Understanding Dyslexia: Challenges and Strengths

This article explores the challenges faced by individuals with dyslexia, such as difficulty in reading and finding the right words in conversations. It also highlights their strengths, such as comprehension ability and creativity. The article recommends interventions like multisensory learning activities and assistive technology tools to support dyslexic students. Early identification and proper placement are emphasized, along with the importance of involving parents in the learning process.

Running Head: DYSLEXIA 1
Dyslexia
Name
Institution

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Introduction
Dyslexia is a condition that involves difficulty in learning to read and interpret words, but
it does not generally affect the general intelligence or intelligent quotient of an individual. Alex
is a young boy aged 11 years and 7 months and in his final year of primary schooling. When he
was young, and his parents noted his difficulties, Alex was enrolled in a program which was to
help him improve his speech development. He was dismissed from the program after six months
on an account that his articulation has generally improved (Joram, 2018). Though Alex has a
better understanding and excellent problem-solving skills, he experiences difficulties in
pronunciation of words and he experiences difficulty in getting the right word to use when
engaged in conversations.
Learning difficulties
Difficulty in finding the right word to use when engaged in a conversation is a common
challenge amongst individuals with dyslexia (Syam, 2018). Alex is in his final year of primary
schooling and he experiences this challenge. It is reported that he randomly picks any words and
inappropriately uses them when engaged in talks. This happens because of the lack of a concrete
comprehension of the meaning of words. To a greater extent, sentence construction is a challenge
to him since he is not in a position to comprehend simple words.
When under pressure, Alex is reported to stutter and stammer. This happens in dyslexia
individuals because communication is encoded in pictures in the brain. Since dyslexic
individuals tend to lack a comprehension of the pictures, they end up losing speech ability when
they are under pressure. This makes it difficult for them to speak out their feelings, thoughts and

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ideas on given topics of discussion (Identifying dyslexia with confirmatory latent profile analysis
2019). This further affects their personality since most of the dyslexic individuals who get to
know their disability will become introverted and avoid all sorts of communication.
Alex's parents report resentfulness and being sulky. He appears angry most of the time
and unpleasant to people. These habits displayed by Alex characterize hyperactivity. In school,
he is reported to dodge his reading turn by either going out of the class or turning the whole
reading process into a laughing session in the classroom. He is also reported that he avoids
reading by lying down on the ground and uncontrollably laughing when he is asked to read. He
displays a lot of energy in engaging in joking activities and distracting others as well. At home,
he usually finds an excuse to avoid reading when his mother tries to engage him. He completely
has no interest in books since he generally has the difficulty of reading the texts. He breaks his
pen and pencil to avoid undertaking any schoolwork activities, but when texts are read to him, he
appears to comprehend more than when he is asked to read alone.
Low self-esteem is a great challenge that Alex is experiencing. This is evident in the
numerous and frequent questions he asks his mother concerning his inability to read and the
reason he is differently placed in reading groups while his peers are in other groups (Keyan,
2017). Mispronunciation of words, misreading and omission or substitution of words contributes
to Alex doubting his capabilities and frequently viewing the self as unable, weak and stupid. His
behavior of excusing himself when it is his turn to read is an expression of trying to avoid
embarrassment as a result of his inability to read words and sentences. The self-esteem issues
result in him breaking his pencil or pen when he is given work to do. This is because his letters
and are poorly shaped his writings wobbly and most often his letters are mere scribbles on paper

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like those of an infant. He tries to maintain his esteem by totally avoiding reading, and in cases
where he is fixed, he tumbles to the ground laugh and makes fun an aspect that makes the teacher
to send him out of the classroom to ensure he does not waste other student’s time. He labors in
reading to no avail since he can correctly read a word in a sentence then wrongly read it in the
sentences that follow. This affects his self-esteem and worth thus he results to behaving
otherwise. Of late he has been reported to be self-effacing, has given up trying some of the things
he used to and has developed an attitude that he can’t make it (Stagg, Eaton & Sjoblom, 2018).
He has also developed a personal negative slogan that the efforts he puts on issues to do with his
education are not worth it.
Strengths and Interests
The comprehension ability of Alex is better when compared with other students with
dyslexia. This is because when at peace and without pressure, he can read short passages silently
and answer questions based on the clues provided such as pictures, filling gaps in between words
and following simple guidelines such as arrows showing the opposite word, meaning or
synonym. His comprehension is reported to be much better when short passages are read to him
since, at these instances, he can fully understand the concepts and also able to answer questions.
He is also able to retain much of the details when a recorded text is given to him to listen or
when texts a re-read to him while listening (Goldstein & Obrzut, 2011). Decoding texts is the
only main challenge that affects Alex's comprehension otherwise as per the reports he is better
off.

