Dyslexia in Australian schools: identifying the problem

If students can be diagnosed early, they can be assisted in the early years. This may require one to one speech therapy, and specialists assisting the child finding the best ways to learn. The key with dyslexic students is teaching them how to learn along side others. This is most desirable as it assists these students socially ingrate with people around them. Being segregated into any special needs classes may lead to social isolation in future years.

If dyslexia is not discovered and diagnosed, the child will go through school life continually struggling to understand new work. Children not knowing and understanding their disability, may just go on living with low self-esteem, because they will continue to compare themselves with others through life.

In most cases, this leads to stress, anxiety and depression in life, where they will be incorrectly treated with drugs. For example, they may be medically treated for depression, when the real problem is learning to live with their cognitive disadvantages, due to dyslexia. In addition, they may continue through life having trouble with relationships.

Dyslexia is of concern to about one in ten people. Un-diagnosed they may have trouble progressing in any career within regimented organizations, which most are. However, if they know how to compensate for their cognitive weakness, chances are they can go on and have a fulfilling career.

There is a strong positive correlation between ADHD and successful entrepreneurs. A number of studies have shown that people with ADHD can become high achievers with the energy, motivation, and give them a propensity towards action. However, ADHD may also bring impulsiveness, which could lead to recklessness. Once again diagnosis is the key, so those who have ADHD know how to cope with the behavioural traits it brings. One can build new strengths by understanding their weaknesses.

Dyslexia is a massive challenge for an already overloaded and under resourced education system. Putting the responsibility of finding and diagnosing dyslexic people by the teacher is grossly insufficient. According to the National Inquiry into the Teaching of Literacy (NITL), only 5 percent of teacher training courses in Australia devote any time to dyslexia. Special and compulsory training is needed to be incorporated within the teacher training curriculum as a minimum.

To support teachers, there must be a sufficient special education infrastructure behind them. This is made even more difficult, as the types and degrees of the dyslexic grouping requires more art than science to assist students learn how to learn, and overcome their weaknesses. There are no textbook remedies, where solutions are found through deductive problem solving. This is especially the case where these conditions when mixed together at different intensities require creative solutions.

Such an approach will assist many people live fulfilling lives. This can turn many people who might be dismissed as losers into high achievers.