[DieHard the Hunter]

> Dyslexia is a social fig leaf used by middle-class parents who fear their children will be labelled as low achievers, a professor has claimed.

Dyslexia is very much a real phenomenon, as is ADHD. Neither is a handicap, as both my brother and I can attest. They have absolutely nothing to do with intelligence or achievement potential. They are merely inconvenient for standard teaching methodologies.

*DieHard*

[tcostell]

I second that. I have dyslexia as well, but I got past it the same way Patton did. If it's been twice as hard for me to get by, then I simply worked three times as hard to make up the difference.

Great men are not great because of the things that are easy for them, but for the things which are hard for them that they do anyway.

[lastchance]

When I was in kindergarten I had to go to a school tutor because I sometimes would read or write the letters of words in the wrong sequence. For example Was would become saw. It was never a big deal. Of course that was before they had a fancy name for my problem and realized they could milk federal dollars for it. Lots of federal dollars every exceptional student means an increase in the money allocated for FTE.

[neocon1984]

IMO,

ADHD is a recent phenomenon that is way over-diagnosed in young boys who get bored in the classroom. Good thing I am not a kid today. I was terribly bored in public school and often got in trouble for not paying attention. Today I would have been prescribed Ritalin. Then, I was awarded a scholarship to a private school that was much more challenging. Problem solved.

[OldBlondBabe]

My niece was diagnosed with dyslexia. She needed additional instruction to learn to read as did my sister, who aided in her instruction at home. She graduates from college this year a very bright young woman and a gifted musician.

[tob2]

“Dyslexia is very much a real phenomenon, as is ADHD. Neither is a handicap, as both my brother and I can attest. They have absolutely nothing to do with intelligence or achievement potential. They are merely inconvenient for standard teaching methodologies.”

Thank you for your comments. Was beginning to believe nobody understood that this is a very real problem for lots and lots of people, no matter what their social/economic status. The irony of this disorder is that people who have ADD, ADHD, dyslexia, etc. often have higher than average i.q.s