[senco-forum] Lindamood Bell

Having finally read through your reply my conclusion is that as SENCo in a
large secondary, with 500 pupils on the CoP, there is no way I can
accommodate the different forms of dyslexia you describe.

Even you admit that in changing your website to suit one form of dyslexia
you made it inaccesible to others.  So you effectively need several web
pages saying the same thing in different formats.  Is that a practical
suggestion for the clasroom?

My question wasn't perhaps clear.  As we don't teach using websites, but use
books often shared one between two, how can I use the underlying 'cause of
dyslexia' to meet individual need?  To be of use your suggestions need to be
practical, easy for staff to produce and use, and above all very very cheap.

Costs are very important - each photocopy costs my staff 2p a sheet which
comes out of their capitation, one copy per child per lesson therefore costs
60p, multiply that by 5 lessons per day and 70 staff over 40 weeks and you
have a bill of over ?4000 - for one sheet per child per lesson per teacher
per year.

The time spent producing individualised resources/worksheets, making and
copying needs to be absolutely minimal.  Many of my colleauges are teaching
whole classes of pupils all of which are on the CoP with individual needs.
And they see them once a week for 50 minutes - so can't be expected to know
every child's individual requirements in detail.  Out of neccessity we work
in generalities - ie these three reading targets will meet the needs of the
majority in the class.

I am not denegrating the needs of those with APD but as SENCOs we need
sucsinct and practical ideas.

Richard

-----Original Message-----
From: dolfrog [mailto:dolfrog at tiscali.co.uk]
Sent: 21 October 2006 03:56
To: 'Richard Cook'
Cc: Senco-Forum
Subject: RE: [senco-forum] Lindamood Bell

Hi Richard

AS Martin and other Educational Psychologists have mentioned in the past,
there are many underlying causes of dyslexia.
Dyslexia can only be about having problems with reading, writing and
spelling. It is a man made problem. First man devised and developed an
auditory form of communication that we call speech, and later man decided
that a visual notation of this form of communication would be useful, and
the present version of this development we now call text. So those who have
no problems with coping with this man made communication system are fine
others who have problems with text are deemed to be dyslexic.

Before we had text, computers or any other man made communication system
some humans had deficits in their sensory information processing skills, and
they tried to develop methods of coping with these deficits, by using the
alternative skill strengths that had to work around these issues. So APD and
Mears Irlen etc were there, but were not too much of a problem at that stage
of our evolution.

So towards the end of the 19th Century it we decided that all needed  basic
level of education, and the only models available for education for all were
the existing public schools and the universities which were dominated by
those who naturally had strong Auditory skills and were able to use the
books of knowledge, or as we know them know TEXTBOOKS, because they were
full of text, a very few pictures, diagrams charts etc. Before this time
those who had problems working with text either relied on others to help or
even paid for scribes and readers. So the problems with this form of human
developed communication were already there.

So the question is how would understanding the underlying cause of dyslexia
change any intervention.
Well the most obvious example in the design of the APDUK web site. The APDUK
web site has been designed with advice from many adults who have Auditory
Processing Disorder who develop their visual skills to compensate for their
deficit and this is why we use alternating font colours for each new
sentence, and even a new line, with double line spacing for new paragraphs.
This provides visual clues with regard the content change in the text, and
help APDs break the text into visibly manageable chunks
This use of multicoloured text causes real problems for those dyslexics who
have the corresponding Visual processing Disorder, most call Mears Irlen or
just visual impairments generally. Who; we are told prefer a dark text on a
light beige background, but from other adult dyslexics tell me that they
have their own differing preferences of both font and background, some of
which may appear really horrid to others.
The opposite side of this coin is the large blocks of  black text on a white
or beige background recommended by many as being best for dyslexics, many
who have Auditory Processing Disorder ( some still call it auditory
dyslexia) have problems with this style of presentation. A case in point,
APDUK was asked by CAfamily to change all our web site to black text on a
beige background to be dyslexia friendly, after the publication of the MRC
APD pamphlets, they only asked us to provide alternative pages for those who
may have visual issues with text. So we created our Information sheet
section. As the APDUK web site creator and designer, I had to reformat our
most popular web pages into the prescribed dark text on a light background.
Technically this was no problem, but I was not able to proof read these new
pages for any errors. Yet I had written much of the text myself, and had
been able to proof read the multi coloured version. I had to publish the new
web pages to a password protect area of the web site and ask some non APD
members of the APDUK executive Committee to proof read those web pages.

Another variation is that most APDs would prefer a whole word approach to
the teaching of reading, maths and most other subject, and this would also
include those who have dyslexic issues due to being Visual-Spatial Learners.

So unless you understand the underlying problems that actually cause the
dyslexic symptoms then you can only guess and hope that any intervention you
may be trying is actually addressing the real underlying problems.

