Students Who Learn Differently
Students learn differently for a variety of reasons that are still under investigation. But scientific evidence has already made one thing quite clear. What are now being termed "specific learning difficulties" are not just middle class excuses for underachievement, as some have been so unkind as to suggest. Nor are they the result of the fact that the student is lazy, dumb, dull, inattentive or stupid.
More and more evidence is coming to light which indicates that differences in perception might be at the root cause of many of these problems. For example, in an article for the International Herald Tribune entitled, "'Glasses for the Ears' of Dyslexics," Sandra Blakeslee writes:
Scientists have developed a radically different treatment for children with severe language and reading difficulties, one that may have applications for millions of children with dyslexia.
They call it "glasses for the ears."
The treatment uses a special form of computer-generated speech in a therapeutic program that is designed to force changes in auditory portions in the children's brains - altering cells that process simple sounds. Just as glasses correct faulty vision, these changes in the auditory cortex sharply improve the children's ability to perceive spoken sounds and to decode written words. Recent experiments show that after just four weeks of treatment, language-disabled children advanced two full years in their verbal comprehension skills, researches say. They said the improvements endured after training had stopped. In effect, the children could throw their "glasses" away.
The two scientists spearheading the research, Dr. Paula Tallal of Rutgers University in Newark and Dr. Michael Merzenich of the University of California School of Medicine in San Francisco, said in interviews that they believed the treatment would help many children and adults with minor forms of language and reading disability - the condition widely known as dyslexia. 1
Other research indicates that the lack of certain neurological chemicals in the brain might be responsible for some behavioral control problems. Indeed, the use of drugs like Ritalin for the treatment of some cases of ADD/HD seems to be a great help and provide welcome relief for many students. The use of inhibition and stimulant medications has been likened to the use of insulin for the diabetic. They don't remove the problem, but their use permits the individual to lead a pretty normal life.
British developmental therapist, Stephen Clarke, has come up with a different technique for dealing with what he calls "developmental learning difficulties:"
Since the age of seven, Richard Griffith, now 15, has suffered from a litany of problems. He was diagnosed as profoundly dyslexic (unable to read or write), dyspraxic (so clumsy and uncoordinated that he couldn't kick a ball or run properly) and hyperactive. Seven years of special education schools had done little for him, but last November, Richard started a new treatment, and his progress began to improve dramatically.
The therapy involves no drugs, no psychotherapy, no teaching. It is mechanical, repetitive and it is performed with a small paint brush. Everyday his parents spent 20 minutes stroking the brush along the base of his fingers. During a second month, it was brushed down from the base of his nose, around his mouth to this chin, and then across the top of his lip.
His sports master was the first to comment: "What have you done to the boy?" he asked Richard's father, Colin. "He can suddenly play football - he's so good, I'm considering him for the team."
Within another month, the tantrums had stopped and Richard was beginning to read and write . . .
Richard attended a clinic run by Stephen Clarke, a developmental therapist who originally trained as an aerospace engineer. His "paintbrush" technique is based on the theory that learning difficulties, such as dyslexia, and related problems such as dyspraxia and hyperactivity, are caused by the presence of immature neurological reflexes. 2
A mother describes her son's examination for visual problems:
Alexander was wired up to strange machines and every aspect of his vision was monitored: the results were a revelation. Apart from being, as we knew, myopic, his main visual problem became obvious on recording his eye movements with infra red recorders to foveal targets. He was found to have great difficulty in keeping his eyes quite still and in making accurate saccadic and pursuit movement. Mrs. Fowler thought that this difficulty with his eyes may well have caused letters to move about and mirror-reverse. 3
There is a great deal of information that indicates that learning-differently runs in families. Scandinavian researchers announced in the fall of 1999 that they had found the gene for dyslexia - DYX3, on the second chromosome. Such knowledge can be used to help educate family members and insure early remediation of any problems.
Whatever the cause, the fact remains that dyslexia and ADD/HD are not attitude problems, but the result of physical differences, and as such are beyond the control of the individual. Nor as such can they be outgrown. Sometimes this might appear to be the case because, as they develop, the students learn coping techniques which improve their performances. But as of today, there is no "cure." There are, however, many effective treatments and teaching techniques that can enable these students to learn successfully.
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1 Blakeslee, Sandra. New York Times Service. International Herald Tribune. Section Health/Science. "'Glasses for the Ears' of Dyslexics." Thursday, November 16, 1995, p. 12.
2 Edwards, Tony. Telegraph Magazine. Section Healthfront. "Dyslexia," p. 58. Stephen Clarke can be reached at the Centre for Developmental Learning Difficulties, 9 Portland Business Center, Manor House Lane, Datchet, Slough, Berkshire SL3 9EG, England.
3 Faludy, Tanya & Faludy, Alexander. A Little Edge of Darkness: A Boy's Triumph Over Dyslexia. Jessica Kingsley Publisher. London, Bristol, Pennsylvania. 1996. p. 67.
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Students Who Learn Differently
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