Dyslexia is a fiction says MP

jaysay · 15-01-2009, 10:30

The Labour MP for Blackley Manchester Graham Stringer has said that Dyslexia doesn't exist, its just "Cruel Fiction" that its just a cover up for poor educational standards and should be consigned to the Dustbin of History, I really have to wonder where they actually dig these people up from. When a person makes such a sweeping statement that offends so many people in fail swoop, makes me wonder why he's in public life. Dyslexia is real and does exist an is very real, I know that for a fact, because I suffer from it. I have word blindness, in as much I read words that arn't there, I transpose letters in words they sometimes appear back to front and until about 15 years ago I didn't have a clue about. I started thinking about this word blindness when I became an avid crossworder and I was seeking words which quite honestly I'd read wrong, when your trying to find a word in a crossword and your looking a wrong meaning makes the outcome a little hard, to say the least. Like a lot of members on here I do the daily quiz, but I'll never win it because I'm just not quick enough reading the questions, and answering, but at 62 ask me if I'm bothered, not one little bit, I far more pressing problems than worrying about jumbled up words in my head, breathing is my priority, but people like Stringer should think before making these statements offending so many, especially as he seems to have difficulty stringing two words together coherently at times himself

Boeing Guy · 15-01-2009, 10:47

Maybe being a MP is just a 'Cruel Fiction' and that being one is just a cover for being a absolute t#####r

yerself · 15-01-2009, 18:32

I knew I'd read this before. From the Daily Liar in 2005

Professor Elliott, who teaches at Durham University, said poor readers wanted to be called dyslexic because of a "widespread, but wrong, perception that dyslexics are generally intellectually bright".

polly · 15-01-2009, 18:49

Comment such as this MP made illustrate the discrimination that so many pelopel with learning problems face on a day to day basis. some one in public like should not be allowed to make such offensive remarks without some action being taken against them. what would have happened if he had said that some physical condition eg. blindness did not exist?

Just because Dyslexia does not have a physical manifestation does not mean it does not exist. There is evidence that the brain scans of dyslexia sufferers, appear different to those not afflicted with the condition. Research continues but it seems that it will not be long before we can 'prove' dyslexia.

I have spent 15 years working with dyslexics of all ages, my son is dyspraxic with dyslexic, I have mild dyslexia. I know it exists and that sufferers can be helped. True dyslexics do have a high IQ, this is part of how we diagnose dyslexia.

Jaysay have you ever tried coloured overlays for your 'word blindness"? they help some people with the problem you describe.

derekgas · 15-01-2009, 21:25

If I remember correctly, it took years and years for dyslexia to be recognised, eventually it was, and now some joker decides that it is a myth!! enough said in my opinion.

The kevolution · 16-01-2009, 07:57

That was a foolish and ill-researched statement from the MP, but not without some truth behind it.

Dyslexia is definitely a real condition and I've spent years working with children with learning difficulties to convince me of this.

However it is a terribly...convenient... affliction and there is no question that a lot of parents push for their children to be diagnosed with Dyslexia (or another LD, but dyslexia has the least stigma attached to it) to explain away the fact that they are under-achieving at school.

I'd say probably upwards a quarter of the children I worked with whose parents pushed for dyslexia weren't actually dyslexic, just simply weren't confident readers or not very academically skilled.

Oh, and with the genuine cases I worked with coloured overlays or tinted glasses seemed to really help a lot of the time, pretty much anything other than reading black print on a white page.

jaysay · 16-01-2009, 11:11

I know a lad who was 15 before they found out he was dyslexic, and he did very poorly in exams. When they found out he was allowed a READER to sit with him during exams and he pasted them with flying colours

mattylad · 16-01-2009, 13:56

I heard him on the radio, I'm not entirely sure he is saying that Dyslexia does not exist at all, moreover that a great many illiterate people who have not been able to learn to read & write properly are being lumper in with the term Dyslexic of which there are a great many levels of.

What is needing is better ways of teaching, more emphasis on phonetics etc.
Many other countries do not have the level of "dyslexic" sufferers that we do, but then their language is a lot different & easier to learn. Which sort of says that maybe it's not actually dyslexia, more that English is just a damn awkward language & should be scrapped.

Ve shut oll be tolking viz da german accent Ja!

Please don't disguise bad language - andrewb

polly · 16-01-2009, 17:28

"................Other languages, same issue
Most of the brain imaging research on dyslexia so far has been done on English-speaking people, but the problem exists throughout the world.

In some cases, as in Germany, the dyslexia rate is about half the U.S. figure because German letters, unlike English, are always pronounced the same way regardless of what word they are in.

There is even dyslexia in China and Japan, where the written symbols represent whole words, Dr. Eden said, but in those nations, the brain differences between good and poor readers show up in frontal regions that seem to be involved in processing the shapes of the symbols.
.............................."

From: Dyslexia begins when the wires don't meet
The article goes on to describe how certain areas of the brain need to be correctly functioning to allow individuals to read and illustrates that these areas have been shown to be irregular in dyslexics (under brain scans)

yerself · 16-01-2009, 18:49

Sorry about this, couldn't resist.

Did you hear about the dyslexic devil worshipper?
He ended up selling his soul to Santa.

Sparkologist · 17-01-2009, 19:56

When life gives you melons... you know you're dyslexic.

I couldn't resist, either.

Neil · 17-01-2009, 20:03

Quote:

Originally Posted by jaysay

I know a lad who was 15 before they found out he was dyslexic, and he did very poorly in exams. When they found out he was allowed a READER to sit with him during exams and he pasted them with flying colours

Is he allowed a reader at work?

jaysay · 18-01-2009, 11:47

Quote:

Originally Posted by Neil

Is he allowed a reader at work?

And your point sir

emamum · 18-01-2009, 11:52

Quote:

Originally Posted by Neil

Is he allowed a reader at work?

no but he wont be timed at work. my sister gets a reader for her exams

piltygirl · 19-01-2009, 13:22

My son was diagnosed with dyslexia a couple of months ago, i wish i knew where to start helping him as i was'nt given much infomation about the condition. I do know that they are intelligent just have problems with words, my son says when he is reading the words move round the page, all his schoolwork is done on white paper could the words stay in one place on the page if he was to write on coloured paper or by wearing tinted glasses. I don't know if you can answer my query if you can many thanks, if not it's ok... thank you in advance.