The Dyslexia Myth: Solve Reading and Writing Problems

By H. D. Nicolay

This book is a practical “self help” guide for people of all ages with dyslexia and reading and writing disabilities. It provides easy to follow step-by-step instructions to acquire error-free spelling and improve reading and writing skills in English and other foreign languages.
Over a course of 20 years H. D. Nicolay has successfully supported thousands of children. In just four to ten individual sessions with him or a teacher/therapist trained in his method, children will overcome their challenges. By incorporating the Nicolay instructional concept and method as early as the second grade, it enables children to acquire error-free reading and writing skills from the very outset.
He offers parents, tutors, teachers, and therapists a successful means of tackling reading and writing difficulties where they will obtain practical instructions to implement the proven strategies into all aspects of their own fields of work. Parents and tutors specifically will be provided with reasonable instructions for continuing assistance at home and concluding the exercises successfully.
The book is presented in a simple, concise, easy-to-read format including supplemental worksheets and also exercises to improve concentration. It also provides effective and proven tips to effectively avoid reading and writing challenges later in life.

• Language: English
• Publisher: BookBaby
• Release date: Mar 18, 2014
• ISBN: 9783944150215

Book preview

1

Reading and writing difficulties and dyslexia in the US/UK/Germany

Prevalence and consequences

Problems with reading and writing or dyslexia indicate largely the same phenomenon. The name attributed to it differs from country to country. In applying the Nicolay Method successfully it is unimportant which diagnostic method has been used. In this book I mainly use the expression weakness in reading and writing. It is one of the most common developmental faults, which can continue into adulthood, influencing both psychological and social development well into adulthood. We live in a visually oriented society, in which written achievements are overvalued. In schools, universities or at work, spelling errors disadvantage those affected.

Exorbitant waste of tax money

With regard to the UK, Polly Curtis, education editor of the Guardian wrote as early as 2004 that poor literacy and basic skills as a result of undiagnosed dyslexia costs the UK economy £1bn a year, according to the Dyslexia Institute. The daily cost of £2.75m is accounted for by the hidden costs to the welfare state: People who are dyslexic and undiagnosed are far more likely to be excluded from school, unemployed for long periods of time or imprisoned. The annual cost is £34 per taxpayer, the institute said. Some 5.2 million have poor literacy skills and 6.8 million adults have poor numeracy skills, according to government figures.

Turning to the USA and the figures quoted by Girard Sagmiller, author of Dyslexia My Life (www.dyslexiamylife.org) the situation is even more dramatic. Quoting from reports issued by the US Department of Health and Human Services, he writes Top of Form.

It is estimated that as many as 15% of American students may be dyslexic. – U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

It is estimated that more than $2 billion is spent each year on students who repeat a grade because they have reading problems. – U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

It is estimated that the cost of illiteracy to business and the taxpayer is $20 billion per year. – Illiteracy: A National Crisis, United Way.

Fifty percent of American adults are unable to read an eighth grade level book. – Illiterate America, Jonathan Kozol.

Approximately 50% of the nation’s unemployed youth age 16-21 are functional illiterate, with virtually no prospects of obtaining good jobs. – U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Sixty percent of America’s prison inmates are illiterate and 85% of all juvenile offenders have reading problems. – U.S. Department of Education.

Fifteen percent of the population has specific reading disorders. – Albert M. Galaburda, M.D., Beth Israel Hospital, Harvard Medical School.

The situation in Germany reveals a similar picture where 4% to 6% of the population of Germany (about four million people) has great difficulty learning to read and write. In spite of their intelligence and regular schooling, they fail in reading texts and in written expression.

A study carried out in Germany showed that rapid support and the prevention of dyslexia at a young age, preferably in elementary school, can prevent children and adolescents later turning to crime.

Hindering our children’s intellectual potential

Many children with a language disability are identified too late, only after they develop psychological problems arising from difficulties at school. This can result in fear of going to school, depression and even suicidal thoughts. Studies carried out in both the US and the United Kingdom corroborate this.

In Bavaria, Germany, for example, 41,000 elementary pupils and 8,000 secondary students are enrolled in extra-curricular reading and writing courses. A reputable newspaper, The Sueddeutsche Zeitung, wrote (Dec. 15th 1999) that about 5,000 children are in long-term therapy. About 2,000 children are receiving therapy from about 120 psychologists. On average therapy duration per child is 60 hours spread over a period of one and a half years (www.akl-bayern.de).

A study by the University of Wuerzburg showed that 40% of the children affected by reading and writing problems, who were in therapy over a long period, suffer from psychological problems. One fourth of them become involved in criminal activity. – A Mood of Nature, Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Dec. 15th 1999.

Upon request and with mental handicaps attested by experts, the cost for therapy in some German states must be borne by the Youth Welfare Office, financed by the taxpayer. For each child identified for therapy, 30 to 80 hours of therapy must be approved and funded. According to my estimates, the cost for therapy in the Federal State of Bavaria alone amounts to 15 million Euros per year – i.e. $2000–$7,000 USD in taxes per child.

The sad conclusion we reach is that in the countries we have examined a very high number of children are affected by language difficulties. The costs of therapy are exorbitant and the psychological consequences of long therapy sessions are devastating.

There is a tendency to suggest to children affected that there is something wrong with them. They are labeled and must take tests. Irregularities are identified leading to certification of the need for therapy or even diagnosis of an illness.

With every unnecessary hour of therapy, the trust of the children in their own capabilities and self-esteem drops dramatically. Based on their negative experiences, many no longer believe they can improve their spelling. They see themselves as incapable or even stupid, mostly for