Examensarbete
15 högskolepoäng
Dyslexia:
Assessment and
Examination of Dyslexic
Students
Dyslexi: Bedömning och Examination av dyslektiska
elever.
Helena Johansson
Lärarexamen 270p Handledare: Shannon Sauro
Engelska Examinator: Anna Wärnsby
Abstract
The purpose of this degree project is to address the issue of dyslexia in the language classroom. It explores how teachers understand, address and work with dyslexia in relation to assessment and examination. The research has been based on qualitative interviews conducted with three working teachers: two English teachers and one Swedish teacher who is specialized in special aid teaching. Along with a theoretical background regarding useful research, relevant terms and definitions used in the discussion concerning dyslexia, the research establishes that interviewed teachers understand what working with dyslexic learners entails. However, there is lack of insight into Skolverket (The National Agency for Education) and the actual recommended procedures when assessing and examining dyslexic learners. This research highlights the importance of giving educators the tools and strategies needed to support dyslexic students in the examination situation and how to fairly assess these students.
Table of Content
1. Introduction ... 5
Purpose of Study and Research Question ... 6
2. Theoretical Background ... 7
2.1 Definition of Dyslexia ... 7
2.2 Sub-Groups and Symptoms of Dyslexia ... 10
2.2.1 Phonological Dyslexia ... 10 2.2.2 Orthographic Dyslexia ... 11 2.2.3 Retrieval Problems ... 12 2.2.4 Deep Dyslexia ... 12 2.2.5 Mixed Dyslexia ... 13 2.2.6 Symptoms of Dyslexia ... 13 2.2.7 Misconceptions ... 14
2.3 Laws and Constitutions ... 15
3. Method ... 17
3.1 Qualitative Interview ... 17
3.2 The Interviews ... 18
3.3 Ethical Issues ... 19
3.4 Literature ... 19
3.5 The School and Participants ... 20
4. Results and Discussion ... 22
4.1 Identifying Dyslexia ... 22
4.2 Dyslexia and Examination ... 24
4.2.1 Reading Texts during Examination ... 25
4.3 Dyslexia and Assessment ... 28
4.4 Information Regarding Dyslexia ... 31
5. Conclusion ... 33
5.1 Assessment ... 33
5.2 Examination ... 34
5.3 Suggestions for further research ... 34
5.4 Limitations ... 35
5.5 Final remarks ... 35
10. Appendix 1: Interview schedule ... 39
... 40
11. Appendix 2: Intervju - Deltagare 1 ... 41
12. Appendix 3: Intervju – Deltagare 2 ... 49
1.
Introduction
In the information age of today, reading and writing play a central role. In the supermarket, at work, on the internet, we are bombarded with written texts everywhere. Furthermore, we have an educational system that is built on the premise of good reading and writing ability. It is easy to understand how someone with reading and writing difficulties is at a disadvantage to someone with average or above average reading skills. It is estimated that anywhere from 5 to 20 % of children suffer from some type of reading disability (Hultquist, 2006). Furthermore, approximately 5% of the Swedish population suffer from the specific reading and writing disability called dyslexia (Skolverket, 2011). Dyslexia is a type of learning disability that affects how well someone can read and spell (Hultquist, 2006, p. 20). Dyslexic students often face challenges in school when presented with large amounts of written text; this often leads these students to feel unmotivated. A Swedish student, Eva, explains the feeling “Imagine facing failure on a regular basis, to sit everyday and not be able to do the task in front of you...eventually you give up” (Sohlman, 2000, p. 81). As mentioned above, dyslexia is a fairly common diagnosis in the Swedish school system, yet the term ”dyslexia” is multifaceted and used to describe many symptoms. In order to help students suffering from dyslexia, teachers need to understand what it is, what causes it, and how to recognize students who may be suffering from it (Allen, 2010, p. 20).
I intend to focus on dyslexia in younger learners in compulsory school and upper secondary school. I also focus on the symptoms of dyslexia in a language educational setting and not on the chemical, neurological and specific brain functional disorder in children suffering from dyslexia. The focus will also be on language teaching: foremost, English as a second language and not on other subjects such as math or science.
This paper explores symptoms and different subgroups of dyslexia. The focus in the paper is dyslexia in an educational setting, particular language teaching, specifically English as a Second Language (ESL). Furthermore, it examines difficulties regarding examinations and assessment. Dyslexic students often feel trepidation facing an
assessment task such as a written exam. Therefore, it is important to understand what teachers can do to help the students perform optimally.
Purpose of Study and Research Question
The purpose of this degree project is to give an extended understanding of dyslexia and its place in the language classroom. I provide a clear summary of what dyslexia entails and how one might identify dyslexia in the classroom, and I also hope to contribute an understanding of difficulties regarding examination and assessment in relation to dyslexic students. I have found that this approach is lacking in the research on dyslexia.
As stated above, this research explores difficulties assessing and examine dyslexic students. I have focused on two main research questions:
• Which difficulties can teachers assessing dyslexic students in language education settings face?
• How may teachers adapt language examinations to accommodate dyslexic learners in a language education setting?
2. Theoretical Background
In order to understand the difficulties found when working with dyslexic learners one first needs to understand what dyslexia means, what it entails for learners and how one might identify a learner as dyslexic. For the purpose of developing my research I have compiled a theoretical background regarding useful research conducted, relevant terms and definitions used in the discussion concerning dyslexia.
2.1 Definition of Dyslexia
Dyslexia is a specific learning disability that is neurobiological in origin. It is characterized by difficulties with accurate and / or fluent word recognition and by poor spelling and decoding abilities. These difficulties typically result from a deficit in the phonological component of language that is often unexpected in relation to other cognitive abilities and the provision of effective classroom instruction. Secondary consequences may include problems in reading comprehension and reduced reading experience that can impede growth of vocabulary and background knowledge.
The International Dyslexia Association (IDA)
In order to truly understand dyslexia, we need to take a look at how dyslexia is defined. The definition given above is taken from The International Dyslexia Association, which was developed in 2003 from the 1994 definition in order to better fit the modern view of dyslexia. I attempt to break the definition down and give a detailed view of what characterizes dyslexia.
