Twice upon a time: Examining the effect socio-economic status has on the experience of dyslexia in the United Kingdom.

From the mid-1990s, there have been a number of campaigns aimed at raising awareness of dyslexia and social inclusion. In conjunction with these campaigns, educational and employment policies have been implemented that advocate inclusive and workplace adjustments for people with dyslexia. This study aims to explore the intersectional relationship between dyslexia and socio-economic status. The findings analyse adult perceptions of education and employment, which have been shaped by 23 years of social policies promoting anti-discriminatory practice. The study applies a quantitative approach, which collected data from a national survey conducted from 2015 to 2017. The sample consists of 442 adult participants who reported having dyslexia. The social model of disability has been applied in this study to interpret the data findings from a disability studies perspective. The article suggests that socio-economic status significantly affects issues of diagnosis, educational, and employment experiences. The findings illustrate an intersectional relationship between socio-economic status and disability inequalities, which have an effect on the experiences of people with dyslexia in adulthood.

Special education and later academic achievement.

OBJECTIVES: To determine whether grade at entry to special education is associated with improved reading achievement in children with reading disorders (RD) and whether the effect of grade at entry to special education differs by socioeconomic status (SES). METHODS: The authors conducted a secondary data analysis using data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Kindergarten Cohort (ECLS-K), a nationally representative cohort of children followed longitudinally from kindergarten through eighth grade (1998-2007). Using data from the fifth grade wave of ECLS-K, the authors identified children with RD (n = 290). The outcome of interest was change in score on the reading achievement test, which was developed by ECLS-K staff, between first and fifth grade. Using multiple linear regression, the authors modeled outcome as a function of a child's grade at entry to special education, controlling for several covariates. RESULTS: Early entry to special education (by first grade vs second or third grade) was associated with larger gains in reading achievement between first and fifth grade (p < .0001). Children who entered special education by first grade versus second grade gained 4.5 more points on the reading achievement test (p < .0001). Children who entered special education by first grade versus third grade gained 1.7 more points on the reading achievement test (p < .0001). There was no difference in the magnitude of gains associated with early entry to special education between children from families of low and higher SES. CONCLUSION: For children with RD, early entry to special education is associated with improved reading achievement during elementary school.

Ecological, psychological, and cognitive components of reading difficulties: testing the component model of reading in fourth graders across 38 countries.

The authors tested the component model of reading (CMR) among 186,725 fourth grade students from 38 countries (45 regions) on five continents by analyzing the 2006 Progress in International Reading Literacy Study data using measures of ecological (country, family, school, teacher), psychological, and cognitive components. More than 91% of the differences in student difficulty occurred at the country (61%) and classroom (30%) levels (ecological), with less than 9% at the student level (cognitive and psychological). All three components were negatively associated with reading difficulties: cognitive (student's early literacy skills), ecological (family characteristics [socioeconomic status, number of books at home, and attitudes about reading], school characteristics [school climate and resources]), and psychological (students' attitudes about reading, reading self-concept, and being a girl). These results extend the CMR by demonstrating the importance of multiple levels of factors for reading deficits across diverse cultures.

The co-occurrence of reading disorder and ADHD: epidemiology, treatment, psychosocial impact, and economic burden.

The co-occurrence of reading disorder (RD) and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) has received increasing attention. This review summarizes the epidemiology, treatment strategies, psychosocial impact, and economic burden associated with the co-occurrence of these conditions. Common genetic and neuropsychological deficits may partially explain the high degree of overlap between RD and ADHD. Children who face the additive problems of both disorders are at greater risk for academic failure, psychosocial consequences, and poor long-term outcomes that persist into adulthood. However, few studies have evaluated interventions targeted to this patient population, underscoring the importance of identifying effective multimodal treatments that address the neuropsychological deficits of RD and ADHD through carefully planned clinical research.

The cost-effectiveness of an intensive treatment protocol for severe dyslexia in children.

