Dyslexia: A New Synergy Between Education and Cognitive Neuroscience

Abstract

Dyslexia: A New Synergy Between Education and www.sciencemag.org (this information is current as of October 26, 2009 ):The following resources related to this article are available online at http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/325/5938/280 version of this article at:including high-resolution figures, can be found in the online Updated information and services, http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/325/5938/280#otherarticles Reading is essential in modern societies, but many children have dyslexia, a difficulty in learning to read. Dyslexia often arises from impaired phonological awareness, the auditory analysis of spoken language that relates the sounds of language to print. Behavioral remediation, especially at a young age, is effective for many, but not all, children. Neuroimaging in children with dyslexia has revealed reduced engagement of the left temporo-parietal cortex for phonological processing of print, altered white-matter connectivity, and functional plasticity associated with effective intervention. Behavioral and brain measures identify infants and young children at risk for dyslexia, and preventive intervention is often effective. A combination of evidence-based teaching practices and cognitive neuroscience measures could prevent dyslexia from occurring in the majority of children who would otherwise develop dyslexia.T he nexus of educational policies, evidencebased teaching practices, and cognitive neuroscience promises to use cutting-edge scientific methods and concepts to promote the growth and success of children. Reading is a focal point in this new synthesis because it is the most important portal to knowledge in our information age, from books to blackboards to the Internet. Learning to read is, however, perilous for the 5 to 17% of children who have developmental dyslexia, a persistent difficulty in learning to read that is not explained by sensory deficits, cognitive deficits, lack of motivation, or lack of adequate reading instruction (1).Here, I provide an overview of research about the cognitive and brain bases of dyslexia, its treatment and brain plasticity associated with successful treatment, and how neuroscience may interact with education to help children with dyslexia. Particularly promising is the possibility that early identification of risk for dyslexia, through combined behavioral and neuroscience measures, may allow for preventive treatment such that many children with dyslexia who would otherwise fail to read would, instead, succeed at reading. What Is Dyslexia and What Causes Dyslexia?Definition of dyslexia. Most children have reading difficulties for three broad reasons: (i) dyslexia, which is characterized by a difficulty in understanding and using alphabetic or logographic principles to acquire accurate and fluent reading skills, (ii) reduced vocabulary and strategies needed for text comprehension, and (iii) reduced motivation to read. The latter reasons for reading failure often involve socioeconomic factors, at home and at school, that are beyond the scope ...

Neuroscience and education: prime time to build the bridge

“…However, interventions to remediate dyslexia are much more likely to be successful when conducted on children who are beginning to read or even before reading if they are based exclusively on improving auditory processing 75 . As with many other medical conditions, early diagnosis is a fundamental aspect of remediation.…”

Computer-assisted training of phoneme–grapheme correspondence for children who are deaf and hard of hearing: Effects on phonological processing skills

“…Thus, at a surface level the problem may be considered similar to DHH children's phonological processing deficit. [28]. Finally, the Swedish version of Graphogame delivers training for beginning readers.…”

The practical and principled problems with educational neuroscience.

“…(Blakemore & Frith, 2005, p. 459) Teachers should also play a central role by adopting these new teaching methods in their classrooms. Furthermore, it is claimed that teaching teachers about neuroscience will inspire better instruction (Carew & Magsamen, 2010;Coch & Ansari, 2009;EDUCATIONAL NEUROSCIENCE 4 Dehaene, 2009;Dubinsky, 2010;Eden & Moats, 2002;Gabrieli, 2009;Goswami, 2006; Katzir & Pare-Blagoev, 2006;McCandliss, 2010;Meltzoff et al, 2009;Pickering & Howard-Jones, 2007;Sigman et al, 2014). As Dehaene (2011) puts it, "…educators who can visualize how the child's brain works will, spontaneously, conceive better ways of teaching" (p. 26).…”