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| One of our new dyslexia positive tee shirt logo designs |
Hi blog readers hope you are all feeling fab
Fab to see a new dyslexia organisation talking the negative stereotypes that surround dyslexia.
‘I strongly believe that the time is right to
look at dyslexia in a more positive way –
that it is not a disability, but a strength.’
– Sally Gardner
Multi-award winning, dyslexic children’s
author Sally Gardner is launching a pioneering new website
for dyslexic thinkers that aims to radically change the
discourse surrounding dyslexia and increase understanding of
the strengths of the dyslexic mind.
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| NUWORD logo |
What do you think defines
dyslexia? Can you tell us about some of the strengths?
I would
say it’s a difference that reflects human diversity. If we look at nature and
humanity, nature thrives because of diversity–it would
be boring if there were only one kind of tree, one kind of animal etc.
To say
that there’s only one way the brain works is preposterous. Just go back to
primordial times and look at how we’ve developed–the amount of diversity and
the amount of difference that makes what we are today. There is a way
that the dyslexia mind works that links us as a group.
There are a lot of
strengths–we see in three dimensions (there are
a lot of good dyslexic architects), we’re good oral communicators, creativity
is a strength talked about a lot. We have a smorgasbord of positive things that
link to dyslexia–lateral thinking, entrepreneurial ability, problem solving–35
% of entrepreneurs are dyslexic.
Can you briefly explain the
social model vs. the medical model please?
The medical
model is imposed upon us, with that comes terms and labeling. It sees dyslexia as
an impairment and this becomes the only focus. But I make sense of the world through
a dyslexic prism; it’s so much more than one thing.
The medical model talks
about remediation and takes kids out of classes. Kids get isolated – often remediated
during playtime, with more work at home. They get a lot of text-based homework.
It erodes self-confidence and self-esteem and can lead to long-term mental
health issues.
The social model has been developed as an extension of the social
model of disability. Rather than saying the child is faulty, the child is
valued. Barriers are identified and solutions are developed.
The social model
says society disables us. This starts with school being a dyslexia unfriendly place, with
teaching that doesn’t understand dyslexia. Lots of parents have individual
battles with the school trying to get the human right of equal education for
their children.
I got bored at school. I walked away from school at 14 –
because I didn’t feel that I had any academic ability at all. We need schools
to welcome and nurture diversity, where the child is included.
Training for
teachers is of paramount import. Teachers must be able to provide learning opportunities
for dyslexic/all children. If we don’t have inclusion in our schools how are we
going to have inclusion in society? How will non-dyslexics understand what it
means if we continue to segregate and isolate?
What do you think needs to change
in order to better understand dyslexia today?
I feel
that medical model thinking is confused thinking–there are so many messages out
there that are conflicting–it’s a tsunami of negative information. Many dyslexics
take on that negative interpretation because that’s what they see.
I put
together a project called ‘Unique Dyslexic’, with my Dyslexia Pathways CIC team. We took the project out to dyslexics in Fife
and got them together through creative
activities. All had had negative experiences at school. One of the biggest barriers
is that we believe we can’t read or write or spell. I think it’s that school
hasn’t given us the right tools or the right teaching to enable us to access
the written word.
Reading from a book is just a strategy; you can have audio
books or text to speech. There is still so much information that focuses on the
negative that’s never been challenged. The social model has a simple message about
diversity and difference, it can empower the dyslexic to overcome societal
barriers.
The social model is cohesive, the medical model is divisive. So
instead of individual parents tackling a school, we can have groups of parents
tackling a school. When we talk about the medical model, many teachers just
think that they should lower their expectations for dyslexics – because they
don’t have the tools to embrace neurodiversity.
Dyslexics become segregated and
isolated through to their adult life. In the ‘Unique’ project we had people who
had never talked to another dyslexic, who had taken on the medical model and
struggled with self-confidence.
One of the biggest
things that came from the Unique project was that people were talking about their
dyslexia and sharing their stories. We have a strong empathy and emotional
intelligence–by getting people together we’re starting to end the segregation.
Why is building a community so
important?
A
community with a shared identity is so important. We don’t have that at the
moment. If there was a cohesive dyslexic community we
could
have a dyslexic culture (read Dr. Ross Cooper). I looked at building an online
community and it worked to an extent–but what we need is a tangible community
where people can meet face to face and have discussions.
One of the issues is
that the big dyslexic organisations have become businesses–they’re pulled in lots
of different directions. I became a social enterprise and we do have to charge
a small amount for our work, but we strive to do it as low cost
as possible.
Funders want you to be income-based rather than trying to get
funding. They expect you to show them money. Before, you could get funding with
no strings attached, but now there’s a fight for funding with lots of strings
attached.
What advice would you give an
adult or child struggling with dyslexia?
For a
child, school can be a horrible place. But that experience doesn’t necessarily
stop you from going on to have a career in what you want. When I left school I
would have said I was least likely to become academic.
When I was assessed at
35 and began to understand what being dyslexic means for me, I was able to go
on and become academic. I talked to a lot of dyslexic entrepreneurs who didn’t
go along the academic route, but did well because of their way their mind
works–laterally rather than logically. I think we need dyslexic mentors
from universities and business for young people. It
would be a way to show that dyslexia is not a life sentence in a
negative way, meaning unable to attain, unable to read, unable to write.
For
adults, from the survey I did,
around 65% said they were positive about being dyslexic. When
asked them about how society viewed dyslexia over 80% felt society viewed
dyslexia as a negative. We need real life community meetings to raise
awareness, to offer support, to give ourselves a louder voice.
Online
is not enough. We want open first dyslexia hub here in
Fife. It’s difficult as we’re such a small organization, with little funding.
The only money coming in is what I earn. Hopefully in Fife we will put together
a steering committee. We were the first dyslexia-focused social enterprise in
the world. In a recent Erasmus European paper Dyslexia Pathways CIC were seen
as leading the way for social inclusion.
We here at Dyslexia Pathways CIC are looking for
people to help us in or goal of opening a dyslexia
hub. We need funding, people with experience of
setting up and running a community project, people
who share our social model of dyslexia vision
We see dyslexia as a difference that reflects diversity and not a disability.
What do you think the future looks like for
dyslexic thinkers?
If we
can move on and challenge the medical model and grow a dyslexic community,
where we can challenge and ask our politicians to do more and we can affect
change better together.
At the moment we have to wear the dyslexic label and
the disabled label, but dyslexia doesn’t disable me. We believe that social
enterprise together with the social model of dyslexia offers dyslexics with a
new and innovative way forward. A way forward that is positive, inclusive and values
diversity and dyslexic strengths.
What are your thought on the questions asked and my responses? Please leave your comments here.
ta for reading
regards
Steve
PS many thanks to Concept Northern for their offer of support and help with our new tee shirt designs.
