A large part of a human’s life is spent in the classroom. The school years of a child are largely responsible for making their character and personality. You’re lucky if you have been bestowed with normal faculties and a smart working brain that helps you to compete with your peers. But if the wiring in the brain is such that it does not allow you to keep up, well, you would need special care, early identification of the problem and maybe experts and medical assistance. A struggle for the parents, no doubt but not an impossible task.
Having studied Child Development and also having taught middle schoolers for a good number of years, I have come across students with learning disabilities. Sadly all schools do not have the facilities to take proper care for such children. Learning how to teach children with learning disabilities is a daunting task. One cannot slow the process of teaching to meet their level in a class where the dyslexic is obviously a minority, and if one has a separate class for them, it can be demoralizing and embarrassing for the child, where they start living a life burdened with shame. So they go from one class to the other labeled as ‘dumb’, or ‘silly’ and whatnot where their self-esteem takes a hit. Teachers could be mean with dyslexics, because of the lack of understanding of the problem. It is heartbreaking to see this..why? Because I do understand that they do not lack intelligence but the ability to process words and letters properly. Bright and intelligent children too can be afflicted with this disability. We need to understand that they just learn differently. There are ways of making them stay abreast of their peers. It’s important for us to see the world through their eyes and understand it through their brain.
There are certain neurobiological variations in the brain that makes people dyslexic. There are and have been many brilliant people that have made their mark in society who are dyslexic. Therefore intervention and careful, patient, and caring guidance can help them decode this dilemma, improving their abilities. In short, the challenges the children face in reading and decoding words and alphabets, can be met. It is the collective responsibility of the school and the home to build the confidence of such children so that they don’t either drop out of school or take to deviant ways.
There is more to what dyslexia is but here are a few ways they can be identified: a) the disability to read and spell is one obvious way that they can be identified. b) They have a problem with retaining information, which could make their learning very slow. c) They could take a long time to finish their work. d) They may be talented in engineering, arts, games, drama or music and more. e) They learn best with visual aids or demonstrations.
It is the duty of the teachers to educate the parents on the methodology of teaching dyslexic children. They need positive reinforcement on a daily basis. They need to know that they are as empowered as anyone else and can be exceptionally successful people. A little effort can go a long way in the life of a child.
“Society would be much poorer without people who think differently,” says Alan Raymond. So true when we talk about people with dyslexia.
I came across this beautifully crafted poem by a dyslexic, which went viral on the net after it was shared by her teacher. The letter is very creatively put where it can be read both ways, from the top as well as the bottom. The meaning it gives is completely contrasting.
MYSTORYMYWAY 