Dyslexia

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Dyslexia (from Latin legere "read" and ancient Greek ἀσθένεια astheneia " weakness ", ie reading weakness) - officially reading and spelling disorder, also reading and spelling disorder, reading and spelling weakness, reading and spelling difficulties or called abbreviated LRS - is the massive and long-lasting disruption of the acquisition of written language ( written language ). Dyslexics have problems with the implementation of spoken into written language and vice versa. The cause of a genetic predisposition, problems with auditory and visual perception processing, during the processing of language and especially in phonological awareness are accepted. The disorder occurs in isolated and expected retardant, ie, the written language problems arise, without that there is a plausible explanation as general intellectual deficit or inadequate schooling. The Federal Association of dyslexia and dyscalculia assumes that 4 percent of the students are affected by dyslexia in Germany. With early detection, the problem can usually be compensated; the later therapy begins, the lower the achievable effects usually.

Appearance

According to ICD -10, the international classification of mental disorders by the World Health Organization, a distinction is made between

Reading and spelling disorder ( F81.0 ),
Isolated spelling disorder ( F81.1 ),
Mathematics disorder ( F81.2 ) and
A combined disorder of scholastic skills ( F81.3; impairment of reading, writing and arithmetic ).

At the beginning of reading acquisition problems when reciting the alphabet, naming letters or the formation of rhymes can occur. Later, reading problems, which may take the form of show:

Skipping, twisting or adding words or parts of words
Low reading speed
Substituting letters, syllables and words
Start difficulties in reading, long hesitation or loss of the line in the text
Interchanging of words in the sentence or of letters in words
Difficulties in diphthongs

Likewise, you may experience problems in reading comprehension, which manifest themselves as follows:

Inability to reproduce Visited to draw conclusions from what is read circuits or to see relationships
Use general knowledge instead of text information when answering questions

These reading and spelling errors are not only typical for children with dyslexia. All children who are learning to read and write do, initially the same mistakes in different large extent. In most children, however, these problems are increasing very rapidly and eventually largely disappear. Children with dyslexia make the error much more frequently and the problems remain stable over time. Striking is particularly pleased that the error can hardly recognize Constance: Neither is it possible to identify stable error profiles, nor is there a specific classification of errors. One and the same word is always spelled differently wrong.

Even if a Dyslexia can not be diagnosed based on the error types, a subdivision of the error in the following types of errors has yet therapeutic point of view proved helpful.

Phonemfehler as violations of the phonetically accurate spelling ( violations of the letter -sound correspondence rules, problems with the word through division: omissions, distortions, additions )
Control errors as violations of the rule-based deviations from the true spelling aloud (derivation error, Groß-/Kleinschreibungsfehler )
Memory error or Wish error as violations of the rule-based deviations
Residual error

Since it has been proven in practice, but rather to build on the strengths and weaknesses of the students and to place above all to a positive work climate, Fault observations should be carried out discreetly and in the background.

Cause

The emergence of dyslexia variety of causes can contribute, where various factors interact in most cases. On the other hand, lead individual influences, such as a genetic predisposition does not necessarily lead to the emergence of a learning disorder, but can be compensated by means of preventive measures in preschool and more intensive support throughout the education and training time.

Currently, among others, the following causes are discussed:

Diagnostics

If there is a suspicion of dyslexia, it seemed necessary to exclude organic causes such as the presence of a hearing or visual defect ( sensory impairments ). For this purpose, the child of appropriate specialists needs to be investigated. With parents unfavorable environment should be investigated, such as the presence of mental and psychological stress, for example due to a separation of the parents, inappropriate pressure to perform domestic work and living situation of the television watching, etc., may under certain circumstances identified already at this point causes of the performance problem and be resolved.

If no cause of the trouble to be found, should be recognized as Next, both the power status of the child as well as the performance profile. To this end, there is a whole series of standardized procedures by which the child's performance can be assessed very carefully.

