NO MORE
So, what about those children,
who went down, deep down
in the depths
of the mobiles cold and green.
Placed at the far end of school,
those children
not heard and not seen.
I can only hope they found
themselves
able to learn some day,
to be the best that they can be
in each and every way.
Time has moved on,
we can fail them no more,
no child should go
without,
the chance to learn,
to be taught in a way
to achieve,
and then to soar.
All the strategies talked about earlier on in this book hold firm. There is so much that can be done easily, cheaply and with little resource either human or material. I think it needs to start with training and raising awareness. I feel there is a lack of training for those doing a teaching degree or a one year post graduate course. Even during my three-year Batchelor of education honours degree we only did a day on special needs.
We were asked to share different special needs with the tutor, I mentioned dyslexia…his reply was unbelievable, ‘No I asked for a special need.’ You would think that a bachelor of education course would show more concern in regard to special educational needs and would include dyslexia as being just that. He was thinking more of obvious physical needs but dyslexia amongst others is a hidden need for children but one that must not ignored or treated as such.
This complete lack of awareness, knowledge and understanding is sadly not uncommon. What hope do we have though if tutors teaching those on a teachers course at degree level do not even recognise dyslexia as a special educational need? I do feel however, that schools, colleges and universities are now better than they were and are all moving in the right direction, one of offering more support.
I have done some training on both dyslexia and dyscalculia in schools. I have found that the general consensus is that the older members of staff have very little awareness or knowledge of dyslexia and have pretty much just learned about both dyslexia and dyscalculia by actually doing the job. Younger members of staff, depending on their route into teaching, have had a unit or module on special needs where dyslexia was in fact mentioned. These units and modules have varied in length and some have been a little as a day.
I have since worked as a Specialist Support Tutor with students in higher education, those students that like me have beaten the odds and made it to university. Unlike me when I was doing my BEd, they have support. This support was in the form of one-to-one support sessions which seem invaluable to them. I had that role for around three years and very much enjoyed it. What a complete privilege it was to be able to work alongside those courageous students offering a peaceful time for them to fully understand what is expected of them in their studies.
Time was spent in the hourly sessions, to unpick the assignment brief and make sure all vocabulary is understood and to help the student to stay on track and up to date with their work loads. A student with dyslexia, like any age of learner weather in the foundation stage or university will have to work hard, harder than those without dyslexia.
My own dyslexia? no the students that I worked with did not know about my dyslexia although some knew once they had finished their studies. Even with students such as those who are dyslexic, I did not always feel able to tell them. But look at me now, telling the world through this book. Let us just hope a couple of people buy a copy.
I have since studied and completed my level 7 post Graduate Certificate in dyslexia. This means I am now fully qualified and am able to assess for dyslexia in children, young people and adults. Ironic indeed that my role with university students is reversed as when I was studying, I was the one accepting the offer of help from a Specialist Support Tutor. This made a great difference to me and made my level 7 studies more accessible and definitely kept me on track in terms of structure and hand in dates.
How wonderful now to finally have this level of recognition of the learning disability dyslexia. I have to say that when studying on the level 7 course, the university were very supportive. I was given extra time if needed, generally two weeks extra. I could submit a draft piece of work to be looked at before submission. In addition to this I was able to access Disabled Student Allowance. The DSA includes the 1:1 support for a certain number of hours each year of study, on average 30 hours. There is also some financial help in the form of the part cost of a new computer and relevant specialist software if needed. There was also help with paper and printing costs, as learners with dyslexia often need to print out work, reading etc and to physically highlight the text. This level of support at university is great for those that continue to struggle through to higher education against all the odds.
But what about all those children, just bubbling under where they could and should be in terms of their academic achievements, aspirations, confidence and self-esteem? If more support were put in place at the very start of our education system, children with dyslexia would not feel the need to play catch up throughout their school years. They would not feel the need to do what I did and play up, disguising my fears and inadequacies through my bad behaviour.
