and fluency).

However, our analysis revealed this balance is rarely achieved. Only 9 percent of the courses described as teaching "balanced literacy" devoted lecture time to teaching the science of reading as one of several approaches that teachers might need to know.

That means 91% of professors who say their intention is to provide a "balanced" approach never acknowledge that there is a science of reading.


Finding #7: Many courses reflect low expectations with little evidence of college level work

College professors make too few demands on their students. Research papers that encourage or require aspiring teachers to present anyone's perspective other than their own are a rarity. In a randomly selected subsample of 75 syllabi, only eight (11%) call for the students' own feelings and observations. The most common assignment is a "literacy memoir," which asks students to reflect on how they themselves learned to read as young children.

Further, no effort to develop practical application of knowledge is evident. Students rarely have to demonstrate their knowledge by writing and delivering lesson plans that apply the tools of reading instruction in a classroom setting.


Among the study's many recommendations are:

* Education schools that do not teach the science of reading should not be eligible for accreditation.

* Elementary teachers should be required to pass a test in reading to achieve "highly qualified teacher" status.


To read all of their findings and recommendations, go to:
www.dys-add.com/NCTQstudy.pdf
 

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Myths about Classroom Accommodations

Watch our free one-hour video webcast called Classroom Accommodations for Dyslexic Students.

Or download a list of those accommodations.

Here are common myths regarding classroom modifications:

Myth: Only children who have an IEP can get classroom accommodations.

Facts: Children who have 504 Plans can receive the very same classroom accommodations as a child who has an IEP.

Teachers can also provide classroom accommodations to any child who needs them -- whether or not that child has an IEP or a 504 Plan.

In fact, that's why classroom accommodations are often listed on a literacy improvement plan or on the recommendations page of a Student Study Team.

Myth: There is not enough money in the budget for accommodations -- or to send teachers to special training.

Fact: Most classroom accommodations do not cost anything, and they do not require any special training.

Myth: Teachers cannot accommodate because they cannot change the curriculum.

Fact: Accommodations do not mean changing the curriculum.

Accommodations are either a slight change in the way the teacher presents information, a slight change in the way she has students practice new skills so they can master them, or a slight change in the way she tests students to determine if they have mastered the skill.

Myth: Accommodations are a crutch, and the student will become lazy.

Fact: No student wants to be different. No student wants to receive accommodations. No student wants to have dyslexia. They would much rather be able to do the very same assignments, the very same way, as everyone else.

But until they have had the right type of intervention or tutoring, they can't.

So accommodations are meant to be temporary. They will only be needed until the student has had enough of the right type of intervention or tutoring -- and can now read, write, and spell at grade level.

But until that point, accommodations are absolutely necessary.

Myth: It isn't fair to do something for one student that you don't do for every student.

Fact: Fair does not mean treating everyone exactly the same because we are not all the same. We never have been, and we never will be.

So one-size-fits-all education works no better than one-size-fits-all pantyhose.

Fair means providing each student what they need to have a chance to succeed. If the student grabs hold of that chance, and works very hard, then that student can succeed in your class.

But if the student does not grab hold of that chance, or does not work hard, then that student will not do well.

So providing an accommodation does not mean a student will do well in your class. But it gives that student a chance to succeed.

Myth: If a teacher gives a shortened assignment, that student can not get an A because he did not do all of the problems.

Fact: If a teacher gives a shortened assignment to a student who reads and writes slowly, or who still has to count on his fingers to figure out the answers to addition and subtraction problems, and that student answers all of the questions correctly, then that student has earned an A.

A student's grade should be determined by calculating the number of questions answered correctly divided by the number of questions given -- not the number of questions given to everyone else.

Myth: If a teacher does not count off for spelling, then that student will never learn how to spell.

Fact: Children with dyslexia cannot learn to spell the traditional way. Their spelling will not improve just because a teacher marks a word wrong.

It will not improve if the teacher writes the correct word in red.

It will not improve it the student writes the correct word 100 times.

It will greatly improve once they have been taught spelling using a very different approach -- an Orton-Gillingham approach.

Until then, their essays, in-class assignments, and answers to questions on tests should be graded on content only. Ignore the spelling.

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