According to the IDA, dyslexia is defined as “a specific learning disability”. This statement identifies dyslexia as a specific learning disability in contrast of a learning disability in general terms (Lyon et al, 2003, p. 2). In the Isle of Wight study conducted in 1975, referred to in Snowling (2000), Rutter and Yule made a distinction between children suffering from specific reading difficulties and children
suffering from reading difficulties in a context of more general learning difficulties. The first group of learners is the one we classify as dyslexic (In Snowling, 2000, p. 16). Learning and reading disabilities can have many causes and dyslexia is just one of these. Sometimes, it can be difficult to understand if the student has trouble reading due to concentration difficulties (a general learning difficulty), or if the lack of concentration is a result of reading difficulties (dyslexia) (Andersson et al, 2000, p. 12). Therefore, it is important to be able to separate different symptoms and disabilities from each other.
Furthermore, the quote specifies dyslexia as neurobiological in origin. Dyslexic learners do not have issues with hearing, eyesight or intelligence but rather with how the brain registers and understands language (Skolverker.se, 2011). The origin of dyslexia has been discussed among scientists, and there have been different opinions regarding what causes dyslexia. Some scientists are of the opinion that dyslexia is an effect of upbringing and/or the pedagogical climate at the school the student attends. Others, who share the more acknowledged view today, are of the opinion that dyslexia is neurobiological in origin (Sohlman, 2000, p. 72). The neurobiological origin of dyslexia was suspected over a century ago in 1891 by the French neurologist Dejerine. He suggested that the left posterior brain region was essential for reading. Today, we can support Dejerines claim that this part of the brain is active when reading and that there are differences in brain functions between dyslexic and unimpaired readers (Lyon et al, 2003, p. 3). These theories have been supported by investigations on post mortem brain specimen, brain morphometry and diffusion tensor MRI imaging. The latter, which allows scientists to examine the different brain functions with the help of magnetic resonance imaging (or MRI for short), has had a great impact on the study of dyslexia since it allows scientists to examine the brain while a person performs cognitive tasks. These methods have provided convincing evidence of the neurobiological origin of dyslexia (Lyon et al, 2003, p. 3).
The definition has been expanded to include difficulties with accurate word recognition, decoding abilities, an inability to read fluently and poor spelling as symptoms of dyslexia, this is in contrast to the older definition from 1994 which simply referred to "difficulties in single word decoding" (Lyon et al, 2003, p. 6). In effect, this means that the newer definition identifes a wider range of symptoms of dyslexia. In short, one might say that dyslexic people have trouble identifying words, pronouncing
pseudo words, have a hard time spelling, which in turn is immediately related to their inability to read fluently (Lyon et al, 2003, p. 6).
These difficulties typically result from a deficit in the phonological component of language. Phonology is the sound structures in our languages. It is perceived as the relationship between sounds and how sounds create words in sentences, syllabuses and rhyming (Allen, 2010, p. 21). Phonological awareness is the understanding of how well a person’s brain can make sense of the sounds that the language is composed of (Hultquist, 2006, p. 20). Phonological awareness permits the reader to make connections between text in writing and the related speech unit that it is connected to. By understanding that all words can be broken down into these basic elements of phonological segments, the reader will be able to decipher the reading code. Studies show, however, that the dyslexic child lacks the phonological awareness associated with reading decoding (Lyon et al, 2003, p. 7). Lyon et al (2003) noted that this deficit in phonological awareness presents the greatest obstacle in a dyslexic student’s ability to learn how to read (p. 7). A phonological deficit has a number of consequences, not all of them related directly to reading and writing. A dyslexic learner might have problems with verbal imitations, verbal short term memory, naming difficulties and poor repetition ability (Snowling, 2000, p. 35).
Another aspect of the definition is unexpectedness. Allen (2010) stated that unexpectedness refers to “children and adults who seem to have all the factors necessary to become good readers such as intelligence, motivation, and reasonable reading instruction, yet they still struggle to read” (p. 20). There has been a great deal of discussion regarding unexpectedness, and the IDA committee wanted to maintain the idea of unexpected underachievement. They did not, however, want to maintain the idea that the word recognition ability of dyslexic children must be lower than their measured IQ. In fact, Shaywitz (2003) noted "There is an emerging consensus among researchers and clinicians that the dependence on a discrepancy between IQ and reading achievement for a diagnosis of dyslexia has outlived its usefulness..." (in Lyon et al, 2003, p. 137). It is important to point out that students suffering from dyslexia have just as wide a range of intelligence as do the rest of the population. However, it can be easier to detect a dyslexic student that appears to be performing under his/her ability (Thompson, 2009, p. 6). Today the unexpectedness is found in the comparison of reading age and/or comparing reading ability with educational level (Lyon et al, 2003, p. 8).
The last part of the definition refers to a dyslexic student’s ability to comprehend the content of texts. The inability to read fluently and accurately as a consequence of phonological disability impairs the student from fully understanding the meaning of a text when reading (Lyon et al, 2003, p. 9). This may lead to a lessened motivation and may result in the student reading less and less, which may eventually effect his/hers vocabulary and background knowledge (Allen, 2010, p. 22).
2.2 Sub-Groups and Symptoms of Dyslexia
In this section, I intend to further investigate the term dyslexia and explore different sub-groups and symptoms of dyslexia. Identifying dyslexia is not always a simple task. Allen (2010) noted that identifying a student with dyslexia is not as easy as it would seem. There is not one “magical test” to diagnose a student with dyslexia; rather one may need to collect information from many different parts of the student’s life and history (p. 20). Furthermore, dyslexia is a multifaceted term, and scientists do not seem to agree on terminology; we can find many sub-groups under the heading of dyslexia. In a number of books, dyslexia is used as an umbrella term, and at times, different scholars use different names of the different sub-groups. Hultquist (2006) has identified five different sub-groups: phonological dyslexia, orthographic dyslexia, retrieval problems, deep dyslexia and mixed forms of dyslexia. In this section, I intend to explore Hultquist’s five sub-groups further.
2.2.1 Phonological Dyslexia
Some dyslexic students have difficulties understanding and using sounds and phonemes that make up words. These students often suffer from an impaired phonological processing ability; this is often called phonological dyslexia. Dyslexic learners are often slow readers; this is in many cases due to lacking phonological awareness. These students will often have difficulties sounding out even very simple words.
