In grade school, I struggled to read, misinterpreted letter combinations and reversed numbers. Throughout my education, I discovered how to tailor my efforts to learn in different ways to accommodate my dyslexia, a learning disability that results in difficulties with reading, spelling, writing and word pronunciation. I am among the nearly 20 percent of the U.S. population who learn differently due to some degree of dyslexia.1 While dyslexia can often pin students as easily distracted and struggling in class, I believe that the potential negative consequences of dyslexia can be offset and even its talents capitalized on through the use of visual learning methodologies.
Dyslexic Talents
John Tenny, the Director of the Master of Arts in the Teaching Program at Willamette University, describes dyslexic talents as “multivariate” and “nonlinear” in his article “Purple People.”2 What he means by this is that dyslexic individuals like myself can process multiple variables at the same time while solving problems. In addition, they can efficiently and effectively jump around and between different tasks rather than working through one assignment from start to finish. Tenny says that learning strategies, specifically when it comes to technology, must accommodate the multivariate and nonlinear talents of dyslexic learners.
Allow Strategic Flexibility
Visual learning strategies like webbing or concept mapping allowed me to capture all my ideas in random order, meaning I was able to exercise my multivariate need to jump around and let lots of information simultaneously flow through my mind and on to the paper. Then, with all of my ideas visually in front of me, I could organize my thoughts.
With Inspiration®, this meant that I could move in a very nonlinear fashion. I could RapidFire® lots of ideas onto the screen and then move them around, draw connections and group like items as I clarified all of the ideas. I could go from the big picture with lots of scattered ideas to a narrowed focus with very specific ideas or vise versa. I can even work on multiple tasks and projects at one time. The quick entry and easy reorganization along with the flexibility of nonlinear models really showcased my talent as a dyslexic learner.
When working with dyslexic learners, here are a few additional ways to improve learning:
- Use Pictures
Images also help dyslexic learners to learn new vocabulary and process information. Kyle Redford, a fifth-grade teacher at Marin Country Day School, asks her students to draw pictures for new words.3 In Inspiration or Kidspiration®, students can attach images to words to make visual associations with reading. - Employ Multiple Senses
Other sources point to multisensory efforts to improve literacy among dyslexic learners. With Kidspiration, students can hear the words associated with different text and images in their diagrams. This helps students to associate words to their spelling or sounds, building the phonological skills necessary for literacy. - Give Extra Time
Inspiration and Kidspiration allow students to move forward at their own, independent pace. This is important, because some dyslexic learners need a little extra time to process information, reread sentences, and double or triple check their work.
These tools, rooted in visual learning, help utilize dyslexic talents while improving comprehension, understanding and analysis. Visual learning can actually showcase what dyslexic learners do best while improving learning success.
How has visual learning helped your students who struggle with dyslexia?
Mona Westhaver
President and Co-founder, Inspiration Software
- “Dyslexia: Expert Says 20 Percent of Students Have Disorder.” Prescott Valley Tribune – Prescott Valley, Arizona. Web. 21 Dec. 2010. <http://pvtrib.com/main.asp?SectionID=74&SubSectionID=503&ArticleID=51495>. [↩]
- “Tenny Purple People Article.” Education Development Center | Improving Education and Health Worldwide. Web. 22 Dec. 2010. <http://www2.edc.org/NCIP/library/ot/tenny.htm>. [↩]
- “Dyslexia: What Teachers Need to Know. | Goliath Business News.” Goliath: Business Knowledge On Demand. Web. 22 Dec. 2010. <http://goliath.ecnext.com/coms2/gi_0199-13547489/Dyslexia-what-teachers-need-to.html>. [↩]
