Dyslexia and Hyperlexia
Dyslexia
"Dyslexia is a learning disorder characterized by difficulty reading. Also called specific reading disability (SRD), dyslexia is a common learning disability in children. Dyslexia occurs in children with normal vision and intelligence. Sometimes, dyslexia goes undiagnosed for years and isn't recognized until adulthood."
"There's no cure for dyslexia. It's a lifelong condition caused by inherited traits that affect how your brain works. However, most children with dyslexia can succeed in school with tutoring or a specialized education program. Emotional support also plays an important role." Mayo Clinic.
Children with dyslexia tend to be highly sociable, have high comprehension in reading, low decoding skills and can have low self-esteem. Dyslexia can be associated with ADHD but students can be taught to overcome most of their learning hurdles. MakeLearningHappen.com
Hyperlexia
"Hyperlexia is a condition in which the main characteristics are an above normal ability to read accompanied with a below normal ability to understand spoken language. The symptoms are closely related to those of autism and some consider it to be an autism spectrum disorder whereas others contest it to be a completely different condition." K-12 Acadmics.
Children with hyperlexia typically have poor social skills, low comprehension in reading, high decoding skills and can have low self-esteem. It can be difficult to make reading gains. A top down approach should be used with students that have hyperlexia. MakeLearningHappen.com
Two Theories of Dyslexia
Dyslexia is commonly understood to be “a hereditary neurological disorder” with universal incidences specifically in reading. The article by Ramus (2001) titled Dyslexia Talk of Two Theories describes two different theories, the first is the “Phonological-Deficiency Theory” and the second is the “Magnocellular Theory.”
The phonological-deficiency theory describes a person with dyslexia having trouble recalling basic speech sounds (phonemes) that correspond to what they are visually seeing on paper. They may see the word “cat” but have a difficult time accessing the sounds that the letters ‘c’, ‘a’ and ‘t’ make alone or in combination. Their brain can’t easily map the letters to the sounds that go with them. This breakdown in neurological function greatly impedes a student from making the same growth in reading as their similar aged peers. Phonological-deficiency theorists would argue that dyslexia’s causality is purely the idea of phonological breakdown within the brain (Ramus, 2001).
The alternative theory called the “magnocellular theory” doesn’t refute that there is a phonological breakdown, but argues there may also be subtle sensory defects in people with dyslexia as well. There is evidence that the brains of some people with dyslexia have “subtle neurological abnormalities” in both visual and auditory sensory areas. Magnocellular theorists believe that the phonological problems may be “caused by basic deficiency in hearing sounds, and that visual deficit might independently contribute to reading problems” (Ramus, 2001).
The article by Ramus (2001) continues by stating that the magnocellular theory is itself being challenged. There have been additional studies where “auditory processing [in people with dyslexia] has not been found to be impaired.” Those in the study who had both auditory problems and dyslexia were only around one-third of the subjects. While sensory deficiencies show up in people with dyslexia, the “prevalence and significance of such deficits remain uncertain” (Ramus, 2001).
The article concludes by stating that both the phonological-deficiency and the magnocellular theory of dyslexia need further investigation. The exact nature of dyslexia and its biological cause continues to be the utmost challenge.
Ramus, Franck. (2001). Dyslexia. Talk of two theories. Nature, 412. pp. 393-395. Retrieved on January 22, 2012 from http://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00242898/en/.
Three Dominant Theories for Difficulties in Learning to Read
Three psychological theories on dyslexia are prominent, dealing with phonological awareness, processing speed and orthography of the language. Discover three main theories on dyslexia with tips from a recognized scholar of dyslexia treatment in this free video on learning disabilities.
Dr. Diane J. Sawyer is the holder of the Chair of Excellence in Dyslexic Studies and an internationally recognized scholar in the field of reading.
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