Mispronouncing or dropping sounds from words can also be an effect of lacking phonological ability (Hultquist, 2006, p. 19). Students suffering from this type of dyslexia often experience difficulties separating different sounds from each other, for instance, sounds related to each other such as b-p and d-t. Difficulties such as these are often discovered early on (Sohlman, 2000, p. 68). Students with phonological dyslexia often add extra sounds, miss out on sounds when spelling words, get the sounds in the wrong order or write the wrong sounds altogether. They might for instance write black as back, Adam as Anad or table as tabl (Hultquist, 2006, p. 20). It is important to remember that these are all errors that are common when learning to read and write, but students with dyslexia will make more mistakes and the mistakes can continue after his/her peers have learned how to pronounce the phonemes (Hultquist, 2006, p. 20).
2.2.2 Orthographic Dyslexia
Some children do not display the difficulties described above regarding sound and phonological awareness. They rather have trouble with remembering what words looks like. These students have trouble with the orthographic positioning; therefore, this is sometimes referred to as orthographic dyslexia. Students with this type of dyslexia might have difficulties distinguishing words that look alike such as: was and saw, who and how or through and thought (Hultquist, 2006, p. 23). Students with orthographic dyslexia also have problems separating words with different spellings and meanings that are pronounced the same, so called homophones, such as wear and where or as in pane and pain. These students have a good understanding of letters and sounds but have a hard time when meaning and spelling is not corresponding, as for instance with homophones or with irregular words that are not spelled exactly how they are pronounced (Hultquist, 2006, p. 24). Although students with orthographic dyslexia often are very good at reading new words (as long as they are not irregular), these students might still make more mistakes or be slow readers. In a text with a lot of words placed closely together, the dyslexic students often tend to skip lines in the text and confuse similar looking letters (Hultquist, 2006, p. 24). Usually, when students with orthographic processing problems misspell words, they manage to locate all of the sounds in the words but do not use the correct letters. A student suffering from
orthographic dyslexia could for instance write sed instead of said or thot instead of
thought (Hultquist, 2006, p. 24)
2.2.3 Retrieval Problems
A number of students suffering from dyslexia have problems retrieving information from their long term memory, these retrieval problems are sometimes referred to as “rapid name” deficit. For some students, these retrieval problems might just appear when reading and spelling and be limited to symbols such as letters, numbers and printed words. However, some have an extended form of retrieval problems and this can include problems retrieving other types of information from their memory, ike names of objects or people, dates or sounds (Hultquist, 2006, p. 27). Because of impaired retrieving skills, these students often read very slowly, not because they cannot read the word correctly, but because they have trouble retrieving the right word or sound from their memory. Many students with retrieval problems choose to describe the word they are looking for because they cannot think of the exact word that describes it (Hultquist, 2006, p. 27).
2.2.4 Deep Dyslexia
Deep dyslexia is a very rare form of dyslexia. Students suffering from this sub-group make recurring mistakes regarding semantics. These students often make mistakes when reading function words, for instance reading: are as all, through as after or at as in. Another mistake these students tend to make is to confuse words that they associate with each other, like writing merry as Christmas or writing ice cream as cone. It is also common that deep dyslexic students make coordinate errors. These are errors that involve words with similar meanings, such as tulip for rose, jump for run or comb for
2.2.5 Mixed Dyslexia
Many students suffering from dyslexia have multiple processing problems. Students might have difficulties with both phonological and orthographical processing. Someone else might have trouble with orthographic processing and rapid naming; these students suffer from mixed dyslexia. In many ways these students will have the hardest time learning how to read and spell. Symptoms of dyslexia overlap the different sub-group. For instance, all students suffering from dyslexia are slow readers, struggle with fluency and have difficulties spelling and recognizing words out of context (Hultquist, 2006, p. 33).
2.2.6 Symptoms of Dyslexia
To support and help students suffering from dyslexia, it is imperative that it is detected early. Dyslexic learners require extra help and support to be able to function in classroom activities and school work in general. When the student is between 9-10 years old, the educational focus switches from reading for the purpose of learning how to read to reading for the purpose of learning in general. It is often at this time students with dyslexia fall behind in school (Andersson et al, 2006, p. 17).
Andersson et al (2006) provided a list of warning signs one might need to anticipate. For instance, the student might show very little interest in books, letters or reading, and he/she will probably learn to read and write slower than the other students. When reading, the student often lacks fluency and often mispronounces or misreads words that resemble one another. It is not uncommon for dyslexic learners to place numbers in the wrong order, display a frustration or anger when reading or show signs of low self-esteem. The student might also have trouble concentrating on the task at hand (p. 18).
Other signs of dyslexia might be noted outside of the classroom or between classes. Some children find it hard to read the timetable. It is a complex document with abbreviations, times and specific schematics that can be hard to
comprehend. This causes dyslexic students to have trouble knowing when to be where, which classes he/she has and which books to bring; dyslexic students might, because of this, appear unstructured and unorganized (Thompson, 2009 p. 5). Separating left and right can also be more difficult for a dyslexic child as well as learning how to tell time properly. For some dyslexic learners, it can be difficult to process long verbal instruction. Moreover, students suffering from dyslexia often have an impaired working memory, which hinders them from remembering what was said at the beginning of a text when reaching the end of it (Andersson et al, 2006, p. 9 and 18)
2.2.7 Misconceptions
Diagnosing students with dyslexia can often be delayed due to common misconceptions about dyslexia. One common misconception is that students suffering from dyslexia see letters and words backwards. There is, however, no evidence to support this claim. When faced with copying tasks the student will not have any problem copying the sentence or the word in the right order, but if we were to ask him/her to read it he/she would surely run into problems with pronouncing and might reverse letters in the word (Allen, 2010, p. 24). Backward writing and letter reversal is developmentally appropriate in early stages of learning to read and write; therefore, students who do not make these mistakes are often not diagnosed as dyslexic (Allen, 2010, p. 24).
Another common misconception is that students suffering from dyslexia have problems with spatial-orientation and are clumsy. Some students with dyslexia might fit into this category, but displaying these symptoms does not categorize a student as dyslexic (Allen, 2010, p. 24).
At times, problems with writing can be caused by something called dysgraphia. Learners suffering from dyslexia might also suffer from dysgraphia. Dysgraphia causes students to have problems expressing ideas or expressing him/herself in writing beyond issues with spelling. It is a problem with the physical act of writing, which; like dyslexia, comes in different levels of severity. Some students suffering from dysgraphia have trouble just holding a pen, others have trouble drawing a line and a third can learn to write letters but their handwriting is messy which causes them to write
dyslexia and writing problems due to dysgraphia. Students suffering from dyslexia will be physically able to copy but may have issues with spelling or reading. A dysgraphic student, on the other hand, knows what to write but does not possess the motor skills to create letters, shapes or words (Hultquist, 2006, p. 37).
