Five Reasons to Provide Dyslexia Training for Teachers

Dyslexia* is a language-based learning disability and refers to a cluster of symptoms which result in people having difficulties with specific language skills, particularly reading. Students with dyslexia usually experience difficulties with other language skills such as spelling, writing, and even pronouncing words.

Being diagnosed with dyslexia can be a traumatic experience for both the student and parents/guardians. The road to a rewarding education for a student with dyslexia is rarely, if ever, a straight line. However, having an effective system in place to identify those at risk, particularly early on, if possible, will assure students with dyslexia the same chance of success as anyone else.

While dyslexia can make reading more difficult, with the proper instruction and strategies in place, individuals with dyslexia can learn to excel at reading comprehension. Many people with dyslexia have gone on to accomplish great things. Among the many dyslexia success stories are John Lennon, Stephen Spielberg, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and Charles Schwab, to name a few.

Dyslexia is a condition that affects an individual’s development of literacy skills, particularly reading, spelling, and writing. It is neurobiological in origin and not related to a deficit in intelligence, lack of effort, or environmental factors. Additionally, dyslexia is found equally in males and females.

Because all states are now beginning to expect schools to screen, diagnose, and intervene for students with dyslexia, educators need to understand the disability to effectively teach students who are diagnosed with it.

Supporting Dyslexia in the Classroom

According to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), dyslexia is categorized as a specific learning disability (SLD), a term used to describe children who have a disability in reading, writing, or math. SLD is used when identifying a student as eligible for special education services.

Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) are pivotal in addressing the unique educational needs of students with disabilities in K-12 education, including those with SLDs. These personalized plans are carefully crafted to ensure that each student receives the necessary instruction, support, and services to thrive in an educational setting.

General education teachers may have a basic understanding of dyslexia but would also benefit from additional knowledge and training to better provide effective learning solutions and environments for students with dyslexia. Diagnosed and undiagnosed students with dyslexia are often mistaken for having other SLDs because most general education teachers lack the comprehensive knowledge and training to properly identify dyslexia.

Supporting dyslexia in the classroom is essential, and five reasons to provide dyslexia training to teachers include:

1.      The Prevalence of Dyslexia

It is suggested that dyslexia is the most common learning disability, affecting 15-20% of the population worldwide. It is therefore safe to assume that all classrooms at every educational level will include students who have dyslexia. Similarly, this also suggests that there is a need for teachers of all grade levels to be properly prepared to support the academic needs of students with dyslexia. Unfortunately, many teachers and school staff remain uncertain in their understanding of key features of dyslexia, how to recognize it, and how to support their students who are diagnosed.

2.      Overcoming Misconceptions

It is vital for general education teachers to know about common misconceptions of dyslexia. For example, a common misconception is that individuals with dyslexia see visual reversals of written language which affects their reading and comprehension. Other misconceptions about dyslexia include that it’s typically found in primary school students, it can be treated through diligent teaching efforts, and is due to a lack of exposure to literacy. Thankfully, through past research and a growing understanding of dyslexia, these misconceptions have largely been dismissed.

3.      Early Identification is Possible

It is advantageous for the student when risks of dyslexia are caught early. According to The Yale Center for Dyslexia and Creativity dyslexia can be diagnosed at a young age to provide early evidence-based instruction. Brain imaging reveals that learners with dyslexia activate different and less efficient pathways when reading. Most schools don’t have the ability to diagnose reading difficulties with neuroimaging, but parents and teachers often recognize many of the signs of dyslexia. For example, young readers with dyslexia often demonstrate difficulty with letter-sound connections, rapid automatic word recognition, and rhyming. The National Center on Improving Literacy provides a valuable infographic on possible indicators of risk for dyslexia here.

4.      Training Can Help Teachers Reach All Students

Although there are many reading interventions aimed at helping students with dyslexia, there are ways to incorporate strategies for the general classroom environment. Because of their reading difficulties, students with dyslexia are forced to compensate for their weaknesses by following their peers, verbally processing information, relying on memorization, and using experiential learning contexts. A student’s difficulty can be lessened by using a multi-dimensional approach to teaching. Online dyslexia training for teachers can develop the ability to integrate verbal, visual, and hands-on learning strategies for the entire classroom and will be beneficial to all students, but particularly those diagnosed with dyslexia.

5.      Dyslexia Can Also Come with Gifts

The definition of dyslexia should also acknowledge that those with dyslexia possess many strengths and gifts. Some researchers have found that individuals with dyslexia have important talents: mechanical abilities, visual-spatial and visual-motor skills, expansive creativity, innovative ways of thinking, entrepreneurship, intuition, imagination, holistic thinking, and an innate ability to connect with others. Informed and understanding educators can look for and encourage the gifts found in their dyslexic students.

Strengthening the Educational Foundation

It is evident today that the prevalence of dyslexia in the United States and around the world warrants a heightened awareness of providing students with dyslexia the chance to thrive and succeed in the general classroom. Through in-person or online dyslexia training for teachers and implementing strategies beneficial to all students, the evolving learning environments of our schools can strengthen the educational foundation and overall experience of those with dyslexia not only as they navigate their times as students, but throughout their lives.

*NOTE: When defining dyslexia, it is important to include two related disabilities, dysgraphia (associated with writing) and dyscalculia (associated with mathematical skills), both of which are also considered specific learning disabilities. Although these two terms differ from dyslexia, they are all three neurological conditions and are often connected.