5 Tips for Supporting Older Students with Reading Difficulties

Dyslexia is a challenging hereditary learning disability that affects many students’ ability to read and process information effectively. There are many programs and strategies for helping students with dyslexia, but there is no cure for this learning disability. Learning how to deal with this learning disability is the key to student success, both in school and beyond. What follows is a list of tips and strategies to help deal with dyslexia.

Paraphrasing

Oftentimes, students who have dyslexia are so focused on trying to read the words that they don’t comprehend what it is they are reading. Decoding the language is their top priority. Although it is more time-consuming, having students stop periodically and paraphrase what they have read is the key to comprehending and retaining information. This can be done orally, but paraphrasing through writing is even more effective in the retention of information.

Note-taking and Highlighting

If at all possible, try and purchase copies of textbooks for students who have dyslexia. This way, they can learn the skills of effective note-taking and highlighting at an earlier age. Utilizing margins and notebooks to keep track of difficult words and their definitions is essential in managing learning and comprehension with dyslexia. This skill will be very beneficial once the student reaches the college level and should help in defining and decoding texts more efficiently over time, increasing the student’s ability to read and comprehend effectively.

Use Resources at School

This is hopefully already being implemented if the student has been identified as having dyslexia or any other learning disability. The Special Education department at school should have teachers and resources available for the student and tutoring times scheduled in order to maximize the effectiveness of what is being taught and assigned. Additionally, teachers should be making accommodations for dyslexic students to ensure that there is latency between delivery of information and its assessment.

Large Print Dictionary

Students with dyslexia should definitely utilize a large print dictionary, as the print helps make letters easier to decode and provides them with definitions for the words that they encounter while reading. Like owning textbooks, having a personal dictionary that the student can mark, highlight, and take notes in is a great tool for dealing with the challenges of dyslexia.



Reading Rockets

Reading Rockets is an amazing website full of articles, tools, and strategies for reading-related learning disabilities. Students and parents alike can learn more about dyslexia, and methods for dealing with this particular learning disability by visiting this site.

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This post was contributed by Kelly Kilpatrick,who writes on the subject of an online college degree. She invites your feedback at kellykilpatrick24 at gmail dot com.

Hold your SAT/ACT horses!!

Get ready for this:

The Dean of Financial Aid at Harvard University is calling for an end to the reliance of colleges and universities on SAT and ACT scores to determine admissions. With the recent revision of the SAT and the current focus on increasing these scores, Dean William Fitzsimmons may seem a little left of center to say the least.

There are more people like him, though.

A recent study completed by Fitzsimmons' committee found that there is a subconscious belief that the scores achieved on the SAT/ACT somehow indicate an individual's worth. While a handy tool for the admitting party, the emotional effects on students, especially those in undeserved areas, can be harmful. The committee argues that the use of SAT and ACT scores to determine the acceptance of students of low income, single parent, and uneducated families, is inherently biased.

In order to improve the decision process, Fitzsimmons and his colleagues call for new achievement tests administered in class that would “encourage high schools to broaden and improve curricula." Ideally, the committee recommends that colleges and universities make the SAT and ACT "optional" for applicants.

While the committee waits for responses from the academic community, read more about their findings here.