It has been suggested that there is a high level of co morbidity Essay

It has been suggested that there is a high level of co morbidity between dyslexia and other specific learning difficulties. Disc - Essay Example The fact that these causes seem to be mainly biological in nature supports the fact that dyslexia is often found to be co-morbid with other learning difficulties that place strain on the individual. These can include, but are not limited to, attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), anxiety, depression, and conduct disorders (Reid, 2009). The purpose of this paper is to explore the conditions that are so often found to be co-morbid with dyslexia in the literature, and how this may affect the dyslexic child. Additionally, the paper will go on to discuss how these co-morbid conditions may affect the treatment or guidance that educators need to give children with dyslexia. What is Dyslexia? Dyslexia is a specific learning difficulty that affects one main area of an individual’s progress in education. It is a difficulty in reading that is apparent regardless of the individual’s IQ or their previous instruction in reading (Reid, 2009). Many believe that dyslexia is no t a single condition, but can be used to encompass a wide range of difficulties that individuals may have when it comes to reading (Reid, 2009). ... Again, this can be a sign of other learning difficulties with a broader scope than reading or writing, so care must be taken when diagnosing and teaching these children. There is currently no cure for dyslexia, nor is there any overwhelming consensus about treatment or management (Reid, 2009). There are several programmes in place which are aimed at providing advice to educators who have contact with dyslexic individuals. One of the major important aspects for managing dyslexia is to remove the sources of stress and anxiety (Reid, 2009). These can include pressure from parents, teachers and peers to learn to read and write at the same pace as other children their age, which is evidently not possible for the dyslexic individual. Care must be taken not to add additional stress onto a child when attempting to educate them. Lyytinen et al (2008) suggest that educational styles that focus on visual learning are more effective than a simple focus on oral phonological training. It must be n oted that many management styles for dyslexia differ in their effectiveness for the individual and this must be recognized by those working in close contact with dyslexic individuals. Another interesting factor of dyslexia is that it seems to be highly heritable and therefore must have a genetic component (Scerri & Schulte-Korne, 2010). This may be linked to the co-morbidity that it has with other SpLDs, which are also highly heritable (Scerri & Schulte-Korne, 2010). There are some genetic markers that have been associated with dyslexia, including ROBO1 and DCDC2 (Scerri & Schulte-Korne, 2010). Abnormal codes in these genes is a good predictor of reading disorder. Some studies of dyslexia from a