Exactly What IS Dyslexia?
You hear a lot about dyslexia these days, so just what is dyslexia anyway? And people seem to use the term to talk about different things. It’s all very confusing sometimes.
The two principal definitions of dyslexia are the strict constructionist “academic” definition and the common usage definition of people who have friends or family members with dyslexia. The strict definition comes from the word dyslexia itself. It means problems with reading, and so that is a literal definition. But dyslexia-type problems of perception and association extend far beyond just reading to pronouncing new words, going from the spoken word to its correct spelling and many other similar associations.
How many people have dyslexia? And how can you tell if you are dyslexic or not?
Approximately ten to fifteen per cent of the entire population has some form of dyslexia. All are different and affected to different degrees. If you have problems with reading or spelling or reading aloud, these are symptoms of dyslexia. The only way to know if your are dyslexic is by way of dyslexia testing.
Actually there are two levels of testing: Screening Testing and Full Dyslexia Testing. Screening testing is used to find people with some possible dyslexia symptoms, enough that would justify a full test.
Full dyslexia testing is done by or monitored by a qualified professional. Its goal is to identify possible different types of dyslexia and measure the severity of each one.
Fortunately, in the last year or so a highly accurate home dyslexia test has been developed and is now available online.
Dyslexia testing is the key to identifying the millions of unknown dyslexics among us. Once tested the problems of dyslexia can almost always be easily overcome… but you must be tested to know if you can be helped…
Disclaimer: Nothing in the above explanations is intended to be or represented to be or should be construed to be any form of medical advice. The information herein has been gleaned from medical journals, news articles in the popular press and other freely-available public sources. It is presented here for informational purposes only. For any medical advice the reader is urged to consult with his or her licensed physician or other medical specialist.
By – John R. Jones