As many as one in five students may have some degree of dyslexia.
Dyslexia is characterized by an unexpected difficulty in reading in children and adults who otherwise possess the intelligence, motivation, and schooling considered necessary for accurate and fluent reading (Shaywitz 1998). It represents one of the most common problems affecting children and adults, approximately 20% (IDA). Such data have led “the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) within the National Institutes of Health (NIH) [to] consider reading failure to reflect not only an educational problem, but a significant public health problem as well” (Lyon 1998).*
What percentage of teachers has been trained on dyslexia, its warning signs, and accommodation strategies that can help students with dyslexia?
Through no fault of their own, teachers (including general education teachers, reading specialists and special education teachers) often receive no training on dyslexia. It can be frustrating to be teaching without the necessary tools. Let’s help get our teachers the education and tools they need to help all students learn to read.
*Introduction from Disruption of Posterior Brain Systems for Reading in Children with Developmental Dyslexia Bennett A. Shaywitz, Sally E. Shaywitz, Kenneth R. Pugh, W. Einar Mencl, Robert K. Fulbright, Pawel Skudlarski, R. Todd Constable, Karen E. Marchione, Jack M. Fletcher, G. Reid Lyon, and John C. Gore