It is important to remember that even though dyslexic children have trouble learning how to read and write it is possible for them to improve and even do very well in school and in their working life. It will, however, require a great deal of extra time and effort on their part. On the other hand, dyslexia does not have a cure, and even if students become better readers, they might still struggle with reading and writing for the rest of their life (Hultquist, 2006, p. 43).
2.3 Laws and Constitutions
Dyslexia is not mentioned in the Swedish Education Act; however, Lgr 11 (curriculum compulsory school) mentions “students in need of special support” and “students with difficulties”. Students with dyslexia certainly fall under this category (Svenska dyslexiföreningen, 2011, p. 2). Swedish Education Act states that:
In education each child’s diverse need should be taken into consideration. Children and students shall be given support and encouragement in order to develop further. The aspiration shall be to outbalance differences regarding children’s and student’s ability to benefit from the education (Swedish Education Act, Chapter 1, 4§, my translation)
Education should be adapted to each pupil’s circumstances and needs. It should be based on pupils’ backgrounds, earlier experience, language and knowledge. Education should be equal no matter where in Sweden the school is situated. Equality does not, however, necessarily mean that all education should be carried out in the exact same way in every classroom all over Sweden, but education needs to take every student’s needs in to consideration when designing and planning education (Skolverket, 2011, p. 10). The following paragraph regarding assessment and dyslexic learners can be found in the Swedish Education Act:
If there are specific reasons during assessment, according to 19 and 20 §§, occasional parts of the knowledge requirements set for grade 6 and 9, with regards to disabilities… that are not temporary in nature and hinders the student to reach certain knowledge requirements, may be disregarded. (Swedish Education Act, chapter 10 .21§, my translation)
If reading and writing difficulties, affect the learner’s studies, the teacher is allowed to disregard certain aspects of the curriculum. Goals and criteria that examine and assess reading and writing abilities can therefore be ignored in the assessment of dyslexic learners (Svenska Dyslexiförbundet, 2011, p. 8).
In Sweden, the local authority carries the main responsibility for the public school system. It is their responsibility to make sure the National Education Act, National Curriculum and goals for education are followed.
3. Method
My research is qualitative in nature. A qualitative research strategy focuses on the importance of words rather than on numbers and large quantities of data to analyze, which is the approach of quantitative research strategy (Bryman, 2002, p 149). Qualitative research is, compared to quantitative research, generally more prone to ask the question why, it focus on explanations and present large amounts of descriptive details in their findings (Bryman, 2002, p 265).
I have conducted semi-structured qualitative interviews with three teachers regarding their experiences of working with dyslexic children. The interviews focus on teacher’s capability and possibility to ease the examination situation for students suffering from dyslexia and how to conduct a fair knowledge assessment in relation to curriculum and knowledge requirements. This provides an insight to the problematic issue of dyslexic students in relation to examination and assessment.
3.1 Qualitative Interview
The method used in this research is qualitative semi-structured interviews. Bryman (2002) “a qualitative research strategy is inductive, interpretive and constructionist in its approach” (p. 149). A qualitative study is beneficial for the aim of this research since I aspire to acquire a deeper understanding of what working with dyslexic learners entails. Furthermore, it enables a discussion and understanding of the underlying reasons for choosing a specific approach of dealing with the issues inside and outside the classroom. The interviews had a semi-structured shape; which allows the interviewer to probe an interesting answer and ask follow up questions, but the interview situation is still facilitated by using an interview schedule. In a semi-structured interview, the order of questions in the interview schedule can vary and the interview itself can take different directions (Bryman 2002, p. 300).
The advantage of using qualitative interviews in contrast to a quantitative method, such as questionnaires, is that interviews are highly adaptable. This is especially true of semi-structured interviews which allow for a higher level of flexibility than structured interviews. The interviewer can follow up on ideas and interesting lines of thought brought up by the interviewee, and it is also easier to register the tone of voice, facial expressions and possible hesitation in the answers. Interviews are, however, highly subjective; therefore, one always runs the risk of bias (Bell, 2005, p. 157). Possible issues can include an unclear question, tone of voice of the interviewer and misunderstanding questions or answers; thus, it is imperative that the interviewer is prepared when conducting interviews (Bryman, 2002, p. 214). However, interviews are time-consuming and in a 100 hour project the interviewer will not have time to interview a large number of people. In the interview process one will have to prepare an interview schedule if one is using one, transcribe the interviews and analyze the results. (Bell, 2005, p. 157).
3.2 The Interviews
The interview schedule and interview questions have been compiled by me with the background of lectures on qualitative interviews and interview technique given by Cecilia Olsson Jers (2012) and the literature in the literature review. The questions focus on difficulties teaching dyslexic students and the teachers’ experiences regarding examinations and assessments of dyslexic students and how this may or may not be problematic.
During the interviews, an interview schedule was used (See appendix 1) with interview questions and possible follow-up topics; I have recorded and later transcribed the interviews (See Appendix 2-4). The interviews were held in Swedish, which is the native language of all my interviewees’. This limits the risk of any language barriers that could arise. The interviews have taken place at locations chosen by the participant. This allows the interviewee to repossess some of the power in a situation mainly dominated by the interviewer. However, all interviews have taken place on school ground, in the classroom or in the teachers’ lounge after hours, etc.
3.3 Ethical Issues
When conducting interviews, the interviewer always needs to be aware of ethical issues that might occur. The questions of confidentiality and anonymity are aspects that are of great importance; however, these aspects are not always easy to maintain when writing papers (Bell, 2005, p. 45). Vetenskapsrådet (The Swedish Research Council) is an
administrative authority working for the Swedish Ministry of Education who strive to inform, educate and give advice in matters regarding research. The council administers ethical guidelines and concerns important to researchers. The four main requirements are: The first one being, the information requirement. In my study, the participants were informed about the purpose of the degree project. In abidance with the second
requirement, agreement, the participants have agreed on the terms of their contribution to the research. My participants were informed that the interviews were going to be recorded and transcribed. Thirdly, I have abided the confidentiality requirement by informing the participants that their personal details were going to be treated anonymously. Lastly, with regard to the use of collected data, participants were informed that the collected data would be handled with care and not used for any commercial purposes. These guidelines have, therefore, been taken into account during the degree project.
