What Is Dyslexia?

What is dyslexia? This is a term that came about in 1877 by a German doctor to describe patients who had “word blindness.”  European and British researchers recorded case studies, examining children with high intelligence, who did well in all academic subjects but struggled to learn how to read.  In 1925, Dr. Samuel Orton, a neuropathologist from Iowa, presented a paper for the American Neurological Association.  Dr. Orton was one the first researchers to promote phonics instruction for students with dyslexia and it is still the approach used today.

Since 1877, we have learned much more about the condition of dyslexia or language based learning disabilities.  Dr. Sally Shaywitz, author of Overcoming Dyslexia is recognized as the international expert on dyslexia.  She is the co-founder and co-director of the Yale Center for Dyslexia and Creativity.  Dr. Shaywitz conducted the landmark studies using Functional MRI’s to observe blood flow in the brain of typical readers and readers who were diagnosed with dyslexia.  She was able to observe these 2 groups actually reading and could track the different neural paths in real time.

Other information we know about dyslexia is that it is a hereditary condition, which means it runs in families.  Scientists have done research and have identified the genetic code of dyslexia.  Dyslexia is an equal opportunity diagnosis.  People all over the world, no matter what language they speak, can have a language based learning disability.  In addition, dyslexia is a diagnosis shared by folks of all intellectual levels and backgrounds.  

How many people have dyslexia?  It depends on who is asked. The Yale Center for Dyslexia and Creativity says, “Dyslexia affects 20 percent of the population and represents 80–90 percent of all those with learning disabilities.”  According to the International Dyslexia Association, 15-20% of the population is impacted  by dyslexia.  Another interesting statistic is that 30% of the people with dyslexia can also have the diagnosis of ADHD.

Stay tuned for the next installment about dyslexia!

Good free references for more information about dyslexia are: dyslexiaida.org & dyslexia.yale.edu.