The Dyslexia Debate

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Cambridge University Press, Mar 24, 2014 - Education - 271 pages
The Dyslexia Debate examines how we use the term "dyslexia" and questions its efficacy as a diagnosis. While many believe that a diagnosis of dyslexia will shed light on a reader's struggles and help identify the best form of intervention, Julian G. Elliott and Elena L. Grigorenko show that it adds little value. In fact, our problematic interpretation of the term could prove to be a major disservice to many children with difficulties learning to read. This book outlines in detail the diverse ways in which reading problems have been conceptualized and operationalized. Elliott and Grigorenko consider the latest research in cognitive science, genetics, and neuroscience, and the limitations of these fields in terms of professional action. They then provide a more helpful, scientifically rigorous way to describe the various types of reading difficulties and discuss empirically supported forms of intervention.
 

Contents

Explanations at the cognitive level
42
The neurobiological bases of reading and reading disability
88
Assessment and intervention
123
Conclusions and recommendations
166
References
183
Index
259
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About the author (2014)

Julian G. Elliot is a professor at the Durham University School of Education. He is a chartered psychologist, an associate fellow of the British Psychological Society, and an academician of the Academy of Social Sciences. Prior to practising as an educational psychologist, Elliott taught children with special needs. He appeared in the UK television program 'Dispatches: The Dyslexia Myth' in 2005 and has continued to be featured regularly in international media. He has received major grants from the Economic and Social Research Council to study a wide variety of topics, including collaborative group work, interventions for children with working memory difficulties, and improving mental health and wellbeing through exercise. Elena L. Grigorenko is the Emily Fraser Beede Professor of Developmental Disabilities, Child Studies, Psychology, and Epidemiology and Public Health at Yale University. She is also an adjunct senior research scientist at Moscow City University for Psychology and Education. Grigorenko received her PhD in general psychology from Moscow State University and her PhD in developmental psychology and genetics from Yale. She has written more than 400 peer-reviewed articles, book chapters, and books and received funding from numerous federal and private organizations, such as the NIH, NSF, DOE, USAID, and American Psychological Foundation. Grigorenko has worked with children and families in the United States, Africa (Kenya, Tanzania and Zanzibar, the Gambia, and Zambia), India, Saudi Arabia, and Russia.

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