3.4 Literature
A great deal of research has already been carried out on the subject of dyslexia. Therefore, my research and background were based on articles retrieved from databases on the internet, especially EBSCO which is a general database for journals and Eric via EBSCO which is specific for pedagogical journals online. My main search words were
dyslexia, classroom and reading and writing difficulties.
Some books I have chosen to include in my theoretical background are those especially written to facilitate the work of teachers and practitioners. Hultquist (2006) and Andersson et al (2006) are both books written for this purpose and these books have been highly beneficial to my research. Hultquist’s book has in particular
been very valuable in the degree project. Hultquist has a long experience of dyslexia as a psychologist and dyslexia in a pedagogical setting. He is a licensed school psychologist and has worked professionally in the field of special education and psychology since 1979.
The definition used in this paper is taken from the International Dyslexia Association (IDA), which was adapted by the IDA Board of Directors working group on Nov 12, 2002. The working group of the IDA included Susan Brady, Hugh Catts, Emerson Dickman, Guinevere Eden, Jack Fletcher, Jeffrey Gilger, Robin Morris, Harley Tomey, and Thomas Viall. The current definition on dyslexia used in this paper was agreed on by the work group and updated and expanded from the definition from 1994. The 2002 definition is also used by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD).
Using Skolverket.se (The National Agency for Learning) has also provided a base of information regarding questions, discussions and analyses of the Swedish school law and the curriculum. The question and answer dialog on Skolverket.se has been highly beneficial and represents teachers’ actual questions and insecurities regarding examination and assessment. Skolverket (The National Agency for Education) is an administrative authority whose main function is to control, support and evaluate the public school system with the purpose of enhancing quality and results in all aspects of the public school. They are responsible for defining goals, curriculum and syllabi; as well as distributing the national tests. Skolverket.se has been beneficial in my research and degree project; furthermore, it will continue to be a valuable source during my working life as a teacher.
3.5 The School and Participants
During the research, I have conducted interviews with three working teachers. In order to protect the participants of the study, the names of the participants and their work places have been disguised. The participants chosen in the degree project represent a range of educators with different levels of exposure to dyslexia.
• Participant 1 – Participant 1 is a woman who works as a special aid teacher specialized in teaching children with learning difficulties, including dyslexic students. She works with roughly 20 students in grades 6-9 at a school with approximately 400. She has been working as a Swedish teacher for 35 years. It is in the last 5 years that she has specialized in special aid teaching.
• Participant 2 – Participant 2 is a woman who works as an English teacher in the years 6-9 and teaches around 100 students. The school she presently works at is a medium sized school in the south of Sweden. She graduated in 1978 and teaches many M2 English classes, which are classes for weaker students including dyslexic learners.
• Participant 3 – Participant 3 is a woman who works as an English and PE teacher in the years 6-9 in a medium sized school in the south of Sweden. She graduated in 1987 and has many years of experience in English teaching. She teaches around 80 English students at the moment, she also teaches some M2 English classes, which are classes for weaker students including dyslexic learners.
Interviewing participants from two separate schools allows me to acquire a broader view of the problematic issue of dyslexic learners in the classroom. The first school is situated in a medium sized town in the south of Sweden which has a long history of academic work and education. The school is situated fifteen minutes outside of the center of the town. The school hosts classes from kindergarten up to the 9th grade
(15 years old) and has approximately 450 students. The second school is a relatively big secondary school and it holds approximately 400 children in the grades 6-9. It is situated in a smaller town in the south of Sweden.
4. Results and Discussion
In this section my results from the conducted interviews are presented. It is important for educators teaching dyslexic learners to understand how they can indentify students suffering from dyslexia. Furthermore, they must understand how to ease the examination situation and support students to perform optimally as well as recognize how to assess their knowledge in relation to the knowledge requirements in a fair manner. This chapter is not organized to deal with one question at a time but rather in thematic sections with problem areas addressed in the degree project. In this section, the results from the interview are presented alongside relevant theory.
4.1 Identifying Dyslexia
Identifying learners with reading and writing difficulties can at times be difficult; optimally these learners should be identified as early as possible. On occasion, when the learners have progressed as far as to secondary school his/her problems in the classroom can be quite severe and therefore easier to detect, but this is not always the case.
Participant 3 explained the procedure followed when handling cases involving dyslexia. If one suspects a student of suffering from dyslexia one would bring this to the
homeroom teacher of the student in question. Before involving the special aid
instructor, the homeroom teacher confers with all of the teachers who are involved in the student’s education. These issues are often noticed by more than one teacher and, as Participant 3 explained, “even if there is not a diagnosis these reading and writing difficulties could have been noted earlier in the learner’s education”.
Actions towards special support should have pedagogical consideration, but the economical aspects need to be taken into consideration as well. The special support process has been divided into five steps: observation, investigation,
in kindergarten or in upper secondary school. Furthermore, the headmaster has a responsibility to act immediately so that the students receive help as swiftly as possible (Svenska Dyslexi Förbundet, 2011, p. 4). However, Participant 1 pointed out that even though the primary tests are performed by the special aid teacher at the school, further investigations are not provided by the local authority. To be evaluated by psychologists and speech therapists one will have to travel to another city, which requires time as well as money. Participant 1 stated “The medical care agreement states that if the student is over 15 years old the parents will have to finance this [further investigations] on their own…this can in many ways create an issue of class”. She speculates that this can be the reason why some parents do not want their children further investigated.
Participant 1 explained that when students suffering from dyslexia are brought to her attention in secondary school, these students often show reluctance towards reading, which is an early warning signal. Participant 2 expressed “students suffering from dyslexia know their weaknesses and it is extremely challenging to overcome the threshold that reading presents and find an interest for reading”. She pointed out that the most challenging aspect of teaching dyslexic children, especially when it comes to reading, is to make the learner interested in reading. Hultquist (2006) explained further that students suffering from dyslexia might in some cases experience emotional and behavioral difficulties and these students may face anxiety, depression and insecurity, as well as, anger, denial, guilt or shame (p. 18).
Both Participant 1 and 2 expressed a frustration towards the fact that a surprisingly large number of students are diagnosed with dyslexia as late as in secondary school. Participant 2 stated “I do not think it is right that we diagnose dyslexic students I secondary school…they should be found in primary school or at least in grade four in order to facilitate their attendance at school.” Participant 1 expressed that in many ways a late diagnosis is a result of ignorance and she expressed that “some teachers still seem to believe that reading and writing difficulties are something that might heal over time”. Andersson et al (2006) pointed out that “wait and see” is not an acceptable approach to these issues. This approach often results in unidentified dyslexic learners to fall behind in a variety of subjects. This is a scenario that can be avoided when dyslexic learners are noticed early (p. 17).