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A higher level of understanding and creativity is evident in the case of Alex. This is
because his mother reports that during his free time, Alex spends most of his time making model
airplanes. A mentally incapacitated child is not able to creatively think in such lines of making
something. Since children learn from observation, Alex has been able over a period to observe
the features of planes thus able to retain the pictures which he dramatically translates into
personal work and creation. Dyslexia varies differently with individuals; therefore if a dyslexic
child is not written off by the society, they can do some things that other normal children are not
able to (Law & Cupples, 2017). This signifies that when Alex is given a chance for self-
development in the innovation sector, he can successfully make items under minimal guidance
and supervision. Ability to translate happenings and observations in the normal environment is
not purely a disorder among dyslexic individuals.
Dyslexia being a difficulty in a single entity academically does not mean that a child is
mentally handicapped, incapacitated or insane. In its classification dyslexia is placed under
specific learning difficulties which connote that besides such a difficulty an individual has got
other abilities (Mankuyio, 2018). Alex has great cognitive abilities as evident from his mothers
report that he can solve complex puzzles. This, therefore, connotes that Alex has special
problem-solving skills which he can use to better his life. His ability to synthesize and identify
an answer to a complex puzzle shows that Alex's concentration is very high and when given
tasks which he likes, he will be able to perform well in those specific tasks. Forcing him to study
what he simply does not understand will make no impact to him; instead it will continue to
torment him.
Interventions and Recommended Actions

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The abilities of the dyslexic student should be tested by giving him plenty of time to
complete the work given and at the same time ensure minimal pressure. Simpler ways should
also be identified to encourage the student to remain focused on completing the work given.
Referrals to institutions of special education are one of the best alternatives since the self-esteem
of the student will be higher due to minimal competition (Kleij, Segers, Groen & Verhoeven,
2017). Alex's parents can consider referral as the best alternative for their son since he has begun
giving up and frequently asking questions based on self-comparison with his peers.
Other associated impairments such as hearing impairment and visual problems should be
checked. The check up on these factors is very important since the teacher will be able to know
where the sitting position of the learner should be (Hebert, Kearns, Hayes, Bazis & Cooper,
2018). The teacher in cases where either of the impairments would be present alongside dyslexia
will be able to articulate his or her voice for the hearing impaired and repeat statements for the
learner to understand. Board writings would also be adjusted, and the visually impaired dyslexic
student would sit near the board to be able to see (Baer, 2015). The interventions of a speech
therapist will also be of significant importance since the student will learn how to speak
appropriately and use words properly.
Reading and spelling Intervention Plan
Use of multisensory learning activities is important in teaching dyslexic students. The
students will be able to synthesize and interpret information when they use their sensory organs
such as touching alongside seeing and hearing. Assistive technology tools (Raey,2019), such as
spelling checkers and line readers can be of great help since the learner will be able to key in a
wrongly spelled word and the grammar checker will automatically give the correct spellings.

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Line readers will help the learner to maintain a single line when reading thus minimizes
confusion over repeating the same sentence. Cloze procedure can be employed by ensuring
before the lesson; the dyslexic student is given a sheet containing all the key lesson information
(Raph and Philomenna 2017). This will enhance learners understanding and will also enable him
or her to remain focused on the lesson. Educational games can also be a good idea to help the
dyslexic student to understand the key points of the lesson. The games should be relevant and
restricted such that the learner will only access what is important in that particular lesson.
Time scale
The time frame to undertake such interventions will depend on the improvement seen in
the learner. For instance self-esteem issues will be handled first by ensuring there is minimal
competition between the dyslexic student and the rest. This will be achieved through simplifying
work for the dyslexic and extrinsically motivating the dyslexic student (Representational Bias in
the Radial Axis in Children With Dyslexia 2019).. The outcomes should then be tested by giving
a few objective questions to the student and slowly adjusting time to fit in the normal schedule
for the given work. Baseline of skills at the entry point will be established by giving the learners
some activities both physical and academic to undertake and then placement (Nakeel, 2013) is
done based on the outcome.
Summary and Recommendations
Dyslexia connotes a difficulty in a specific learning area but does not completely suggest
mental retardation. Early interventions are generally important because appropriate actions are
provoked; therefore no time wasted. Proper placement will, therefore, be done early an aspect

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that will minimize the risk of self-esteem issues. For schools that accommodate such students,
early identification must be done to place the learners in their special groups. In cases where
referrals are necessary, schools and teachers should not hesitate to suggest to parents since some
may not exactly be aware of what the issue might be. Suitable learning activities should be
established to ensure the interests of the dyslexic learners are catered for. Parents should be
advised on the requirements that can improve the learning process of students with this
difficulty.

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