Archive for January, 2006

LD games

Published by JohnL on 13 January 2006 in News. 0 Comments

Tata Interactive Systems (TIS) used the old famous-people-with-Learning-Disability bit as a lead for an entry in its blog that is part of the company’s public relations campaign (AKA “advertising”).

What do Tom Cruise, Whoopi Goldberg, Walt Disney, Winston Churchill, and Alexander Graham Bell have in common?

Learning disability.

TIS is a software development company with headquarters in India that creates simulations and games and transforms traditional print content into more technically accessible formats. Other than a few instances of pandering to the public, TIS claims to develop “end-to-end solutions that screen and identify children with learning disabilities, and offer remedial action as well as a tracking system to monitor their progress.” Sounds good, no?

Could be good, but who knows? As evidence, TIS offers endorsements by various agencies and companies. I’m not ready to accept those data as strong evidence. Show us the data!

As one or two of the three readers of LD Blog may know, I have a fondness for technology in education, having fiddled with it for the better part of 20 years. Still, I harbor skepticism about technologies that claim to correct Learning Disabilities. Usually the products are misbegotten examples of quizzing with gratuitous feedback (bronx cheers upon error, fireworks displays for accurate answers) or superficially sensible sequences of activities that supposed to address underlying processes (e.g., deducing the sequence described by a series of objects). I am certain there are better things available, but I don’t know enough about them. (My much-admired colleague Mable Kinzie has led a graduate class on developing learning games; I should investigate the work they produced.) Whatever they are, we need to see the empirical examinations of their effects. Show us the data!

Neither the TIS blog entry nor a PDF document describing the products provide data.

The good news, according to the blog entry, is that TIS supports a local (a) hospital by performing systems analyses and programming data management activities—excellent use of technology!—and (b) employees running footraces (7K, halfathon, and marathon) to raises funds for Learning Disabilities.

Parent site with missteps

Published by JohnL on 8 January 2006 in Comments, Not LD and The Press. 0 Comments

Sandy L. Cook hosts a Web site aimed at helping parents understand and “circumvent” their children’s disabilities. She has a lot about home schooling, dyslexia, and such. In addition to her professional qualifications (mostly in technology), she has waded into education for students with Learning Disabilities, having been led there by her children.

Sandy’s children collectively have severe dyslexia, dysgraphia, executive function deficits, and ADHD. After battling the public schools for five years, and filing a successful due process lawsuit, the Cooks found the services offered by the school were inadequate. Reluctantly, Sandy began homeschooling her children and has found the experience rewarding and more successful than she ever imagined. Sandy was able to bring her child with severe dyslexia from a 1.9 grade reading level to a 10.0 grade equivalent within two years of beginning homeschooling, and each child is on grade-level in every subject except spelling!

The Web site is extensive and (for those who are squeamish about such) features advertisements. I’ve not explored the entire site, but I noted that Ms. Cook has some sensible recommendations (e.g., Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons) and a lot about Orton-Gillingham methods. There are, sadly, perpetuations of some misunderstandings; in particular, I spotted recommendations about identifying learners’ preferred modality for learning, the reversals myth, and scotopic sensitivity (see “Dyslexia Symptoms” and “Remediation 1″).

It’s too bad that there is bad material mixed into the good material on this site. I hope that people discriminate between the wheat and the chaff here, and that Ms. Cook does the research and revision that is needed to make her site more useful and less misleading to parents who want to understand their children’s disabilities.

Link to Ms. Cook’s site.

More good Liz posts

Published by JohnL on 4 January 2006 in News. 0 Comments

Liz Ditz has been busy over on I Speak of Dreams. Check her entries on

More celebrity dyslexia

Published by JohnL on 4 January 2006 in Comments. 3 Comments

During my adolescence (in the previous millenium, of course), I volunteered to help with the tasks of the pit crew for an amateur sports car racing team. I also read magazines such as Road & Track and Car & Driver, learning about sports cars, racing, and the professionals who raced sports cars. Among other stars (Sterling Moss, Caroll Shelby, Jim Hall, Bruce McLaren, Bob Bondurant, Alain Prost, and Graham Hill) there was a driver named John Young (”Jackie”) Stewart. In a few years my attention drifted from racing to other matters (e.g., a young woman named Pat and teaching kids with disabilities, to name two distractions), but I remember that Jackie Stewart was a very successful driver as well as an advocate for greater safety in racing.