Participant 1 agreed with participant 2 that motivating students, especially those who have been diagnosed late, can be challenging and it is common for these students to have low self esteem. Helping these students to discover their ability to
succeed in the classroom can be difficult. However, Participant 1 also pointed out that the biggest challenge is to help teacher and students who do not suffer from dyslexia understand the difficulties dyslexic students face. Their ignorance can hinder dyslexic students from reaching their full potential. She told me that “when I sometimes am angry, frustrated or annoyed it is rarely at the students, but rather the teachers I am upset with.”
Its multifaceted nature makes dyslexia hard to detect. Hultquist (2006) noted that many students might not be noticed as dyslexic until the later years of his/her education and there are learners, with lighter forms of dyslexia, who never get diagnosed at all (p. 37). The most important thing teachers can do to facilitate the identification of dyslexia is to be aware of the symptoms presented above such as lacking fluency when reading or displaying frustration or anger in the classroom etc. In addition, it is important to stay alert and to keep a watchful eye on learners outside and inside the classroom.
4.2 Dyslexia and Examination
It is not necessary for a student to have a formal diagnosis in order to get examinations adapted to his/her needs, but adaptations in examination situations should be provided for students with permanent disabilities (Skolverket, 2012). Dyslexic students fall under this category, and they need large amounts of support and adaptation in order to perform their best. Participant 1 stated:
A formal diagnosis is not needed. If it is suspected that a student has reading and writing difficulties, the student is entitled to extra help. The law is crystal clear about these things; the teacher should not have to wait for a diagnosis.
She explained further, that it can be helpful later on in life if you have a formal diagnosis; for instance, when the student reaches college or later in the learner’s working life.
dyslexia need somewhere around 4 times the amount of time a regular student would need to finish a reading or writing task (Andersson et al, 2006, p. 54). It is, therefore, important to remember that we are not talking about 5 or 10 extra minutes on a test, but rather 50 % more time than the other students (Andersson et al, 2006, p. 65). Hultquist (2006) noted that in general, when working with examinations and dyslexic learners, it is best to avoid timed tests altogether (p. 85). My participants all agreed that extra time is an important aspect of the examination situation for dyslexic learners; scholars researching these areas also agree on these matters regarding time. Participant 2 explained that it is important for students suffering from dyslexia to have more time during reading or writing examinations and she always strives to give dyslexic students the time they need. However, she also pointed out that even with more time on a test, stress can occur when the dyslexic learner sees everyone else leave the classroom; this stress may in turn lead to a lower test result. Participant 3 declared that in many ways time is an issue and that it can be problematic. Dyslexic learners need more time both during examination and when listening to instructions. It can also be time consuming if the student needs to complement the test after the examination occasion. Participant 1 further pointed out that listening your way toward knowledge takes larger amount of time then reading.
Hultquist (2006) claimed that because reading and spelling are such challenges for dyslexic learners, it is beneficial to use multiple choice questions instead of longer essay questions. It is also favorable for the dyslexic learner to know the test formats in advance in order to prepare and focus their studying on what will be examined. Giving a content area vocabulary list to the learner, which they can refer to when writing essay exams, can also be highly useful (p. 85).
4.2.1 Reading Texts during Examination
Reading presents a great difficulty for students suffering from dyslexia. Participant 3 mentioned that it has happened earlier that the teacher read whole texts, in the national test for English, out loud for dyslexic students. She pointed out that information about these matters has not always been clear.
In some cases during examination situations, the teachers are allowed to read single words, parts of the text or the assignment to the student. This can also be done by a computer when the material is available in digital format (Andersson et al, 2006, p. 66). It is stated that if the student is unable to complete the test the teacher may read entire texts to him or her (Skolverket, 2012). However, this presents a problem since the focus of the examination task then switches from a reading comprehension to listening comprehension. In these cases when the teacher is reading large parts of the text to the student’s, test result cannot be used to assess reading comprehension (Skolverket, 2012). Participant 3 agreed that this procedure does not examine reading comprehension and pointed out that this approach is not normally used in their classroom anymore. Participant 1 told me that at her school they have discussed these matters, and they have together arrived at the conclusion that dyslexic learners are entitled to the same support during tests as they have been during their education, this includes having texts read to them. They are aware that there are texts stating the opposite; however, they have found that some texts contradict each other; therefore, the teachers have to act after what they find best.
Skolverket (2012) stated that during the national test for English the students, including dyslexic students, need to read and comprehend the texts presented in the test by themselves. The national tests for English are composed of 4 parts: writing ability, speaking ability, listening comprehension and reading comprehension. Therefore the reading part of the test needs to focus on reading and not on listening (skolverket, 2012). Every one of my interviewees has to some extent read texts, instructions and such to dyslexic learners during tests.
Participant 2 explained that during test situations where the format is a “gap filling” task she sometimes acts as the student’s secretary. While the student has to read and find the right answer, Participant 2 will be the one writing the word into the empty slots. This enables the student to focus on reading and finding the correct answer rather than on the writing and spelling issues of the test. Participant 1 also expressed that she uses this approach in examination situations: She has, however, taken it one step further: she reads the texts in the test, listens to the students answer and writes the answer down. In this situation the student’s only task is to listen and answer the questions asked by the teacher.
dyslexic students should be able to present their knowledge of the subject orally instead of written or that the students should be able to complement the written exam with oral assignments (Andersson et al, 2006, p. 67). This is an approach used by all of the interviewees, both in the examination sense and as complementation to a written test.
4.2.2 Computer Use
Using computers as a tool for dyslexic students is widely used in Swedish schools today and is recommended by Skolverket. In the Swedish Education Act we find the following quote:
The education shall be free. The students will without expense have access to books and other educational tools needed for a modern education as well as being provided with a healthy school lunch (Swedish Educational Act, Chapter 10. 10 §, My translation).
This stated that students will be provided with tools and materials that will be beneficial in his/her education. For a dyslexic student, this entails tools and materials suited for him/her, such as speech synthesis or word recognition programs (Svenska Dyslexiförbundet, 2011, p. 9).
