How do teachers in Ireland and England conceptualise dyslexia?

Abstract

This paper presents the findings of a comparative study using data from questionnaire surveys carried out in England (n 5 57) and Ireland (n 5 72). The researchers examine how teachers and teaching assistants who are currently teaching pupils with dyslexia in primary schools describe dyslexia and what may have influenced their conceptualisation. The paper examines teachers' responses both in terms of how they view their pupils presenting difficulties in the classroom, and how far they link these to underlying differences in cognitive processing. The researchers suggest ways in which this might influence their teaching in terms of methodology. Findings have been mapped to the Morton and Frith causal modelling framework. The implications of these findings for the training and support of teachers are discussed in the light of recent national initiatives to improve the teaching of dyslexic pupils in both countries.In recent years there has been a growing international body of research and information on the identification and education of children with dyslexia, or specific learning difficulty (Miles, 2006;Reid & Fawcett, 2004). In the light of this, in both England and Ireland there has been concern over how to conceptualise this barrier to learning and what may be the most important and useful model to understand dyslexia. This debate sits within the wider context of inclusion for pupils with a wide variety of special educational needs.This paper describes a comparative study of identification and intervention for primary pupils with dyslexia in Ireland and England, linking teachers' responses to theoretical frameworks and discussing how this might influence their teaching in practice. The focus of this article is on teachers' understanding of dyslexia in both countries. Two separate surveys are described, reporting findings from samples of teachers in England and in Ireland. This is followed by a discussion of the overall findings relating to both countries.

What is dyslexia? An exploration of the relationship between teachers' understandings of dyslexia and their training experiences

“…This supports findings from other research that has also shown that both the lay public and teachers use behavioural descriptors when thinking about dyslexia (Bell et al, 2011; Furnham, 2013; Mortimore, 2013; Washburn et al, 2013). It could be hypothesized that this is because teachers are more likely to witness the behavioural correlates of dyslexia in the classroom.…”

“…The same coding method was applied by Bell et al (2011). This suggests that it is an operational coding system to use when coding definitions of dyslexia.…”

“…A further study conducted by Bell, McPhillips, and Doveston (2011) compared how teachers in the United Kingdom and Ireland conceptualize dyslexia using Frith's (1995) causal model to map their data. They found that the majority of mainstream teachers used behavioural definitions when asked “how do you define dyslexia?” More than half of the teachers in the United Kingdom did not mention the underlying behavioural and cognitive difficulties associated with dyslexia.…”

Teachers' knowledge about developmental dyslexia: Educational implications

“…Por su parte, Regan y Woods (2000) señalan que los maestros de primaria británicos y profesores de apoyo tenían interpretaciones variadas sobre la naturaleza de la dislexia, haciendo referencia en sus concepciones a los niveles conductual, cognitivo o biológico. También en el Reino Unido e Irlanda, los profesores tenían una conceptualización biológica, cognitiva y conductual de la dislexia (Bell, McPhillips y Doveston, 2011); aproximadamente la mitad de los participantes irlandeses describieron la dislexia como algo que afecta a la memoria y a la precisión de la lectura. Aunque los maestros de aulas ordinarias parecían describir la dislexia a nivel de comportamiento (p.e., dificultad para leer una sola palabra u ortografía), los profesores especialistas (en concreto, especialistas irlandeses) afirmaban que las dificultades biológicas subyacentes estaban asociadas a la dislexia.…”

Educators' Understanding of Dyslexia: A Survey Exploring the Need for Professional Development in the Areas of Prevention and Intervention

“…In particular, teacher knowledge regarding dyslexia has been targeted by parent groups and state legislators. While the research base regarding teacher knowledge is limited, the results of several studies (Aladwani & Al Shaye, 2012;Bell et al, 2011;Leite, 2012;Paradice, 2001;Regan & Woods, 2000;Wadlington & Wadlington, 2005;Washburn et al, 2011) indicate that teachers not only lack basic knowledge of the dyslexia construct, but they also continue to embrace common misconceptions about dyslexia that have been rejected by research conducted in the past three decades. However, further studies of teachers' knowledge of dyslexia is necessary, particularly since a substantial amount of attention continues to be directed on the topic.…”