Dyslexia - A Comprehensive and Int'l Appr.

198 Pages·2012·5.55 MB·English

by  T. Wydell

DYSLEXIA –
A COMPREHENSIVE AND
INTERNATIONAL
APPROACH

Edited by Taeko N. Wydell and
Liory Fern-Pollak
Dyslexia – A Comprehensive and International Approach
Edited by Taeko N. Wydell and Liory Fern-Pollak

Published by InTech
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Copyright © 2012 InTech
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First published April, 2012
Printed in Croatia

A free online edition of this book is available at www.intechopen.com
Additional hard copies can be obtained from [email protected]

Dyslexia – A Comprehensive and International Approach, Edited by Taeko N. Wydell and
Liory Fern-Pollak
p. cm.
ISBN 978-953-51-0517-6

Contents

Preface IX
Chapter 1 Cross-Cultural/Linguistic Differences
in the Prevalence of Developmental Dyslexia
and the Hypothesis of Granularity and Transparency 1
Taeko N. Wydell
Chapter 2 Typical and Dyslexic Development
in Learning to Read Chinese 15
Hua Shu and Hong Li
Chapter 3 The Role of Phonological Processing
in Dyslexia in the Spanish Language 29
Juan E. Jiménez
Chapter 4 Phonological Restriction Knowledge
in Dyslexia: Universal or Language-Specific? 47
Norbert Maïonchi-Pino
Chapter 5 Antisaccades in Dyslexic Children: Evidence
for Immaturity of Oculomotor Cortical Structures 61
Maria Pia Bucci, Naziha Nassibi, Christophe-Loic Gerard,
Emmanuel Bui-Quoc and Magali Seassau
Chapter 6 Sequential Versus Simultaneous
Processing Deficits in Developmental Dyslexia 73
Marie Lallier and Sylviane Valdois
Chapter 7 The Contribution of Handwriting
and Spelling Remediation to Overcoming Dyslexia 109
Diane Montgomery
Chapter 8 Depression in Dyslexic Children Attending
Specialized Schools: A Case of Switzerland 147
Tamara Leonova
VI Contents

Chapter 9 Dyslexia and Self-Esteem: Stories of Resilience 163
Jonathan Glazzard

Preface

This book covers all aspects of developmental dyslexia from the underlying aetiology
to currently available, routinely used diagnostic tests and intervention strategies, and
also addresses important social, cultural and quality of life issues of those with
developmental dyslexia.
The ability to read and write is a remarkable trait of humanity. This trait enables us to
convey spoken language through the conversion of symbols composed of lines,
dashes, circles and dots, into words, phrases and sentences. This ability seems to have
emerged around 3,500 years ago; in terms of evolution, this is a relatively recent
phenomenon in human history, which dates back some 200,000 years! Unlike spoken
language, learning to read and write does not happen through mere exposure during
infancy, but requires systematic instruction and applied study, which normally begins
in early childhood. While most children are able to reach a skilled level of reading and
writing within 5-6 years, some struggle to acquire the skill and may be subsequently
diagnosed as having Developmental Dyslexia. This term stands in contrast to
Acquired Dyslexia, which is associated with brain damage in individuals who prior to
the incident which caused the condition had adequate reading skills.
Developmental Dyslexia is characterised primarily by reading difficulty in the absence
of any profound sensory, neurological and intellectual disorders or socio-cultural
factors. However, it may co-occur with other developmental disorders such as
attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), dyscalculia, or dyspraxia, and may
therefore manifest as delayed language production, spelling difficulties, and/or
difficulties associating sounds and meanings with written words. The precise
incidence of Developmental Dyslexia is not known, although it is thought that up to
12% of school children in some countries may face reading difficulties, with higher
incidence in boys than girls.
Although now widely regarded as a neurobiological disorder with genetic origin,
Developmental Dyslexia may be caused by deficits in auditory processing or visual
processing skills, or visual attentional skills as well as a deficit in visual or verbal
short-term memory, which can affect its manifestation in isolation or in conjunction.
Moreover, different languages exert different cognitive demands on the process of
X Preface

reading. For example, reading in Spanish or Italian, where a close relationship exists
between letters and their corresponding sounds, words can be pronounced correctly
by assigning to each written consonant the sound of the vowel that follows. In
contrast, reading in English often requires prior knowledge of the correct
pronunciation, since the phonology of a large proportion of words is not consistent
with their spelling (e.g., pint vs. hint, lint, mint, tint; bread, head vs. bead; mead vs. steak;
bough vs. cough vs. dough vs. through vs. thorough; colonel; gauge; yacht). In logographic
writing-systems such as Chinese and Japanese Kanji, phonemes do not form part of
written text since these languages use intricate characters to directly convey
meaning. Reading in these languages therefore requires rote memorization and a
complete understanding of the combination of strokes included in each character.
Dyslexia may therefore manifest itself differently for speakers of different
languages.
Diagnosis of Developmental Dyslexia is a complex process, which requires
intellectual, educational, speech and language, medical, and psychological
evaluations, as well as a careful consideration of the properties of the particular
language. Treatment is typically provided through educational support, which can
help dyslexics to complete everyday reading and writing tasks through compensatory
strategies, but cannot ‘cure’ or eliminate the underlying cause. Importantly, beyond
the cognitive symptoms and the ensuing difficulty with reading and writing, Dyslexic
children may suffer social exclusion, which can lead to behavioural and affective
problems. Current research on Developmental Dyslexia therefore comprises various
strands; some focusing on the aetiology, some on diagnosis and intervention, and
others on psychological and behavioural aspects. All strands aim to provide new
insight in order to facilitate early detection, efficient intervention and management of
this challenging condition.
In nine chapters written by researchers from different parts of the world, this book
brings together leading international research from all strands.
The first three chapters discuss the manifestation of Dyslexia in very different
languages; Japanese, Chinese and Spanish, respectively, thus highlighting the effects
of the orthographic properties of different languages on differential manifestation of
reading difficulty.
The following three chapters explore specific cognitive and biological factors which
affect the observed symptoms of Dyslexia among French speakers; namely degraded
phonological representations, maturation of the oculomotor system and visual
attention span. The eighth chapter provides a comprehensive review of different
intervention programs used in UK schools, highlights individual differences in
dyslexic children, and the difficulties they face in light of the available diagnostic tools
and provision. It further proposes that beyond reading, focus must be shifted towards