Early identification and intervention are crucial for children with dyslexia, a rehabilitation psychologist said at a programme on Wednesday. A delay makes them slip into “psychological trauma”, and recovery from that takes a lot of time.
“Early diagnosis is the key. If unidentified, self-esteem issues and psychological problems set in, recovery from those takes time. We first have to work on those issues, and only then on their learning difficulties,” said Sweta Sah, assistant professor, department of psychology, Sister Nivedita University.
Sah was a speaker on a panel that spoke about dyslexia and how the burden of adhering to traditional norms of learning pushes them to the “threshold of vulnerable mental health”.
The Victoria Memorial and Anjali Dyslexia Association, an organisation working to support and empower individuals with dyslexia, organised a Walk for Dyslexia at the Victoria Memorial Hall on Wednesday.
About 400 children from different schools — braving spells of rain — participated in the event on Wednesday morning.
A panel discussion followed the walk, where the topic centred around recognising the needs of a population that is both educable and intelligent.
If unidentified, problems get “compounded” for individuals, said Arundhati Sarkar, the director of Anjali Dyslexia Association, who moderated the discussion.
“They will fall back in class, feel less than their friends and peers, might get bullied, scolded by teachers and leave parents disappointed,” said Sarkar.
An intelligent child will look for defence and coping mechanisms, and that might manifest in behavioural issues.
“A child with dyslexia is intelligent, can comprehend, but is unable to write or express, and therefore needs early identification and intervention,” said Sarkar.
Role of school
Schools play a significant role in identifying children and providing them with scaffolding, the panel discussed.
Certain leeways in the classroom and support at home can make learning
less difficult for a child with dyslexia, the panel discussed.
“It is a different way in which the brain is processing the language. If a child cannot spell, why penalise them for something which they cannot? Instead, we give them two spellings, one correct and the other incorrect, and the child has to pick the right one. If they cannot write in exams, teachers scribe for them, and they often produce better answers than their peers who do not have a learning difficulty,” said Sheela Menon Mukherjee, special educator at The Heritage School.
Parent-teacher team
Mukherjee said there has to be parent-teacher collaboration. “If a child cannot read, the parent has to read out to them,” she said.
The third panellist was Santoshi Halder, the head of the department of education at Calcutta University.
Inclusive approach
Anurag Kumar, secretary and curator of the Victoria Memorial Hall and the chief guest, spoke of how museums can play an important role in inclusive education.
“Visual exhibits make learning more engaging and help students understand and retain information more effectively. Through Walk for Dyslexia, we reaffirm our commitment to inclusivity and our mission to bring the museum closer to all,” he said.
The eastern facade of the Victoria Memorial was lit up in red from 5.30pm to 6pm on Wednesday in solidarity with dyslexia.
“The term dyslexia was not so common even two decades back. Those with dyslexia have to be included in the system,” said Manoshi Roychowdhury, co-chairperson of Techno India Group, who was among those who attended the programme.