Web+2.0+Tools+for+Dyslexia

The article I read on dyslexia was thirty pages long so I have written a summary on it. Through the years I have taught several dyslexic students, some slight and others severe, and I am always searching for ways to help them. My summary begins with a **brief** history of the disability, continues with the best method to help these students, and concludes with Web 2.0 tools that can assist these students.
 * Web 2.0 Tools For Dyslexic Learners?

In the 1920's scientist Samuel T. Orren researched children who confused the letter "b" for "d" and read from right to left. He concluded that a brain defect was not responsible, but a deviation in the development of the brain were the possible causes and he worked on methods to remediate the brain. (Von Euler, 2002). His theory was not taken seriously because most scientists at the time believed that one common function in the brain controlled all activity. Orton died in 1948 and it wasn't until 1963 that his theory was officially recognized in the scientific world. Dyslexia results from neurologically based problems, causing difficulties in identifying written words due to poor cognitive skills, but **it is not connected to the intelligence of an individual**. Advances in research using MRIs proved Orton's theory correct; both the left and right hemispheres of the brain process reading.

Another extremely interesting fact I learned is that fourth grade is the time when dyslexia really shows up. When dyslexic students are younger they rely on memorization to mask their problems and this is easier because they are reading short sentences and don't have many sight words. In fourth grade a reader comes across 3-4000 new words a year and they can no longer memorize that many new words and this is why they can no longer pretend they are reading. I found this very interesting because our fourth grade teacher is always complaining how he gets students and they cannot read. I kept wondering how these students were falling through the cracks, and now I realize there were no cracks in the lower grades, but the grand canyon opens up in fourth grade.

From this article I learned that Web 2.0 tools are not a cure for dyslexia, but can assist in keeping a student from being lost in words and losing interest in school. **Books on tape are not the answer to teaching students to** //read//; what is the crucial factor is recognizing the delay in speech and fluency as early as possible. Then the process that has shown the most consistent positive results is using approaches that focus **//on repeated oral reading//** with feedback and guidance.

Web 2.0 assistive technologies such as print to speech and speech to print are a necessity for dyslexic students to keep up with their classmates and spark intellectual curiosity. These students are highly susceptible to noise and must have a quiet learning environment. Headphones to drown out distracting noises would help these students concentrate and be beneficial. Other Web 2.0 tools are podcasts for assignment instructions and audio as a means to present assignments. The other assistive technology I would try is high contrast on the screen.

Sources:

Von Euler, C. (2002). Dyslexia: How it started and some of the steps towards the present. In E. Hjelmquist & C. Von Euler (Eds.). Dyslexia & Literacy. (pp. 16-21). London: Whurr Publishers.

Annual Review of Psychol. 2008. The Education of Dyslexic Children from Childhood to Young Adulthood 59:451–75. Retrieved August 3, 2010, from http://brainvitge.org/papers/shaywitz2008hl.pdf. || Comment by charissa Kraus Jody, this was a great article, very insightful. I too work with lots of students with Dyslexia. I had no idea that there was not a cure, just assistance to help them cope. I was also not aware that books on tape are not the answer for these students. I completely agree that early detection would be the most beneficial. I am going to use some of the ideas you mentioned like the headphones this next year ad see if it seems to help. Thanks again.