In the headlines
21 September 2018
Sally and Bennett Shaywitz have been researching dyslexia for decades. They run the Yale Center for Dyslexia and Creativity. Much of their research has drawn on data from their longitudinal studies on a cohort of children from kindergarten entry to mature adulthood. They have studied the prevalence of dyslexia, the gender composition, long-term outcomes and economic consequences of dyslexia in adults. Sally Shaywitz wrote “Overcoming Dyslexia” in 2003. Bennett Shaywitz is using fMRI (functional magnetic resonance imaging) to try and discern a ‘neural signature for dyslexia’.
25 September 2018
Matt Boyd, Founder of Exceptional Individuals has launched a 6 week training course for neuro-diverse people to help them improve their chances of gaining employment. As a dyslexic himself he feels the job selection process of replying to job adverts and being interviewed is tougher for people with dyslexia and that their talents can be overlooked. The Exceptional Individuals own website has a Jobs Board called Incluzy and the website provides support and ideas for job search for neuro-diverse individuals.
30 September 2018
BBC 4 broadcast the documentary “Farther and Sun: A Dyslexic Road Trip”, which is a film made by Richard Macer with his 11 year old son, Arthur exploring whether dyslexia is a disability or a gift. Arthur was diagnosed at age 9 and Richard has always suspected he himself is dyslexic but was only tested during the making of the film. The assessor discovers that he has a Specific Learning Difficulty because he has developed good compensatory skills.
The pair visit academics including Maggie Snowling and Julian Elliot and successful dyslexics like Richard Branson and Eddie Izzard to learn more about the debate around dyslexia.
The hour long programme is still available to watch on the BBC iPlayer.