Understanding Dyslexia’s Impact on Reading
Scientists have learned a lot about dyslexia since the late 19th century, and that includes its impact on reading comprehension.
Published April 16, 2004
By Jim Romeo
Academy Contributor

Why Johnny Can’t Read and What You Can Do about It was the title of a 1955 book by Rudolf Flesch. Today, however, it sums up an emerging social preoccupation with understanding the science of learning and its relationship to educational achievement.
Increased emphasis on efforts such as the No Child Left Behind Act has created legislative mandates that all children should be afforded the same benefits of education in America. These efforts have also piqued our thirst for a better understanding of the intricacies of the brain and its function in emergent readers and learners.
Defined by the International Dyslexia Association as a language-based learning disability with a cluster of symptoms, dyslexia is most associated with difficulties in specific language skills, particularly reading. Although intricate and often misunderstood, research findings about dyslexia and cognitive disabilities are aiding educators with early identification of the disabilities, as well as more effective methods of instruction and remediation.
Underlying Mechanisms
Understanding of dyslexia has come a long way since 1896, when developmental dyslexia was first described as “word blindness” in the British Medical Journal. “Dyslexia research has catapulted to the cutting edge of neuroscience, owing mainly to the involvement of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development and to extraordinary developments in technology that now make it possible to image the working brain,” according to Sally Shaywitz, a Yale University researcher and author of Overcoming Dyslexia. “Rigorous research has brought us an understanding of the cognitive and neural basis of reading and dyslexia, making it possible to understand why otherwise smart people have trouble reading.”
Frank Wood, who heads the section of neuropsychology at Wake Forest University School of Medicine, said he believes that the underlying mechanisms that accompany and explain poor reading have been identified. “Effective remediation for phonemic awareness deficit has been demonstrated. For fluency, it is being demonstrated in current research; for vocabulary or comprehension there are some findings, but the field is relatively undeveloped,” he added.
“On the biological side, rapid progress is underway in the genetics of reading disability and in the brain mechanisms as they are affected by genetic factors,” Wood said, and much of the research is genetically based. “It’s now clear that risk for dyslexia is the product of several genes, on several different chromosomes.”
Wood added that his own study of the disorder has found some peculiarities, notably evidence that certain kinds of music experience can help young children learn to read. And, he said, culture also plays a role. “Dyslexia is subtly different in different languages, and effective reading instruction for English language learners needs to take account of first language and cultural differences.”
Dyslexia and Talent
Interestingly, dyslexia is found to be often associated with talent—particularly in art, design, architecture, and spatial ability. It’s not unusual for children with perceived general learning disabilities to display an exceptional ability that results in their placement in programs for the specially gifted. Sharon Milberger, research head for the Developmental Disabilities Institute at Wayne State University, said that 3.5% of children with a learning disability are found to be “twice exceptional.”
“In other words, these children have abilities in the gifted range as well as some significant learning challenges,” Milberger explained. “They often have disabilities that camouflage their gifts—and gifts that mask their disabilities. It is very important not to overlook either exceptionality, because research shows that these children are at high risk for poor self-esteem, hypersensitivity, and high levels of frustration and anxiety.”
There’s quite an inner circle of high achievers who began life with a learning disability. They include discount brokerage guru Charles Schwab, cellular phone magnate Craig McCaw, Cisco Systems CEO John Chambers, former U.S. president Woodrow Wilson, and even Leonardo Da Vinci.
Correlation Between Dyslexia and Success
Perhaps no one has championed the association between dyslexia and talent more than Thomas G. West, author of In the Mind’s Eye and director of the Center for the Study of Dyslexia and Talent at the Krasnow Institute for Advanced Study at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia. West’s research focuses on the correlation of very high success with the prevalence of dyslexia, a relationship that will likely be the focus of more research in the years ahead.
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is providing new insight into the physiological roots of dyslexia. Wood said he uses this tool to see physical evidence of a problem known to be linked to the brain and its functioning. “I use it extensively myself and can confirm its great value in describing how the brain activates to accomplish reading, how its activation differs in individuals with dyslexia, and how that difference—between typical readers and those with dyslexia—changes after appropriate instruction,” he said.
Plasticity is the new watchword in this category of research. Studies have shown that the workings of the brain are pliable, and patterns may change with specific programs of instruction. Shaywitz said imaging is a useful tool for identifying and monitoring this plasticity. Evidence of plasticity means that the brain’s functioning is malleable—at the right point in its development.
Proper Diagnosis and Early Intervention
If there’s ever a predominant theme in dyslexia treatment, it seems to be proper diagnosis and early intervention. “When students are diagnosed and treated early in their educational lives, appropriate intervention can be extremely successful,” commented Michelle Paster, director of Educational Programming at Learning-Works, based in Newton, Massachusetts. However, identification requires a trained professional to see early warning signs and to get swift and effective treatment.
“There are more correct diagnoses and treatments being done,” Wood noted. “However, there is still a wide range of expertise and basic knowledge represented among those who provide diagnoses and treatments. As a consequence, many children are incorrectly and falsely diagnosed—and wrongly treated.”
“There is no ‘quick fix’ for learning disabilities, reading disabilities or dyslexia,” says Cindy Haan, co-founder and chairman of the San-Francisco-based Haan Foundation for Children. “There are, however, highly effective interventions that teach students the skills necessary to compensate, overcome, and in many cases ameliorate their disadvantages.”
Early identification in combination with instruction that incorporates all the latest research findings is a true challenge. In the past year alone, new research has moved into different areas of the brain and its functioning as it relates to dyslexia. This research offers hope to future generations of dyslexic children. Predicts Wood, “most, but still not all, will be identified by the end of first grade, get the needed help, and perform better for the rest of their academic and vocational careers.”