This study of 65 children (ages 10-13) with dyslexia found no discrete subgroups. Variability in performance on reading tasks was quite similar for the dyslexic and reading age-control groups. A few children with dyslexia resembled phonological dyslexics and surface dyslexics, but these subjects were still part of a continuum. (Author/JDD)

This article presents an operational, inclusionary definition of dyslexia constructed by the Orton Dyslexia Society Research Committee and others. Each clause of the definition is explained in terms of relevant research findings. The definition attempts to identify unique factors of reading disability, independent of its common association with…

The editor of The Orton Society examines issues relevant to the neurological characteristics and treatment of dyslexics in the context of the heritage of S. Orton and the four principles of the Orton Society: (1) Differences are personal. (2) Diagnosis is clinical. (3) Treatment is educational. (4) Understanding is scientific. (DB)

Preliminary results of a survey of 10-year-old children (N=12.905) given a variety of educational and cognitive tests relevant to diagnosis of dyslexia have shown that distributions of scores are incompatible with the hypothesis of normal variation, suggesting that dyslexia involves some kind of anomaly. (Author/DB)

Guidelines are offered for diagnosing and teaching the gifted dyslexic. Characteristics of the gifted and of children with attention-deficit disorders are listed. A diagnostic battery is recommended. Educational suggestions include family involvement, remediation of academic skill deficits, and student guidance in developing organization and study…

This paper discusses studies of visual dyslexia, the nature of visual processes involved in word recognition, and the contribution of visual memory to word recognition. The paper concludes that, though defects in the physiological aspects of visual processing can lead to reading difficulties, evidence does not indicate the existence of visual…

Phonological awareness is explored as a process for studying the cognitive deficits of dyslexic children without undermining the assumption of specificity. Discussed are the operation of Matthew effects, the importance of strict psychometric criteria in dyslexia definitions, and recognition that dyslexia represents an arbitrary criterion in a…

Reading-disabled children (n=36) in grades four through eight were matched for reading comprehension and placed into two groups based on listening comprehension. Poor readers with normal listening comprehension had average or above intelligence quotients, conforming to the traditional definition of dyslexia and contrasting with poor readers with…

This article discusses complex ways in which reading, attentional, and affective disorders may be related: a primary problem in one area may result in problems in another; one disorder may look like another; or a child may simultaneously present two or all three primary disorders. Clinical practice and research are presented to aid differential…

The paper describes characteristics of learning-disabled Dartmouth College students; screening, diagnostic, and referral procedures; services and accommodations; results of a survey conducted of other selective colleges, which found increased awareness and academic accommodations over a two-year period; and a 1987 dyslexic/learning disabilities…

This article reviews diagnostic criteria for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and undifferentiated attention deficit disorder; typical presenting features; theories of the biological basis of attentional disorders; and treatments, including medical treatments with stimulants and tricyclic antidepressants and nonmedical treatments such as…

Reading disability subtypes were determined in 50 neurologically impaired students (ages 11-19), with and without reading disabilities. Subtypes found primarily in the reading-disabled sample were anomic-language disorder, dysphonetic and mixed dysphonetic-dyseidetic, oral reading deficit, intermodal association deficit, and sequential relations…

Argues that gender bias among referring agents is a major factor in the unequal distribution of males and females in learning disabilities programs. Discusses the role of male hyperactive or disruptive classroom behavior in the disproportionately large number of males referred to learning disabilities programs. (Author/CR)