What Causes Dyslexia?

Current Science of the Dyslexia Diagnosis

40 years ago, dyslexia was thought to be a visual problem. We now know that reading is a language skill - - there is a 98% correlation in brain activity between listening and reading. And so the causes of dyslexia are language related, in two categories: inherited factors, and/or hearing problems at an early age.

Gemm Learning’s programs for dyslexia target the causes of dyslexia
It is clear that dyslexia is very frequently found in families, and is often accompanied by left-handedness somewhere in the family. This does not mean to say that a dyslexic parent will automatically have a dyslexic child, or that a left-handed child will necessarily be dyslexic. But where dyslexia is identified, between a third and a half of children have a history of learning difficulties in their family, and more than half have a family member who is left-handed.

With the technical advances that have come about in brain-scanning in recent years, a lot of research has been carried out examining the brains of dyslexic people. The brains of dyslexic children show an unusual variation in left- and right-side activity.

Recent research has found that, whereas non-dyslexic children use the left side of their brain for language and reading, dyslexic children have to use the right side as well. This is because their language word memory is not accurate enough for fluent reading, and so the brain adds other strategies. As a result, the brains of dyslexic children and adults have to work about six times harder. This may be why dyslexic children and adults become fatigued by language work and dealing with text.

Hearing Problems At An Early Age
If a child suffers frequent colds, ear and throat infections in the first five years, the ears can be blocked from time to time so that hearing is impaired. Even a few weeks of an ear infection is one of the main life events that causes dyslexia. The parents can easily be unaware of this until a doctor actually looks into the child's ear. This condition is sometimes known as 'glue ear' or 'conductive hearing loss'. If the difficulty is not noticed at an early stage, then the developing brain loses that period of time when it is mapping the language it hears for reading.

This early learning of sounds and words is fundamental to the child's developing ability to handle language and text. If a child cannot hear clearly, he or she will be unable to hear the difference between words like 'pin' and 'thin', or 'fan' and 'van'. The lack of clear hearing will also delay the child's phonemic awareness -- the ability to hear that words are made up of smaller sounds and syllables, like 'c-a-t', or 'in-ter-est-ing.'

Related to these hearing related causes of dyslexia, is the case of a foreign adopted child or English Language Learner, who did not hear English at all in the first three years of life, and so missed out on the important language mapping.

A delay in phonemic awareness causes lifelong difficulties -- dyslexia -- if corrective action is not taken at a very early stage. The most common treatment is the insertion of a tiny tube or grommet into the child's ear. This allows the fluid to drain off so that the child's hearing is restored. Another treatment is the removal of the tonsils, which are sometimes the cause of the repeated infections.

A Combination of Both
Sometimes a child has inherited genes which dispose him or her towards difficulties dealing with the printed word, and has also experienced early hearing problems. When both dyslexia causes are present, children are often found to be quite severely dyslexic, and need a lot of support through their school years. These children are often great candidates for our individualized dyslexia programs.

Dyslexia Myths

There is a lot of confusion about dyslexia, including many outdated misconceptions and dyslexia myths that were never thought to be true. Cognitive research, a study of how the brain reads and learns, has come a long way in the last two decades, leading to a whole new understanding about the causes of dyslexia and what treatment options may or may not work. Here are some common myths about dyslexia:

Myth: Intelligence and ability to read are related
So if someone doesn't read well, they can't be very smart. Also, gifted children cannot be dyslexic or have a learning disability.

Dyslexia is not related to IQ. That means you can have a very high IQ and be dyslexic, you can have an average IQ and be dyslexic, and you can have low IQ and be dyslexic. Many people with dyslexia are very bright and accomplish amazing things as adults. Their dyslexia comes from underlying cognitive difficulties that can be resolved.
Dyslexia programs

Myth: People with dyslexia see things backwards
People with dyslexia do not see things backwards. Dyslexia is not caused by a vision problem. That is why vision therapy does not work for this population. There is nothing wrong with their eyes. Yes, they reverse their b's and their d's and say was for saw. But that's caused by their lifelong confusion over left versus right and by their difficulty reading by sounding out.

Myth: Dyslexia is a medical diagnosis
Many people believe that dyslexia is an affliction like weak eyesight, where there is a biological cause that can perhaps be corrected.

Dyslexia describes a learning difficulty, an unexpected difficulty with reading, as opposed to being a specific medical problem. And there is no medical solution (no pill or operation) for the academic struggles of children or adults with dyslexia. That is also why medical insurance does not cover dyslexia treatment.

Myth: Most children with dyslexia outgrow early reading and spelling problems
The common perception is that children have different developmental paths and that this is just a developmental delay.

Independent, scientific, replicated research on reading development shows just the opposite. It shows that if a child is struggling with reading, writing, and spelling in mid-first grade, that child has better than 90% odds of still struggling with those skills in eighth grade and on into adulthood if left untreated. That means less than 10% of the time will a dyslexic child outgrow those struggles. That also means waiting is the worst thing you can do. The child is only going to get further and further behind.

Myth: Any child who reverses letters or numbers has dyslexia
This is perhaps the classic of all dyslexia myths to the point that many people think that this is actually the definition of dyslexia.
Learn more about dyslexia

Most children will reverse some of their letters and numbers while they are learning. Up to a certain point, that is considered perfectly normal. However, letter or number reversals that continue after two years of handwriting instruction are a sign of dyslexia. If child truly has dyslexia, however, the child will have many of the other classic warning signs of dyslexia.
Dyslexia symptoms

Myth: Schools test children for dyslexia

Most public schools do not test children for dyslexia because federal education law does not yet require them to diagnose why a child is struggling. Most public schools only test to see if a child is far enough behind to be eligible for special education services.

As more parents, teachers, and administrators are becoming aware of dyslexia and that dyslexia impacts 20% of children in the United States, states are starting to pass statewide dyslexia laws that, for instance, require public schools to screen children for dyslexia.