Dyscalculia and Dyslexia Interest Group

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Dyscalculia and Dyslexia Interest Group
Innovations Conference
13th April 2005
Characteristics of Dyslexic and Dyscalculic
Students

• Sarah Parsons Jane Hill

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Harper Adams University College

• Small, friendly, specialist HE college
• Students known by name
• Aspire CETL
• Advancing Skills for Professionals in the Rural
  Economy
• Agriculture subject has 2nd highest levels of
  dyslexia nationally (HESA)
• 1700 FTE students (approx.)
• 14 of students with dyslexia (approx.)
• 25 1st and 2nd year engineers dyslexic (approx.)
• Small number of dyscalculic students

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Mathematics Support for Students

• Sarah Parsons Learning Support Tutor / Snr.
  Lecturer
• sjparsons_at_harper-adams.ac.uk

• Mathematics support provided since 2001
• Engineering Mathematics supported lectured
• Many dyslexic engineers supported and successful
• All students study and must pass statistics
• Dyslexic students supported for general maths
• Dyscalculic students supported (few)

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Learner Support for Students

• Jane Hill Disability Co-ordinator
• jhill_at_harper-adams.ac.uk
• HASDAS project - Harper Adams Support for
  Disabled Applicants Students
• Admissions support
• Dyslexia screening
• Psychological needs assessments arranged
• Dyslexic students study skills support provided
• Examination support provided

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General Effects

• Often treated as stupid pre-diagnosis
• Often lower career aspirations
• Lower self-confidence and self-esteem
• May choose HND route, not BSc, BEng
• Dyscalculics were often were in lowest maths set,
  with disruptive class behaviour (by others)
• Anxiety, sometimes panic (e.g. in exams)
• Greater parental involvement and anxiety

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Mathematics Problems of Dyslexic Students

• Specific Learning Difficulty
• Lack of confidence, anxiety
• Mistakes in copying to next line, e.g.
• and -, and x, digits p q, confused
• fractions inverted
• decimal points omitted or in wrong position
• Parts of questions/whole question/pages omitted
  in exams
• Difficulty reading understanding questions
• Difficulty reading notes and handwriting

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Strategies to Aid Dyslexic/Dyscalculic Students

• Provision of printed notes
• Identify repeat key information - wood from
  trees
• Provide formula sheets, early in module
• Encourage learning of symbols
• Work at students pace time to think
• Students do the work
• Try to link with students knowledge / interests
• Support, encouragement, reassurance
• Friendly, lighthearted, interactive

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Dyscalculic Student Comments

• Iv hated maths since iv done my GCSE, but found
  it increasingly difficult as im getting older.
• I have always been bullied at school for number
  related problems such as being bottom in yearly
  exams, or not being able to tell the time
  correctly. Strangely this has pushed me to try
  harder at everything, just to prove these people
  wrong.
• Until I was nine I could only count to ten I
  still have to take a lot of time over doing
  anything involving numbers, my GCSE took 5 hours
  extra lessons a week, but I got there!

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Dyslexic HND Engineer

• It has made it a lot harder to learn.
  Ive had to try harder than some
  other people.
• In young years at school, 10,11,12 years old
  people just treated you like you were stupid.
• When I was 13/14 it was identified because of
  pressure by my parents. For nearly 6 years my
  mother had been asking and saying I might be
  dyslexic.
• Being identified was important
• The biggest hit on me was making it difficult to
  learn at the start. The confidence boost of
  getting help off the start was like a release
  factor, you were given the nourishment to
  get going and learn.

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Extracts from Assessments

• Dyslexic and Dyscalculic Student
• shows relative cognitive weaknesses in arithmetic
• shows marked weakness in mathematics considering
  higher general ability
• shows difficulty in organising written work and
  in reading comprehension and also in some basic
  mathematical processes and the more visual
  aspects in mathematics
• Numeracy (Dyslexic student)
• ability is well below that expected for age and
  intellectual ability
• finds maths a difficult subject to learn, despite
  having the intelligence and mathematical
  potential to do so
• Difficulties with mathematics are directly
  related
• to weaker processing and short term memory

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Dyslexic/Dyscalculic Student Result types

• Successful hardworking students who take up
  support and achieve well
• Students who initially struggle but persevere and
  manage with effort and support.
• Some can be transformed and succeed beyond
  expectations
• Students whose difficulties cause ongoing
  problems, sometimes less motivated and
  hardworking
• Spectrum of outcomes

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Summary

• No ONE stereotype dyslexic/dyscalculic student
• No two dyslexic individuals are the same
• Steve Chinn
• Range of outcomes
• Successful achievers, Strugglers, Perseverers,
• Provide support and encouragement
• Students must put in effort, often more than
  peers
• Dont limit students potential
• The determination of individuals plus support can
  often enable students to overcome difficulties
  and achieve amazing success