My memories of Sir Stewart—he was awarded the Order of the British Empire in 1972—were jogged when I wrote the entry on celebrity dyslexia yesterday. I spent a little time following up on Sir. Stewart’s work on dyslexia, and I was overwhelmed. It appears that Sir Stewart has approached the task of championing services for individuals with dyslexia with the same determination that he showed on the track. For example, he has been very visible in the press coverage of a university initiative. Here is just a little sampling of what I found:

  • From the Scottish government—Dyslexia Scotland charity launched: A new charity, Dyslexia Scotland, is launched today with the aim of helping thousands of people with dyslexia across the country. It will combine the expertise of two leading charities, the Scottish Dyslexia Trust and Dyslexia in Scotland, and have Sir Jackie Stewart as President and Sir Peter Burt as chairman of the Board.
  • From the Scottish government—New project to improve teaching of children with dyslexia: A pioneering new project at the University of Aberdeen will train new teachers in how best to help children with dyslexia and other learning difficulties, it was announced today. The project will create a new Chair of Inclusive Studies at the University and is the result of discussions between the First Minister, Sir Jackie Stewart, President of Dyslexia Scotland and University Principal and Vice-Chancellor Prof Duncan Rice.
  • From the University of Aberdeen—First Minister to announce major funding award to support children with dyslexia: Scotland’s First Minister Jack McConnell will [announce funding for a project]…. The First Minister will be joined by former Formula One World Champion, Sir Jackie Stewart, and the Principal of the University of Aberdeen, Professor C Duncan Rice.
  • From the BBC—Dyslexia fight goes into top gear: The charity’s [Scottish Dyslexia Trust and Dyslexia in Scotland] president, former F1 champion Sir Jackie Stewart, said he thought he was “thick” at school before discovering he was dyslexic.
  • From the BBC—New dyslexia role speeding ahead: Motor racing legend Jackie Stewart has visited Aberdeen University at the launch of Scotland’s first professorship in dyslexia.
  • From the Scotsman—Sir Jackie Stewart hails university dyslexia post: SIR Jackie Stewart, the motor racing legend, launched a world first for Scotland yesterday with the setting up of a professorship in dyslexia and other learning disabilities.
  • From the Herald—University to train teachers in dealing with dyslexia: SCOTLAND’S first university professorship in dyslexia has been created to train teachers on how to educate children with learning difficulties. Sir Jackie Stewart, the former Formula One champion driver and himself dyslexic, was instrumental in setting up the post at one of Scotland’s oldest universities.
  • From Dyslexia Adults Link—Formula One Ace Jackie Stewart Attacks Slur on Dyslexic Drivers: Some of the country’s most prominent dyslexics, including Sir Jackie Stewart, the former world racing champion, have reacted furiously to research claiming the condition makes them dangerous drivers.

The coverage Sir Stewart’s participation brought to this event shows actual benefits that can accrue from dyslexia among celebrities. Media’s attraction to celebrities makes it worthwhile to capitalize on their difficulties. Although I have reservations about the motivational value of pointing to famous individuals with dyslexia, Sir Stewart’s contributions here are clear and very valuable.

Celebrity dyslexia

Published by JohnL on 3 January 2006 in News. 2 Comments

Jackie Stewart, one of auto racing’s most successful drivers, is the focus of a story about dyslexia by John Crase in the education section of the Guardian (London, GB). Mr. Crase draws parallels between Mr. Stuart’s success and the difficulties faced by Saydul Miah, a 10-year old who stuggled with learning to read until he received help from a private tutoring organization. Mr. Crase also uses the story to highlight an effort to endow a chair on dyslexia at Aberdeen University and otherwise raise awareness of dyslexia.