Participant 3 mentioned that the computer is a tool she uses in the classroom as well as in examination situations. Skolverket (2012) stated that using computers during the national test for English is acceptable and it can be used for all students in the class if everyone has access to a computer and if computers are common tool used in the classroom. However, in cases where the computer is used it is imperative that the learners do not have access to dictionaries, communication to other computers or word recognition programs with spell check. Participant 2 stated that she permits dyslexic learners to use computers during tests. She does not allow electronic dictionaries, but she does allow word recognition programs and spell check. She told me that she finds Skolverket unclear on these matters; it states that it is up to the headmaster to decide which tools the disabled learners are to use, and in many cases the headmaster does. The Swedish Dyslexia Association, however, is very clear on these matters and allows dyslexic learners to use spell check. Participant 2 told me “These learners are dyslexic, it [word recognition] is their tool so why not? …I have bad
eyesight so I have glasses; if I broke my leg I would need crutches.” The Swedish Dyslexia Association (2011) pointed out that there is no definition of special support in the Swedish Education Act. Furthermore, it does not state under which conditions special support should be given. It is therefore the individual school’s responsibility to investigate every student unique need for special support (p. 4). It is up to every local authority to decide on these matters and this result in a discrepancy between local authorities and schools all over Sweden.
Participant 2 explained that during test situations she normally places the tables in the classroom so that dyslexic learners can sit closer to her. This, so that she can notice if the student is on unacceptable sites, if he/she is using a computer, but also to easily be able to help these students with pronouncing words or reading parts of the text. Participant 2 identified that in some classes it is still not acceptable to say out loud that you are dyslexic. Therefore, she explained that “this way I may help these students without pointing it out to the entire class.” It is clear that learners suffering from dyslexia are entitled to adaptation and special support. This helps the learner function in the classroom and digest the larger amounts of texts in education and, in time, take responsibility for his/her own education.
4.3 Dyslexia and Assessment
During my interviews, it has been easy to detect the difficult nature of assessing dyslexic learners. When asking the question, how can one as a teacher make sure that the grades are fair for the dyslexic students and his/her peers? Participant 2 answered, “Can I?” When assessing a student’s language ability the teacher needs to look at different aspects of a student’s performance, reading being one of them. The question is how can I as a teacher fairly assess a student with dyslexia who has great difficulties reading?
Difficulties reading and writing can have a great impact on a student’s learning and this might hinder the student in his/her ability to reach some learning requirements. This is something teachers need to take into consideration when assessing students with dyslexia. As explained earlier, it is acceptable for a teacher to disregard some of the
learning requirements for students with disabilities, for instance reading requirements for dyslexic learners. However, adaptation for dyslexic learners, on for instance the national test, could simply be that the test result is disregarded in the assessment of the dyslexic student (Skolverket, 2012).
Skolverket (2012) explained that these exceptions, to disregard some learning requirements, should not be used during everyday education and it should merely be applied to the grading, assessment of the student and to examination adaptation. The school needs to support dyslexic learners with both reading and writing through the use of recourses such as digital books, voice synthesis and word-processor (Svenska dyslexiförbundet, 2011, p. 8).
Participant 2 pointed out that when assessing dyslexic texts she reads them out loud in order to listen to the texts disregarding spelling mistakes. This approach was shared by both Participants 1 and 3. This approach enables the teacher to assess dyslexic learners fairly. Participant 2 said that it is important to see the texts as a whole to focus on congruence, the line of argument and paragraph grouping to understand the student’s language use. Participant 1 further explained that it is important that the dyslexic learner understand that it is not spelling which is assessed but rather content, structure and form.
Participant 2 was firm in her belief that avoiding reading altogether is not the right way to make sure that dyslexic learners receive the best education. She expressed that students who are weak readers have to practice reading not just listening to the texts. She stated “It is not acceptable in society. This is not a school for the school sake, it is a school for life and you then have to be able to read”. Participant 1 agreed that reading needs to be practiced and it is important to improve these skills. She explained that there are cases where the dyslexic learner never had to write and has had everything read to him/her and this can be problematic later in the education. However, when it comes to assessment and examination of dyslexic learners it is not necessarily reading and writing skills that should be assessed and examined but rather the overall competence of the language the students possess. Participant 2 expressed that in some cases the dyslexic student learns to spell better in English than in Swedish and she believes that this can be a result of a different learning approach than the students native language.
When it comes to assessment, the special aid teacher is normally not involved. Participant 3 stated that the special aid teacher can note specific issues that
need to be taken into consideration when assessing certain students. Participant 3 further explained that “The special aid teacher should give support, and especially reading and writing support, and give them [the dyslexic learners] the extra time that I as a teacher feel I, at times, don’t have”. However, the overall assessment is up to the main teacher; Participant 1 and 2 agreed with this claim. Participant 1, who is working as a special aid teacher, explained that the special aid teacher should not, because of bias, participate in the overall assessment of students. She claimed that it is difficult for her, working intimately with students suffering from dyslexia, to see beyond the learners struggles in the classroom. Because of this she might value the student’s achievements higher than the main teacher would. Not actively taking part in assessment is a way of making sure that students’ grades are fair for both the dyslexic and the regular students. Participant 1 also stated that for her the most important way for making sure the assessment is fair is to make the assessing teachers understand the struggles these students have with certain parts of English studies. She states “We are living in a writing culture and writing has the highest status…Many teacher see writing as the only valid way of teaching and learning”. She expressed the importance for the assessing teacher to understand the value of oral examination and assessment.
Participant 2 found that occasionally there are differences in the student’s written language and spoken language. This discrepancy can be a result of the dyslexic student’s fear of spelling. If the student is highly capable off expressing him/herself orally the student might avoid difficult words in writing because of spelling. This in turn could lead to a lower grade since the student might be more capable than it would seem when looking at his/her written texts.
Participant 3 told me that she always tries to give dyslexic students all the help she is allowed to give and during assessment disregard some aspect of the learning requirement because some learners may not be able to show their ability. Participant 2 told me that the biggest part of a fair assessment is to make sure everyone in the classroom has an opportunity to practice their weakness and show what they are capable of. It is vital to touch on every part of the curriculum that she later will have to assess. Assessment and fair grades seem to be an extremely difficult issue, Participant 1 claimed “Fair grades, in general, are somewhat of a utopia, I would like to claim that there are no fair grades”. Participant 1, 2 and 3 all pointed out that in many ways grades are not fair and this is an issue that are problematic for every students, dyslexic or not.