The need to have to engage in catch up learning and work is incredibly difficult with our vast curriculum going at such a pace. Teachers can often be all too scared to go back and fill gaps, if they ever have any time to do so. If this was the norm however, children would then have the means, the support, resources and environment in which to thrive and achieve whatever they set their minds to.
Important then in this role of assessing and diagnosing dyslexia is in making recommendations as to how learners may be best supported in their school, college, university or workplace, so teachers please listen and act. This assessment needs to happen early so as to facilitate support as soon as possible. A full diagnostic assessment will not however be undertaken before the age of seven years old. This is not to say though that any concerns should go completely ignored. Often a ‘cause for concern’ form will be filled in by a concerned teacher, or a conversation between the SENDco and teacher, or SENDco and parent or teacher and parent will take place. These concerns need to be taken seriously as there will always be reasons why initial concerns were raised.
I wish all dyslexic learners the very best as they continue to go through their own dyslexic education. I also wish that teachers do read and acknowledge the recommendations in reports and act on them as best they can. So much can be done easily, quickly and with little resource apart from time.
One thing I do need to mention is fatigue, tiredness and energy levels. I have already said that children and young people with dyslexia will need to work harder than those children and young people without dyslexia. There is surely then, the concern of how tired these children and students actually get. The school day is long, the teaching intense and fast paced. A child needs to move from room to room, subject to subject. They need to be very adaptable to change. They need to be able to concentrate, to listen and to take in information, manipulate the information. They are so often feeling completely overloaded to the point of switching off and getting very little if anything from a teaching session, time and time again. The child will be challenged to use information given, usually verbally in some way, often recording their ideas in written form with a pen or pencil.
They may need to concentrate for an hour in maths looking at geometry, then they may be looking at the play An Inspector calls in English literature, before doing double science followed by P.E. It is huge and indeed a very long day. Children get tired, they need breaks, they need to be physical and they need the opportunity to get some nourishment. Many schools now provide good and balanced meal choices at break times and lunch times. However, it is perfectly ok and a good idea for a chid with dyslexia to consider taking protein snacks in to consume during the day. Children also need access to water all the time.
I remember teaching foundation stage when the introduction of fruit came in, so children could have a small piece of fruit at play time. One four year old boy however said that he couldn’t eat his banana as there was no custard. This same chid also commented that he could not write one day as his leg hurt. Clutching at straws, maybe but the comment about not being able to write as a part of his body hurt was I am sure real to him.
We need to be looking after our children in school, we need to be offering them support in both their physical needs and also their mental health needs.
We also do not need to constantly be concerned with the academic needs of children as they will not thrive academically if they are not thriving in other areas. Teachers and teaching assistants are on the whole are very caring, they definitely do want the best for their children. But they need help and flexibility to help and support them. This support needs to be present without the constricting restraints put upon them by the powers that be, the people who sit in huge offices and have not set foot into a classroom for a great number of years. I feel that generally everyone has an opinion of education. The vast majority of people have been to school, so they have also had some experience and their opinions may very much be influenced by those experiences, as indeed have my own.
Dyslexia
Dyslexia is a term now known
to those in education,
so,
let’s get it right no excuses
for this and the next generations.
I also now assess and diagnose dyscalculia, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) for those aged 16+ and also developmental co-ordination disorder, formally known as dyspraxia (DCD), although both these diagnostic assessments are just for the purposes of education and application for DSA support at university. In addition, I also assess for visual difficulties and the need for a coloured overlay. All these areas can be well supported with the right knowledge and awareness of need. There are of course other special educational needs that my co-occur with dyslexia, so what about the bigger picture, that of neurodiversity. The term neurodiversity is now more widely known and more widely used. It is a good and positive term as it encompasses so much more than dyslexia. I have talked about co-occurring difficulties associated with dyslexia dn the term neurodiversity allows for these to be considered and sensitivity acknowledged. As if dyslexia was not enough, so many children, young people and adults have so much more going on and the education system needs to be doing far more to raise awareness of these needs and address how children, young people and adults can be better supported in schools, colleges universities and the workplace.
