In a comparison of normal readers and dyslexic readers who had been less successful with other late developing rules of oral syntax, both groups demonstrated knowledge of the rules for interpreting adjective complements. The only major difference was that the dyslexic readers were less likely to perform without error. (Author/MJL)

Jorm's proposal (EJ 205 636) that developmental dyslexics resemble brain-damaged deep dyslexics is not grounded on firm evidence. Holmes' likening of developmental dyslexia to acquired surface dyslexia at least demonstrates clear similarity between the errors made by the two groups. (Author/CP)

Two methodological problems often arising in dyslexia research are considered. The first problem concerns the validity of experimental measures and the related problem of interpreting null results. The second problem involves the effects of sampling from a disabled population if the disorder under investigation has multiple unknown origins.…

It is suggested that reading is not a unitary process, but the acquisition of a succession of skills. Different retarded readers may break down at different stages in the acquisition of these. Each disability type may be associated with a particular type of deficiency in conceptual thinking. (Author/SJL)

Many dyslexic children are unusually capable in subjects that do not depend on language, and they may have leadership qualities that other children admire. Preparatory schools can, at minimal cost, make alterations in coursework requirements to accommodate the different thinking and learning patterns of dyslexic children. (Author/SJL)

This training study combined within-subjects (N=12) comparisons of several literacy tasks with individual case studies of first and second graders with dyslexia over a five-month reading intervention. Training focused on phonological awareness, letter-sound associations, and guided reading. The children made significant gains in standard scores on…

A dual-task paradigm involving concurrent finger tapping and line orientation judgment was used to investigate brain processing differences in 12 early adolescent good readers/poor spellers, poor readers/poor spellers, and controls. In the right-hand tapping condition, the good spelling group displayed significantly less tapping disruption than…

The hypothesis that gains in reading performance occurring among dyslexic children during individually paced reading are partially attributable to changes in short-term memory processing was tested with 23 elementary school students. Findings provide support for a causal role for short-term memory functioning in text processing. (SLD)

A study involving 93 children (ages 10-12), 295 with poor reading skills, found many children with dyslexia and some garden-variety poor readers showed significant left neglect on the Clock Drawing Test. In poor readers with dyslexia, spatial construction deficits were observed like those of parents with acquired right-hemisphere lesions.…

This article discusses international (governmental) and local (school/institution-based) issues related to appropriate support for the dyslexic multilingual child. The article then identifies factors to consider when developing an assessment package that can be used to identify educational needs with children from different language backgrounds.…

Describes signs of possible learning disabilities in early childhood, during the elementary grades, in middle school, in high school, and in college students and other adults. Includes a table differentiating 25 characteristics of individuals with dyslexia and attention-deficit disorder. (KB)

The article offers guidelines to educators evaluating controversial therapies and applies them to four such therapies: tinted lenses as a cure for dyslexia; orthomolecular treatments for learning disabilities; pharmaceutical intervention for dyslexia; and visual training for children with learning disabilities. (DB)

To determine variations in cognitive characteristics, 10 nonretarded men with infantile autism, residual state, were compared with 15 severely dyslexic men and 25 controls on a neuropsychological test battery. The dyslexics showed a reduced digit span and the autistic group exhibited impaired problem-solving skills. (Author/JDD)

Investigates visual processing asymmetries in normal and dyslexic readers to determine whether differences between dyslexics and normals were due to structural hemispherical differences or to strategical processing differences. Results indicate dyslexics behave as normal readers if they are unable to predict whether the stimulus will be verbal or…

One school district's effort to develop a specialized reading program for students with dyslexia is described. Discussed are: guidelines for diagnosing dyslexics; primary characteristics of 12 youngsters identified as dyslexic; and recommendations for other school districts concerning definitions, screening, referral, and service delivery. (JDD)