Dyslexia FAQ’s

The impact that dyslexia has is different for each person and depends on the severity of the condition and the effectiveness of instruction or remediation. The core difficulty is with getting to the sounds of spoken words which leads to a range of predictable difficulties in both spoken and written language. Spoken Language: People with dyslexia have problems with spoken language, even after they have been exposed to good language models in their homes and good language instruction in school. They may find it difficult to express themselves clearly, or to rapidly find the word they mean to say, especially when placed in high anxiety producing situations such as oral exams or when called upon in class. It is important that parents and teachers and oral examiners are aware of these word retrieval difficulties so that children who know what they want to say but can’t retrieve the correct word are not unduly penalized. Written Language: Dyslexic students have difficulty getting to the sounds of spoken words. Dyslexia interferes with attaching the letters in a word to the individual sound(s) they represent- a process necessary in order to sound out an unknown word. As a result, children who are dyslexic experience difficulties decoding words, reading words automatically and rapidly (fluently) and spelling. Many individuals with dyslexia especially when provided with excellent and early instruction learn to read though their reading remains slow and laborious. It is critical that these dyslexic readers are provided with evidence-based effective interventions early on and with accommodations such as the provision of extra time. This extra time is critical during the whole life of a dyslexic student especially for high stakes tests including college, graduate and professional school entrance exams.

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