There can be many hurdles facing students who have not been formally identified. Early in the school year, parents and students may be told to wait until a student has had time to adjust to class. But then when a student appears to fail without accommodations like...
Dyslexic Cognition and Processing Speed [Premium]
Processing speed can be a very frustrating aspect of dyslexia and dyspraxia. It doesn’t have its own DSM diagnosis code and in truth, processing speed in the context of dyslexia and or dyspraxia have very different sources. Some people think that it doesn’t matter what the source of the speed problems are, but I think it’s more important than people realize. Most people in the dyslexia field don’t have the experience of being a neurologist – but it’s a pity that more people haven’t had those experiences. If you have assessed people throughout the life cycle (kids through adults) and in the setting of disease (like brain injury) or learning difference (like dyslexia), there are dramatic differences that affect learning and communication. Common issues that […]
Processing Speed and Dyslexia [Premium]
Why isn’t there a “diagnosis” of processing speed impairment? For practical reasons, a label or diagnosis can help justify the need for extended time accommodations, reduce the quantity of homework, or similar requests. Without a formal diagnostic code, medical or educational professionals may also be more likely to overlook the need for accommodations… something that can have negative effects on grades and standardized test scores. Processing speed is also a curious phenomenon in the setting of dyslexia because speed is not typically slow for everything but rather certain types of activities that place especially heavy demands on reading, writing, and rote memory. If students are only partially remediated, they will be a great deal slower, needing extra time to decode text as well as integrate information. […]
Guiding and Teaching Tortoises and Hares [Premium]
Now the preceding article might suggest that the issue of processing speed is a simple one for individual students, but as George Dorry alluded to in his article, The Tortoise Hypothesis, there may be other factors involved. George’s article is a bit tongue-in-cheek, but he raises the practical complexities of trying to figure out just what is going on with a particular student. George again: “If you were hoping for a single benign explanation for processing speed difficulties, ‘abandon all hope ye who enter here’.” There are many to consider. As you read the following descriptions, remember that these hypotheses are not mutually exclusive. They may be co-occurring, or they only occur in some circumstances and not in others… Under ODD or Oppositional Defiant Disorder, […]
Processing Speed and Dyslexia [Premium]
“I’m still slow at reading but I’ve learned to adjust…while you will have dyslexia for the rest of your life, you can dart between the raindrops to get where you want to go. It will not hold you back.” – Steven Spielberg WHAT IS PROCESSING SPEED? Processing speed generally refers to the speed required to take in information, do cognitive work, and respond. For dyslexic children and adults, processing speeds can vary dramatically depending on the types of stimuli, types of mental work, and types of responses expected. PROCESSING SPEED CHANGES AND CHANGES OVER TIME In the setting of dyslexia, processing speeds for different tasks also vary dramatically with age. Typical “late-blooming” children may be much slower than same age peers in early grade […]
Teaching Math – No Need for Speed
"What do teachers need to know about teaching math? Strategy over speed, and math thinking over rote memorization." - Stanford Professor Dr Jo Boaler Check out Jo's tips from her new article, Speed and Time Pressure Block Working Memory (below). "I was always deeply...
Too Much Homework for Dyslexic Students [Premium]
Test Accommodations for Students with Dyslexia Under the ADA – DOJ Statement
The Department of Justice has also released video clarification of key rights for students regarding testing accommodations under the ADA or Americans with Disabilities Act. The entire video is located at the bottom of this post, but we are highlighting a section...
How to Help a Dyslexic Student in a General Education Classroom
From the Connecticut Longitudinal Study, up to 1 in 6 students are dyslexic, but only a minority of these students will be found in special education classrooms. What does this mean for regular classroom teachers? 1. Get Basic Facts about Dyslexia - Dyslexic students...
Processing Speed & Writing [PREMIUM]
Question: I know my son’s processing speed is slow from his testing, but how slow should his speed on something like writing take? My son has slow processing speed, dyslexia, dysgraphia, and a loose attention control system – but how long should it take him to write a 5 paragraph academic paper… after which the paper still needs revisions? It takes him hours to complete assignments. This is a great question…but of course, the answer depends on a lot of individual factors regarding your student. When essay or paper writing takes so long, it’s good to try to troubleshoot ways to make the process quicker. If the delay occurs at the beginning, before any ‘writing’ occurs, then maybe he doesn’t have a template in which […]
A CHAT WITH MATH AND VISUALIZATION EXPERT JENNIFER PLOSZ
Today, I had a great conversation with Jennifer Plosz, a math teacher currently at the University of Calgary School of Education who is also a talented visualization expert and is dyslexic. She had recently been in touch with Dr. Manuel Casanova, the neuropathologist...
Understanding Processing Speed and Dyslexia [Premium]
When families come together to discuss test scores, no group of scores surprises them as much as “Processing Speed.” Processing Speed scores on psychometric exams might mean Coding and Symbol Search scores on the WISC intelligence exams or Visual Matching and Paired Cancellation on the Woodcock Johnson. Processing Speed scores on these subtests are typically lower for dyslexic students, but on other tasks like Decision Making and in real life, these students may be quite quick and even quicker than their peers at various tasks such as insight-based problem solving or situational awareness (helpful for athletics, for instance). Understanding the true significance of Processing Speed Difference in Dyslexia, then is important not only for recognizing when accommodations may be appropriate school, but also for identifying […]