To distinguish between general problems in written language and the partial power failure dyslexia, the power is used in an intelligence test in addition to performance in reading and spelling tests as well. A dyslexia is diagnosed when at low power of written language there is a significantly higher intelligence performance. In general, the test value of the written language tests is 1.5 standard deviations ( -1.5 s ) below the age-appropriate power determined on the basis of IQ, or in more recent publications using a regression approach. This Diskrepanzkriterien are the subject of heated debate, as generally poor readers, children do not differ in their error profiles of dyslexics and equally benefit both groups regardless of the intelligence of support measures. The DSM -V ( p. 73) waived this Diskrepanzkriterium and only includes the area of cognitive intellectual deficit from, unless the reading and spelling skills are very evident in this case below the other school performance. As a result, there is at least in the English language does not distinguish between a general reading and spelling weakness and a reading and spelling disorder ( dyslexia ). All children without distinction Instead, with literacy problems under the diagnostic category "Specific Learning Disorder " ( = learning disorder ) with the subcategories 315.00 " With impairment in reading" and 315.2 collectively " With impairment in written expression ." The extent to which taking place at the moment revision of the German guidelines by the control body of the guideline development " Diagnosis and treatment of reading and spelling disorder " will follow this trend, is at present unclear ( see also criticism of dyslexia construct).

Prevention and treatment

Dyslexia can be very effectively treated or the learning situation can be improved if it is detected early. The most successful preventive measures before the actual written language acquisition or the first grade year. These preventive measures are based on the diagnosis and promote phonological awareness. Ideally, potential problems are identified and addressed before problems in the acquisition of written language occur at all in appearance.

Stay persistent problems in the written language exist in a child, it should be made as early as possible to begin the promotion. Interventions exert their greatest effect in the first two years of primary school, then the problems become chronic quickly. There are many effective methods that can lead, depending on the age of the child and the individual symptoms to improvements in reading and / or spelling ability. Most but not your average literacy level is reached and are made in a subset of children the problems in spite of intensive, long-term funding continues. In these cases, the actions of the student affected by school music printing priority (see " dyslexia, society and schools "). Since dyslexia is often accompanied by a massive secondary problems such as school phobia, be complemented by additional psychological intervention is often necessary. The treatment of concomitant disorders includes, among other things:

Degradation of performance-related fears and construction of learning motivation, concentration and relaxation exercises, the development of self-help methods, techniques of error control and self-affirmation
Practice of coping strategies: processing error experience and failure experiences
Treatment of specific psychopathological symptoms such as school phobia, enuresis or antisocial development.

Due to the variety of approaches we refer at this point to an overview of evidence-based approaches to the Ministry of Culture Austria. According to the recommendations of the Federation of dyslexia and Suchodoletz following approaches should be considered more critical:

Functional Training
Training to improve the space - position - lability
Training of visuomotor coordination ( not to be confused with a view training)
Improve coordination of the hemispheres ( Edu Kinestetik )
Psycho Motor-driven training
Cybernetic method
Tactile - kinesthetic method

School and law

The correct mastery of the written language applies in today's society as an element of education and intelligence. Children and young people with dyslexia were stigmatized as stupid or lazy, long time they were a higher education fails.

The need to regulate the consideration of dyslexia in school law, in 1985 first recognized by Schleswig -Holstein, which sat as one of the first states the so-called dyslexia decree in force, in which students diagnosed with reading and spelling disorder extensive rights were granted to including time penalties of up to 50 % and touch protection for written work. The Ministers of Education (KMK ) in 2003 "Principles for promoting pupils with specific difficulties with reading and writing or numeracy " decided and revised in 2007. Today, every state has its own laws to how to deal with written language problems in school. These rules vary greatly from state to state, so it is necessary to be able to work specific to the relevant provisions.

