Dyslexia: Revisiting Etiology, Diagnosis, Treatment, and Policy

How do children develop reading skills - and when these skills don't develop typically, how can we best identify challenges and intervene? Find the answers in this comprehensive volume on dyslexia: its root causes, the most effective methods of diagnosis and treatment, and the sociopolitical factors that affect intervention.

Based on presentations from the seventeenth Extraordinary Brain Symposium, this book brings together contributions from more than 50 top researchers and practitioners, who share their invaluable perspectives, findings, solutions, and questions to shape future dyslexia research. Contributors include leading Australian experts, Anne Castles, Saskia Kohnen, Rauno Parrila, plus leading UK expert, Kate Nation.

Topics covered:

• Early identification of children at risk for reading difficulty
• The use of neuroimaging and molecular genetics to better understand the origins of dyslexia
• The unique challenges to dyslexia assessment and intervention in developing countries
• Important insights from computer-based simulations of developmental dyslexia
• Innovative technology that can help teachers personalize reading instruction for diverse learners
• The impact of race, poverty, and linguistic differences on the accurate diagnosis of dyslexia
• Results of recent studies on specific interventions for struggling readers
• The current state of teacher preparation programs and what improvements they need to make
• Key considerations and best practices related to universal screening tools
• How to scale up evidence-based interventions for reading disorders

An essential resource for researchers, graduate students, and reading specialists, this book is an authoritative synthesis of what we know about dyslexia - and what we need to know to provide better supports for struggling readers.

Table of Contents

About the Editors

About the Contributors

AQ1 Brief History of the Extraordinary Brain Series Symposia

Preface

Acknowledgments

1.Setting the Stage

• An Overview and Introduction to the Volume - Julie A. Washington, Donald L. Compton, and Peggy McCardle
• Investing in Our Future: Examining Programmatic Investments in Dyslexia Research - Brett Miller and Ruben P. Alvarez

2.Basic Etiology and Learning Mechanisms

• Imaging Genetics Approaches to the Study of Dyslexia: Promises and Challenges - Nicole Landi
• Diagnosing Dyslexia: How Deep Should We Dig? - Peter F. de Jong
• Early Identification of Children at Risk for Reading Difficulty: Neurobiology, Screening and Evidence-Based Response, and Educational Technology - Nadine Gaab, Ted K. Turesky, and Joseph Sanfilippo
• Using Computational Techniques to Model and Better Understand Developmental Dyslexia - Jay G. Rueckl, Jason Zevin, and Henry Wolf VII
• Orthographic Learning and Learning to Read: Implications for Developmental Dyslexia - Kate Nation and Matthew H. C. Mak Integrative Commentary 1 Bringing Together Multiple Methods and Measurements to Improve Our Understanding of Dyslexia Elizabeth S. Norton

3.Linguistic Differences and Reading

• The Impact of Linguistic Distance on Dyslexia in Dialect Speakers: The Case of Arabic Diglossia - Elinor Saeigh-Haddad
• Intersection of Race, Poverty, and Diagnostic Accuracy: Identifying Reading Disabilities in African American Children - Julie A. Washington and Ryan Lee-James
• Personalizing Literacy Instruction for Diverse Learners and Children with Severe Literacy Difficulties - Carol McDonald Connor, Young-Suk Grace Kim, and Dandan Yang
• Integrative Commentary 2 Language Matters to Reading Success and Linguistic Differences Deserve More Attention - Barbara R. Foorman

4.Identification and Treatment

• Cognitive Approaches to the Identification of Children With Dyslexia - Anne Castles and Saskia Kohnen
• Reading Comprehension Interventions for Individuals with Dyslexia in Grades 4–8 - Kelly J. Williams, Philip Capin, Elizabeth A. Stevens, and Sharon Vaughn
• Interventions to Improve the Literacy Skills of Children at Risk of Dyslexia - Robert Savage, George Georgiou, Rauno Parrila, Marie-France Côté, Kristina Maiorino, and Kristy Dunn
• Dyslexia, Reading Fluency, and Intervention - Ludo Verhoeven and Eliane Segers
• Integrative Commentary 3 On the Value of Theory-Driven Research on Dyslexia - Devin M. Kearns

5.Research and Practice: Outreach, Scale-Up, and Policy

• Screening for Dyslexia in Low-Resource and Multilingual Contexts - Jennae Bulat, Anne M. Hayes, Eileen Dombrowski, Margaret M. Dubeck, and Carmen Strigel
• The Emperor’s New Clothes in the Preparation of Reading Teachers - R. Malatesha Joshi and Emily Binks-Cantrell
• Scaling Up Evidence-Based Interventions for Reading Disorders: Bringing Research-Based Interventions to Community Practice in Diverse Settings - Maureen W. Lovett, Karen A. Steinbach, and Maria De Palma
• Statistical Considerations for Creating, Evaluating, and Choosing Behavioral Screening Assessments - Yaacov Petscher, Christopher T. Stanley, Brian Gearin, and Hank Fien
• Dyslexia Trifecta: Research, Education Policy, and Practice - Joan Mele-McCarthy
• Integrative Commentary 4 Knowledge at the Intersection of Research and Practice - Nicole Patton Terry

6.Finale

• 20 Challenges and Future Directions - Donald L. Compton

Index

"This book is an essential resource for all teacher education courses on reading and/or learning disabilities. The chapters reflect new understandings and policies regarding dyslexia that are inclusive and equity-focused."
- Heather Haynes Smith, Associate Professor, Trinity University

"Addresses many problems that are crying for more effective solutions...The clear and refreshing delineation of the issues found in this volume is the first step toward resolving them."
- Louisa Moats, President, Moats Associates Consulting, Inc., Sun Valley, Idaho

"Addresses the biological, cognitive, and behavioural aspects of developmental dyslexia and combines the theoretical insights gleaned with methods for early diagnosis and treatment."
- Thomas Lachmann, TU KaiserslauternErwin-Schroedinger-Str. B57

"Takes on all the challenges in understanding and treatment of dyslexia and literacy learning, highlighting the most pressing issues facing educators, researchers, and parents"
- Judith Birsh