Going Deep Inside the Roots of
Dyslexia
The History
We only began to discover the reasons for learning problems a little
over a century ago.
Dr. Joan A. Williams
Sam Houston State University
2012
Dyslexia Identification
Identified in late 1800’s in children.
Called ‘word blindness’.
Had been previously identified in adults who had
suffered a brain injury.
Term ‘dyslexia’ coined by a German physician, Rudolf
Berlin
Short History
Thoroughly understanding dyslexia requires
knowledge of the historical roots of this disorder.
In the late 1800’s, English and Scottish doctors
described children you were bright and motivated, but
could not learn to read.
The profound perplexity expressed by these doctors
allows us to gain a more complete understanding of
dyslexia that we cannot gain from reading the current
research.
Milestone – Dr. Adolf Kussmaul
German neurologist coined the term word-blindness
(1877).
“A complete text blindness may exist, although the
power of sight, the intellect and the powers of speech are
intact.”
He narrowed the concept of word-blindness to an
isolated condition affecting the ability to recognize and
read text, but with both intelligence and expressive
language intact.
Milestone – Dr. Dejerine
In 1891 Dr. Dejerine described a patient who had lost
powers of reading and language functions after a brain
injury.
This was the first time that reports linked the disorder
to a cause, a form of brain injury.
Dr. Dejerine suggested that the parieto-temporal region
of the brain was critical for reading.
This discovery moved dyslexia into special medical
evaluation and analysis.
Milestone -- Dr. James Hinshelwood
In 1895 ophthalmologist Dr. James Hinshelwood wrote
about the connection of verbal memory and word
blindness in adults who had previously been good
readers.
He soon became absorbed with the congenital form of
word blindness and in 1917 published a book titled
Congenital Word Blindness.
This book describes the visual association of words and
images in memory. He also spoke about the reversal of
letters and certain other symptoms that were unknown
at this time.
Milestone – Dr. Pringle Morgan
First to identify word-blindness as a development
disorder occurring in otherwise healthy children.
(1896)
There soon were numerous reports of similar cases
from other physicians from Europe, South America,
and eventually the United States
These came almost extensively from eye surgeons.
Milestone
All of this research in the late 1800’s led to the central
concept that underlies developmental dyslexia: an
unexpected difficulty in learning to read.
Doctors at this time noted that the core symptoms of
the disorder were frequently overlooked and put down
to mere stupidity.
They were also impressed about the impact word
blindness had on the entire family and across
generations. Poor spelling was often noted.
Early identification was described as urgent.
Milestones in the United States
(from LD Online, 2006)
1905 – The first U.S. report of childhood reading
difficulties is published by Cleveland ophthalmologist
Dr. W.E. Bruner.
1963 – Samuel A. Kirk is the first person to use the
term “learning disability“ at a conference in Chicago.
1969 – Congress passes the Children with Specific
Learning Disabilities Act, which is included in the
Education of the Handicapped Act of 1970 (PL 91-
230). For the first time federal law requires support
services for students with learning disabilities.
Milestones in the United States
(from LD Online, 2006)
1975 – The Education for All Handicapped Children Act (PL 94-
142), which mandates a free, appropriate public education for all
students. (This law is renamed IDEA in 1990.)
1987 – A report released by the Interagency Committee on
Learning Disabilities calls for the establishment of Centers for the
Study of Learning and Attention, whose sole purpose is to expand
research and understanding of this issue.
1990 – The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)
renames and changes PL 94-142. The term 'disability' replaces
'handicap,' and the new law requires transition services for students.
Autism and traumatic brain injury are added to the eligibility list.
New Technology and Revised Legislation
1996 – Dr. Guinevere Eden and her research team at the National Institute of
Mental Health used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) – a
process that allows us to look at the activity in living brains – to identify the
regions of the brain that behave differently in dyslexics.
1997 – IDEA is reauthorized. Regular education teachers are included in the
IEP process, students have more access to the general curriculum and are
included in state-wide assessments, and ADHD is added to the list of
conditions that could make a child eligible for services under the category
"other health impairment."
2004 – IDEA is reauthorized again. School personnel now have more
authority in special education placement decisions and the new law is better
aligned with the No Child Left Behind Act.
2005 – Dr. Jeffrey Gruen and his research team at Yale University identified a
gene that had patterns and variations that were strongly associated with
dyslexia.
Examining early and current knowledge
The early cases of reading disorder (from late 1800’s)
provide indisputable evidence of the unchanging and
enduring nature of the characteristics of dyslexia.
Dr. Shawitz (2003) asserts that she was “stunned by
the convergence of the historical and contemporary
accounts of dyslexia.” p. 24
Things Have Changed and Yet Things Have Not Changed
Shaywitz (2003) asserts that poor spelling is still one
of the telltale signs of dyslexia and family members
must offer support for individuals with dyslexia.
Early identification continues to be of critical
importance and yet often does not occur.
We have increased our knowledge about what dyslexia
and its causes; we have yet to successfully match this
understanding to assessment and instruction in our
schools.
References
Kussmaul, A. (1877). Die Storungen der Spache. Leipzig, Germany:
Verlag Von F. C. W. Vogel.
LD Online (2006). Retrieved from
http://www.ldonline.org/article/11244/
National Institutes of Health, Office of Science Education:
http://science-education.nih.gov
National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke:
http://www.ninds.nih.gov
Shaywitz, S. (2003). Overcoming Dyslexia: A New and Complete Science-Based
Program for Reading Problems at Any Level. New York: Knopf.
U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs:
http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/osers/osep/index.html