Studies of interventions for dyslexia have focused entirely on outcomes related to literacy. In this study, we considered a broader picture assessing improved quality of life compared with costs. A model served as a tool to compare costs and effects of treatment according to a new protocol and care as usual. Quality of life was measured and valued by proxies using a general quality-of-life instrument (EQ-5D). We considered medical cost and non-medical cost (e.g. remedial teaching). The model computed cost per successful treatment and cost per quality adjusted life year (QALY) in time. About 75% of the total costs was related to diagnostic tests to distinguish between children with severe dyslexia and children who have reading difficulties for other reasons. The costs per successful treatment of severe dyslexia were €36 366. Successful treatment showed a quality-of-life gain of about 11%. At primary school, the average cost per QALY for severe dyslexia amounted to €58 647. In the long term, the cost per QALY decreased to €26 386 at secondary school and €17 663 thereafter. The results of this study provide evidence that treatment of severe dyslexia is cost-effective when the investigated protocol is followed.

Long-term psychosocial and health economy consequences of ADHD, autism, and reading-writing disorder: a prospective service evaluation project.

OBJECTIVE: The study aims to evaluate psychosocial, societal, and family cost consequences of a psychoeducational intervention program. METHODS: Sixty boys with ADHD, Asperger syndrome/high-functioning autism (AS/HFA), and reading and writing disorder (RD/WD) were allocated to participate in a service evaluation project. Every other boy in each diagnostic group was randomly allocated to receive either (a) a special education program (clinical index group) or (b) follow-up without the special education program (clinical comparison group). Nine years after initial assessments the stability of the psychosocial and economic resource consequences over time was studied. RESULTS: ADHD, AS/HFA, and RD/WD all had severe impact on family life quality. The societal costs were high, but no significant differences in resource use or in total costs were found between the clinical index and the comparison groups. CONCLUSIONS: The results underscore the very long-term need for support including individually tailored reevaluations and carefully monitored intervention programs adapted to family needs and severity of child disorder.

The dyslexia ecosystem.

It is all too easy, in everyday interactions in dyslexia, to see the interactions in a semi-adversarial fashion--parents competing to get more support for children, researchers competing to get more support for their theories, schools trying to get more money for their programmes. Such a set of analyses may be described as 'zero-sum'. If one party gains, the other one loses. If, by contrast, one views the dyslexia community as a complex, inter-dependent 'ecosystem', a much more positive view emerges. It becomes clear that there are solutions for the system as a whole that are in a sense optimal for the system as a whole, solutions that are 'win-win', that is, all parties gain and none lose. In this article I develop this concept of the 'dyslexia ecosystem', and outline targets that would lead to progress for the ecosystem as a whole.

[Neuropsychiatric problems among children are signigicantly underdiagnosed. Intervention programs result in better and less expensive care]. / Betydande underdiagnostik av neuropsykiatriska problem hos barn. Riktade åtgärdsprogram ger bättre och billigare vård.

Neuropsychiatric problems (Asperger syndrome, ADHD, reading and writing disorders) affect 6-10 per cent of all children in Sweden. Many of these disorders are never diagnosed. As a consequence, secondary behaviour problems and impaired family relations often follow. A study of 60 families with at least one child affected by one of the above mentioned disorders shows that quality of life can be increased and problems reduced if parents and children are informed of the child's disabilities and the child receives a special education programme. Families who do not receive this special treatment more often apply for medical care from other (more expensive) sources. Quite often do they find this treatment unsatisfactory.

Definition and treatment of dyslexia: a report by the Committee on Dyslexia of the Health Council of The Netherlands.

A committee of the Health Council of the Netherlands prepared a report on the definition and treatment of dyslexia at the request of the Minister of Health, Welfare, and Sport (see Note). The Health Council, as charged by the Health Act, is to inform the government on the state of science with respect to public health issues. The Council is entirely funded by the government but otherwise completely independent (an independence guaranteed by law). The committee was formed to answer questions regarding the provisions and funds needed for the treatment of persons with dyslexia, neuropsychological treatment modalities, in particular, and the role of speech and language therapists. Definitive decision making about reimbursement by the Dutch National Health Service for treatment by speech and language therapists in cases of dyslexia was on hold, pending the committee's report. Specific attention was requested for the following aspects: the definition of dyslexia (the characteristic symptoms of this category of developmental language disabilities); the consequences of the proposed definition for indication and treatment; the appropriate methods of treatment; the involvement of several possible professionals (e.g., neuropsychologist, remedial teacher, speech and language therapist), as well as the role of the neurologist during and in relation to the treatment process; and those situations in which treatment should be the responsibility of the health care system. This article summarizes the committee's considerations and conclusions on these different aspects.