4.4 Information Regarding Dyslexia
In response to the question “Do you feel that there has been sufficient information regarding these issues from your school?” Participant 1 answered that she did not think that there had been enough information for anyone at the school. Participant 1 stated:
To receive information and understanding it is not quite the same thing, the information is out there…but to covert the information to knowledge and an understanding of what dyslexia and other reading and writing difficulties entails is a different matter. (Participant 1)
In this quote, Participant 1 pointed out that even if there is information on issues regarding dyslexia it is an entire different ballgame to fully understand what it entails to suffer from reading and writing disabilities.
Both Participants 2 and 3 explained that in general they find that they have been well informed about dyslexia by their school’s special aid teacher and have a working knowledge of how to work with these issues. Participant 2 mentioned that at her school the special aid teacher is quite active regarding the issues of dyslexia and Participant 3, who works at the same school, further told me that they have had guest lecturers from the local organization Skånes kunskapscentrum för elever med dyslexi
SKED (Skånes Information Center for Learners with Dyslexia) who works with issues concerning dyslexia. However, it seems that the information from Skolverket has been difficult to attain and to understand, at times, information from the school’s headmaster seems to be lacking as well. Participant 3 told me “of course one can always be better informed about these matters; however, there is a consistent flow of new observations and directions to take into consideration which makes it hard to stay up to date”. Andersson et al (2006) pointed out that a high level of insight and competence of working with dyslexia is vital in classrooms. It is noted that a teacher needs to be confident in different teaching methods and materials in order to adapt teaching to every learner. A skilled teacher will know how and understand why the education is structured
in certain ways at a certain occasion and will strive to work with different strategies to attain success in the classroom (p. 48).
5. Conclusion
This degree paper explored three teachers’ experiences regarding identifying, examining and assessing dyslexic students. Participant 1 points out that an educator teaching
learners with dyslexia needs to possess a deeper understanding of these types of learners in order to help dyslexic learners. The aspect of examination and in particular
assessment of dyslexic learners needs to be addressed in the Swedish school system. Dyslexia is a common diagnosis in Swedish classrooms and with 5-20 % of the children suffering from some variety of reading and writing disabilities every teacher has to anticipate dyslexic learners in the classroom. All three of my interviewees have worked many years in the school system, and they have over the years collected knowledge about the workings of dyslexia. However, there can never be too much information about these issues. As emphasized by Participant 1, receiving information and
understanding its contents are two separate matters that need to be addressed throughout the Swedish school system. A general understanding of dyslexia in the classroom is imperative for everyone involved: teachers, learners, parents and classmates.
5.1 Assessment
Assessment is a very difficult issue in general in Swedish schools today. The teachers I have interviewed are in many ways uncertain of what the right or wrong procedures are in these situations and in many ways they have to rely on their own expertise on the subjects. This degree project looked at difficulties teachers assessing dyslexic students face? During my research, I found useful ways of assessing and examining dyslexic learners, and many of my participants address the same issues and the same approaches. However, one question remains unanswered: how I as a teacher can make sure the grades are fair for both dyslexic students and regular students. In many ways, the most important aspect of a fair assessment seems to be to give everyone the adaptations possible for students and assess dyslexic learners’ competence disregarding spelling,
reading and other problem areas for dyslexic learners. However, each one of my participants pointed out that fairness, when it comes to grades, is always a problematic issue, dyslexic learner or not.
5.2 Examination
In the discussion about dyslexic learners and examinations, every one of the participants has a working idea of the issues related to dyslexia and are knowledgeable about ways of facilitating the examination situation for dyslexic learners. Many of the aspects they brought forth are aspects noted by scholars in their research; consequently, there is a correlation between research conducted on dyslexia and how teachers work with examination in the classroom. However, when it comes down to the particulars regarding the examination situation there are certain insecurities and disagreements amongst the teachers. Participants 1, 2 and 3 were all uncertain of the proper procedure in examination situations. Participant 1 reads texts for the students and is convinced that this is the correct way of approaching examinations for dyslexic learners. Participant 2 on the other hand does not, to the same extent, read texts in tests but allows the students to use word processing programs during the examination. Both of them understand that they are not fully in line with Skolverket but they are still convinced that they are making the best out of the information they have received.
5.3 Suggestions for further research
It seems to me that the issues regarding assessment in the classroom need to be addressed further. This research has been highly inspirational, and I would like to further research the issues of dyslexia through interviews with The National Agency for Education, speech therapists and special aid teachers; as well as, administrators and headmasters. This is important in order to further explore dyslexia and, furthermore,
It would also be very interesting to investigate dyslexic students’ point of view, both in experience of examination and assessment through interviews and ethnology; as well as their experience of treatment in the classroom. This could lead to an understanding of the actual worries and struggles dyslexic students experience. These approaches would be beneficial for me as a future teacher in my mission to support dyslexic learners in their education.
5.4 Limitations
The research would have benefited from adding one or two additional participants who are somewhat younger and graduated more recently than the other participants. This would have been interesting since it would have provided an insight into how the discussion regarding dyslexia is dealt with in the teacher’s education. This would further deepen the understanding of the difficult terms of dyslexia and assessment in a wider range of individual classrooms. Further, it would be interesting to expand my area of research and look at other subjects and not solely language based-education. Dyslexic students often face difficulties in many subjects, for instance math, and today almost all subjects in school require large amounts of reading. In order to assist a broader group of teachers and not solely language teachers I would have liked to extend my research to include other subjects as well, not just language based subjects.
5.5 Final remarks
Identifying learners with dyslexia can, as I have demonstrated above, be difficult. There is constant progress in the field of dyslexia studies and it is important for all parts involved with dyslexic learners to stay updated. I find that the degree project has been highly beneficial for me and as a future teacher I will have a higher level of knowledge and understanding about dyslexia; this will in turn enable me to become a better teacher.
I state that overcoming reading and writing difficulties are an important part of making education available for every learner. As such, I feel that there should be a bigger focus on dyslexia and related issues in the teacher training program. The difficulties in assessing and examining students with learning disabilities such as dyslexia should be addressed as soon as possible.
It is important to keep in mind that dyslexia is a disability, and these students do in many ways struggle in school; however, one should never be encouraged to use one’s diagnosis as an excuse. Dyslexic learners need more support and more time on reading and writing tasks but they are just as capable of reaching higher grades, with effort and accommodation, as other students. Hultquist (2006) stated that “If a child broke her or his arm, the school would have to make some adjustments… similarly, a child with dyslexia will need some adjustments…but after the arm heals, the child needs to strengthen it and get it to function…” (p. 63).
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