The paper reviews a theory advanced by Satz and Sparrow (1970) which purports to explain the nature and cause of specific developmental dyslexia, and evaluates several developmental hypotheses which are generated bythe theory. The theory postulates that developmental dyslexia is not a unitary syndrome but rather reflects a lag in the maturation of…

Examined with 38 right-handed boys who were either dyslexic or normal readers and matched for age and IQ (mean age both groups=10.6, mean IQ normal readers=106, mean IQ dyslexic readers=105) were the weak, strong, and equal lateralization theories of dyslexia. Cerebral lateralization was measured for linguistic material (digits) using the dichotic…

A heterogeneous group of 60 learning disabled children (mean age=128.8 months) and a relatively homogeneous group (mean age=111.07 months) having specific reading deficits (n=58) were compared with normal children in two studies. (Author)

Reviews research on reading, conducted in Great Britain during 1976, under the following categories: dyslexia and specific reading retardation, remedial reading and provision, reading development, and materials and reading. (JM)

Critically examines the foci of four prevalent explanations for reading failure in children: visual perception, intersensory integration, temporal-order perception, and verbal functioning. Applying findings from his own laboratory investigations and other selected research to each of the four hypotheses, author argues that the verbal-deficit…

Studies with Nootropic psychoactive drugs (such as Piracetam) suggest that Piracetam lacks significant side effects; promotes memory and learning; and improves the reading ability of dyslexics, possibly by directly affecting the left-brain hemisphere. Results are contrasted with studies showing the lack of effectiveness of intensive teaching.…

Teacher perceptions of the social-behavioral characteristics of 99 boys (aged 7-14) identified by their nonverbal learning abilities found that low nonverbal subjects showed good left-brain functioning, good reading, poor right-brain functioning, poor arithmetic skills, low motivation, poor work habits, disorganization, and poor relationship with…

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…

Critiques a recent article by Hynd and Hynd ("Reading Research Quarterly," 19, 1984) and questions the usefulness of invoking neurological concepts in either the definition or diagnosis of dyslexia. (HOD)

Reports results from a detailed syntactic analysis of spoken language samples collected from poor and good readers at eight years of age. Results showed an undeniably strong association between reduced language comprehension and reading impairment at age eight, an association that appeared to strengthen by age nine. (SED)

A checklist is offered to help classroom teachers determine behaviors characteristic of dyslexic functioning (both visual-spatial and auditory-linguistic types). Tactics are then suggested for tailoring approaches to their characteristics--strong visual/weak auditory processing skills or strong auditory/weak visual processing skills. (CL)

The students who receive special education for mild learning handicaps are typically male. Differences in brain function seem to be a major factor. (MT)

Praises Peter Johnston's thoughtful, constructive use of the term dyslexia in his article that appeared in the May 1985, "Harvard Educational Review." (HOD)

The article notes correlations between lefthandedness and the incidence of immune disorders (such as ileitis, colitis, celiac disease, and Hashimoto's thyroiditis), with learning disorders and with early grey hair. Eventual control of the hormonal and immune environment (in addition to educational intervention) may prevent or minimize these…