Regarding the possibilities for taking account of dyslexia in school exams is legally usually between disadvantage and compensation of non - assessment of spelling, so-called " grade protection" differentiated. The disadvantage of compensation, particularly in the form of extra time in examinations is legally widely recognized. In contrast, the non- assessment of spelling ability is legally very controversial. In all states it is provided that is a testimony remark noted on the certificates if the spelling is not rated. Whether such testimony is admissible remark, is currently the subject of a process before the Bavarian Administrative Court. In addition to the disadvantage of balancing and so-called " grade protection" regulate many countries decrees special educational measures in schools, for example, targeted, individual support as a supplement to normal classes, orientation of the funding offer at the individual level of development and performance profile of each student or each student.

Addition to the school law, which governs the consideration of dyslexia in school, and the social law is relevant, which can affect both academic regulations, as well as the opportunities and conditions governs a non-school promotion and the payment thereof. In addition to the academic promotion, or if the school funding options have been exhausted, there is the possibility of the payment of an extra-curricular dyslexia therapy according to § 35a Social Code ( SGB) Book Eight (VIII ) - Children and Youth Services - to request the competent local youth welfare office. This is, depending on the province, to various conditions attached ( part of the student and also the therapeutic power ).

Criticism of dyslexia construct

The concept of dyslexia was undisputed at any time. Neither in Germany nor in the international sphere Zielinski (1998, p.108) saw for example in Diskrepanzdefiniton a metrological artifact without clear contours, its usefulness in addition strongly could be in question. Shaywitz et al. (1996, pp. 212) complained that the Diskrepanzdefinition fulfill more administrative requirements, but for many performing an arbitrary exclusion criterion for funding measures. The criticisms in detail:

It is undisputed that there are children who are slowly developing in the written language and make more errors than average. An empirical evidence for distinctness of children with a discrepancy between IQ and written language performance ( dyslexia ) and without discrepancy ( general reading and spelling ) but there is not at this time.

Statements and statements of policy and of associations

Dyslexia definition accepted by the British Parliament

In public, we repeatedly degrading remarks about dyslexia, and even some professionals provide officially the question of whether one can not do without the allegedly stigmatizing term, as this is now overcome but over time and through "non- right - read - and - write - able " could be replaced. This anti dyslexia attitude culminated in the UK in a television program entitled " The Myth dyslexia ", which was criticized by many adult dyslexics and by the British Dyslexia Association. Then a full debate in the House of Lords took place on 7 December 2005, Lord Adonis was asked as representatives of Parliament and Minister of Education in the, to take a clear position on the problems of dyslexic people.

Lord Adonis finally stressed that the British Parliament sees dyslexia as a learning complex neurological condition and that people with dyslexia need to be supported especially to learn reading and writing and to develop the all-important for the school and continued success text comprehension. He referred to one of the British Psychological Society in 1999 compiled and accepted by Parliament definition, can build on the professionals, without further burdening themselves with unproductive arguments:

" A dyslexia is apparently when accurate superfluous word read or write does not develop completely or only with great difficulty. In the heart of this is a serious and persistent problem with reading and writing skills at the word level despite adequate schooling. This is the basis for a stepwise very closely to monitor the learning process. "

In this debate it was pointed out that a large part of school failure and also of prison inmates has dyslexic investments to which you did not respond early and adequately enough and that it the state will cost a lot more money later to develop appropriate social programs, as directly to address these learning disabilities. It was also said that the resulting treatment costs are often very high and hardly can be worn by all parents.

Aids for dyslexic students

Each dyslexic student has different strengths and weaknesses, to which one can respond with specific tools and technologies. There are no universally applicable solution for all problems, but a careful selection of the right equipment and appropriate software will allow each offender easier to develop compensatory strategies in order to thus work independently in the long run can.

Measures to support dyslexic students:

Furthermore, hearing aids in use, which are connected to a microphone of the teacher and reinforce the teacher's voice, but not ambient noise in the classroom. These hearing aids are used to improve the auditory perception and reading ability.

Similar disturbances

Dyscalculia - developmental delay of mathematical skills
Dyslexia - problems with reading comprehension