Best wishes

Graeme
dolfrog
dolfrog at apduk.org
http://www.apduk.org
dolfrog at dolfrog.com
http://www.dolfrog.com
http://www.ldlinks.org.uk

-----Original Message-----
From: Richard Cook [mailto:richard_cook at blueyonder.co.uk]
Sent: Friday, October 20, 2006 7:46 PM
To: dolfrog; 'Amanda'; Mmilesep at aol.com; Olanys at aol.com;
senco-forum at lists.becta.org.uk
Subject: RE: [senco-forum] Lindamood Bell

Graeme

Can you give a brief example of how knowing the 'underlying cause of the
dyslexic symptom' might alter the intervention?

Richard

-----Original Message-----
From: senco-forum-bounces at lists.becta.org.uk
[mailto:senco-forum-bounces at lists.becta.org.uk]On Behalf Of dolfrog
Sent: 20 October 2006 17:27
To: 'Amanda'; Mmilesep at aol.com; Olanys at aol.com;
senco-forum at lists.becta.org.uk
Subject: RE: [senco-forum] Lindamood Bell

Hi Amanda

Educational Psychologists are not qualified to diagnose the underlying
causes of the dyslexic symptoms, and therefore are not qualified to advise
on the best practice to follow up the range of issues that what ever the
underlying causes are need.

These issues go much further than just reading, writing and spelling, which
is all dyslexia is about. And as Martin correctly points out EPs are not
interested in the phonological causes of dyslexia, and the whole range of
other implication that say an audiologist, or Speech and Language consultant
could provide. You are only getting part of the picture, and the bit that
remains missing from RP reports is more important for the individual child
to help them understand the range of issues they have to work around, and
not just the tip of the iceberg of issues that an EP will identify.

Best wishes

Graeme
dolfrog
dolfrog at apduk.org
http://www.apduk.org
dolfrog at dolfrog.com
http://www.dolfrog.com
http://www.ldlinks.org.uk
-----Original Message-----
From: Amanda [mailto:amandavh at btinternet.com]
Sent: Friday, October 20, 2006 4:07 PM
To: dolfrog; Mmilesep at aol.com; Olanys at aol.com;
senco-forum at lists.becta.org.uk
Subject: RE: [senco-forum] Lindamood Bell

Hello

As I understand it, anyone with the relevant qualifications can test for
dyslexia.  In my LA (they are no longer LEAs - see 'Every Child Matters') a
child with suspected dyslexia may be seen by the Advisory Teacher for
Dyslexia for a diagnosis.  The Ed Psych might be seen also but not
invariably unless we were looking for a statement where everyone has to take
a look at them including health.

what's wrong with the Educational psychologists' assessments?  The reports I
get from mine are fantastically detailed, pick up all the issues and also
recommend other experts who need to get involved.  Is ti being suggested
that Ed Psychs are not competent to diagnose dyslexia?

Amanda
Secondary SENCO
Cornwall
Finally on half term - yippee!!!

dolfrog <dolfrog at tiscali.co.uk> wrote:

	Hi Martin

	One last comment.

	Phonological awareness issues are one of the major causes of
dyslexia, yet
	in the UK LEAs have Educational Psychologists test for dyslexia, am
I
	missing something, or should I go to the vet to have my APD re
assessed.

	Best wishes

	Graeme
	dolfrog
	dolfrog at apduk.org
	http://www.apduk.org
	dolfrog at dolfrog.com
	http://www.dolfrog.com
	http://www.ldlinks.org.uk

	-----Original Message-----
	From: senco-forum-bounces at lists.becta.org.uk
	[mailto:senco-forum-bounces at lists.becta.org.uk] On Behalf Of
	Mmilesep at aol.com
	Sent: Friday, October 20, 2006 9:25 AM
	To: Olanys at aol.com; senco-forum at lists.becta.org.uk
	Subject: Re: [senco-forum] Lindamood Bell

	In a message dated 19/10/2006 20:48:06 GMT Standard Time,
Olanys at aol.com
	writes:

	As far as I was aware, phononogical awareness does not come under
the
	umbrella of psychology...so being a retired Professor of Psychology
would
	not
	qualify her more than anyone else to carry out such an analysis.

	Dog due for annual jabs so will discuss phonological awareness with
the vet

	then.

	Martin

Amanda
Secondary SENCO
Cornwall

--
No virus found in this incoming message.
Checked by AVG Free Edition.
Version: 7.1.408 / Virus Database: 268.13.8/489 - Release Date: 20/10/2006

--
No virus found in this incoming message.
Checked by AVG Free Edition.
Version: 7.1.408 / Virus Database: 268.13.8/489 - Release Date: 20/10/2006