WHA
15
DYSLEXIA?
vslexia—isn’t
that
when
children
see
backward
—like
b’
for
'd"
or
was
for
san?”
people
ask
when
thev
hear
that
we
train
teachers
of
dyslexic
students.
Letter
and
word
reversal
is
a
common
way
to
de-
scribe
dyslexia.
However,
the
most
tvpi-
cal
symptom
we
sec
is
the
confusing
of
similar
words
or
symbols
in
reading,
and
bizarre
or
“creative”
spelling.
People
with
dyslexia
may
have
varving
symp-
toms
and
suffer
from
a
variety
of
related
learning
disabilities.
Significant
research
on
this
disorder
has
been
done
bv
the
Orton
Dyslexia
society,
named
for
Samuel
Orton,
a
neu-
ropsychiatrist
who
pioneered
work
with
dyslexic
persons
in
the
United
States
some
70
vears
ago.
The
Orton
Dyslexia
Society
offers
a
four-way
analysis
of
the
language
problems
of
its
specialty:
®
The
differences
are
personal.
®
The
diagnosis
is
clinical.
®
The
treatment
is
educational.
®
The
understanding
is
scientific!
The
personal
differences
are
illus-
trated
by
the
cases
described
elsewhere
in
this
issue.
This
article
will
describe
some
of
the
scientific
findings
and
the
educational
treatment.
A
study
of
these
findings
and
treatments
should
help
educators
to
understand
dyslexia
and
to
identify
students
with
this
disability.
How
Many
People
Have
Dyslexia?
The
National
Institutes
of
Health
estimates
that
about
15
percent
of
the
population
suffers
from
some
form
of
dyslexia.
Actually,
it
is
not
unusual
for
virtually
every
classroom
to
have
several
students
with
this
problem.2
Based
on
a
15
percent
level
of
prevalence,
world-
wide
there
are
approximately
900,000
dyslexic
Seventh-day
Adventists.
In
the
North
American
Division
alone,
there
are
probably
more
than
112,000
dyslexic
Adventists.
4
ADVENTIST
EDUCATION
e
SUMMER
1391
By
Louise
Moon
The
most
typical
symp-
tom
of
dyslexia
we
see
is
the
confusing
of
sim-
ilar
words
or
symbols
in
reading,
and
bizarre
or
“creative”
spelling.
Defining
Dyslexia
Neurologist
Lucius
Waites
describes
dyslexia
as
a
disorder
that
causes
diffi-
culty
with
the
svmbols
of
written
lan-
guage.
He
cites
the
following
symptoms:
“basic
problems
in
learning
the
alphabet
and
its
phonic
properties,
as
well
as
word
recognition,
reading
comprehen-
sion,
writing,
copying
and
spelling,”
Waites
stresses
that
specific
dyslexia
does
not
result
from
mental
retardation,
brain
damage,
or
a
primary
emotional
or
mental
problem.
Family
and
home
environment
do
not
cause
it,
nor
does
faulty
school
training.
Children
with
this
syndrome
usually
have
no
problems
in
the
three-dimensional
(everyday)
world.
Their
disability
becomes
cvident
with
the
introduction
of
abstract
symbols,
which
are
the
basis
of
written
language.
These
problems
are
complex.
They
have
varying
symptoms
and
severity,
and
arc
chronic
in
nature.
Recognition
of
the
problem
is
sometimes
clouded
because
all
of
the
language
differences
of
dyslexia
are
normal
at
some
stage
of
language
development.
Most
children
outgrow
these
problems,
but
dyslexics
do
not.
“Even
up
to
advanced
levels,
dyslexia
may
be
reflected
in
trouble
with
‘svmbolic
formulation
and
expression.”
Critchley
and
Critchley
describe
the
dvslexic’s
continuing
difficulties
with
reading
and
writing:
Even
when
he
has
achieved
some
ability
to
read
and
write,
he
often
has
lingering
doubts
as
to
the
correct
orientation
of
certain
letters.
He
mav
experience
hesitation
in
serial
think-
ing,
and
his
ability
to
spell
usually
continues
to
lag
behind
his
modest
skill
at
reading.
Furthermore,
a
dyslexic
almost
always
finds
it
anvthing
but
casv
to
express
his
thoughts
fluently
and
rapidly
on
paper.
Creative
and
imaginative,
full
of
ideas
perhaps,
he
is
hin-
dered
when
setting
them
down.
He
is
also
slow
in
copying
to
dictation;
and
at
a
later
age
he
finds
it
difficult
to
take
adequate
notes
at
a
lecture
or
meeting.
Waites
reported
that
“the
most
perva-
sive
quality
observed
among
dyslexic
students
at
Scottish
Rite
Hospital
was
difficulty
in
learning
the
alphabet
and
its
phonic
properties...
The
immediate
reflex
recall
of
the
alphabet
and
its
properties
is
the
basis
of
learning
to
read,
write,
and
spell
in
individuals
with
dyslexia.
Consequently,
we
are
dealing
with
a
cognitive
breakdown
in
the
stor-
age
and/or
retrieval
of
abstract
symbols
related
to
written
language.”
Research
findings
from
linguistics
and
speech/language
pathology
help
to
explain
how
people
can
be
successful
in
a
three-dimensional
world
but
disabled