Growing up with Dyslexia – ways it can affect the learning process and social life of school age children

How Dyslexia Affect Learning and Social Life of a Child
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Abstract
This paper is written with a focus on teachers and parents to the children living with dyslexia. The paper explores four published research about people living with dyslexia. These publications vary in their findings. (Riddick (2009) claims that the society assumes the dyslexic people and, therefore, give them less attention. The society thinks that difficulty in learning means inability to learn. McNulty (2003) considers them mistreated in the society. They get little attention from their teachers, parents and peers. The paper looks at the social and academic challenges dyslexic children at the school going age go through. Parents, teachers and the physicians are asked to take good care of the dyslexic children in the society. The paper calls for the society to keep the collective responsibility of taking care of them. Teachers and the physicians as professionals are required to work with the society by giving professional advice to the society to take care of the dyslexic. The paper outlines the challenges of the dyslexic to include misunderstanding from the immediate people, rejection, stigmatisation and mockery. The paper also dismisses the belief that dyslexic people are unable to perform well in school. According to the findings, dyslexic learners demonstrate difficulties in reading, writing, comprehension and communication. It is, therefore, important to support them in their learning experience to fully develop in their academics.

Their peers are to be encouraged to support them in their social interactions.
Keywords
Challenges, dyslexia, learning, social life, physiological orientation, stigmatization, isolation, special, neurological and electrophysiological characteristics, school going age
Introduction
Dyslexia is a disorder that has different effects on different learners. For example, some learners may experience a problem of reading slowly and painfully, thus affecting their physical body. Having trouble in spelling, handwriting, recalling words, and written language are some of the symptoms that may suggest that a learner is being faced with dyslexia. It is essential for the parents to identify such symptoms from their children so that such children are not isolated in the society. Also, identifying such children in the family is useful for figuring out the issue of stigma and isolation of the affected children in the society. How dyslexia affect learning and social life of a school going child can take phase right from infancy to adulthood. Dyslexia is a common learning disorder associated with reading and comprehension difficulties. People with reading difficulty can find it discouraging in their academic life. Dyslexic children also have difficulties in communication thus making them low self-esteemed in class (McNulty, 2003).The difficulties in communication issue make learners at school going age to go through challenges of being less important in their academic and social growth in the following ways.
Rejection and bullying are the major problems learners with dyslexia face in their lives. Due to misunderstanding according to Riddick (2009), they are bullied by their fellow learners. The dyslexic people are called by different names that make them feel less important in their academic life. Teachers also look at them as individuals who are not fully developed cognitively. If they fail to perform well in class, they are called failures, thus making them sad in their academic and social life. Individuals who are not able to communicate and understand like their fellow cohorts find learning a tricky process (Stein & Lounsbury, 2004).
Low performance as a result of lack of adequate support makes them below the average compared to fellow learners (Riddick, 2009). Their condition if not given special attention by the parents and teachers, can lead to poor performance in class and later in life. According to Riddick, it should be identified at the right time and be supported. Riddick (2009) adds that poor performance leads to adults who are unmotivated in life. Low self-esteem is also a common consequence of dyslexia in the earners. They feel less needed when they cannot perform like others in school. According to Stein & Loundsburg, (2004), they isolate themselves from others due to fear of being seen low. This affects even their social ties with the family members. Their pattern of growth makes them delicate for other social ills that put their life at risk in adulthood. They grow up to be poor parents and citizens
Dyslexic people show poor economic life if their condition makes them fail in academics. Education is very important for an individual growth and achievement. People with these conditions when not handled with care become low achievers in general life. The excellent news is that with proper attention and care, they grow to be well established, intelligent and successful individuals in academic and social life. Teachers and parents are advised to work tirelessly together to help dyslexic children to make motivated choices to help them realise their strengths and abilities (Riddick, 2009).
High school dropouts are witnessed in dyslexic children. The feeling of embarrassment when they perform poorly may ignite the sense of terminating studies. Learners with dyslexia, when rejected at school, feel alienated and opt to drop out. They see education as a burden and self-humiliating (Riddick, 2009). In regards to the challenges discussed above, the following are the recommendations that would help the society in supporting them in academics and social life.
The society should avoid any form of discrimination to dyslexic children McNulty (2003). Also, teachers should have to acquire necessary skills to support them morally, psychologically, and academically. Parents should be advised to understand them and give them the necessary support at home. The physicians should work with the society by providing professional guidance in understanding and taking care of dyslexic children. As justified by this research, proper holistic support would make dyslexic individuals fully developed people in the society with quality characters. Fellow learners should be encouraged to understand and embrace them when playing and doing things together.

Motivation is very important to everyone to perform better in life. Dyslexic children too need to be motivated and inspired to learn. The new paradigm in learning supports inclusive education. Teachers, therefore, should understand that they are training learners with individual differences. They should handle them in groups but respond to their individual needs at the personal level. They should spare time to help them understand what they do not get in normal lesson time. Learners should also be encouraged to involve in cooperative learning as this is symbiotically beneficial. As the bright students explain concepts to others, studies show that they know better. Teachers should encourage improvement through rewards. They should set achievable targets and appreciate if those targets are achieved. Teachers should avoid over concentration on bright students neglecting those who do not perform well. Every learner has strengths and weaknesses in learning. Teachers should, therefore, identify individual strengths and nature them. Learners with leadership skills should be allowed to lead. With this insight, dyslexic learners can grow to be excellent in academic and social life and leader hold positions in government like other people (Riddick, 2009).
Much of love and care should be given to dyslexic children.Teachers, parents and fellow children should be encouraged to love them and care for them. They should be engaged in the social and academic activities with others. They should not be assumed to be poor in their areas of difficulties but rather should be helped to improve (Riddick, 2009).When corrected in what they don’t do well, they should be guided by love. They should be made to feel that they belong to the society. Governments should create policies that take care for their individual needs
In conclusion, the society must take stringent measures to help dyslexic children in their social and academic life. They are people who need special attention to live the normal life of happiness. For a long time this condition has always been assumed (Riddick, 009). It is very necessary for these individuals to be given attention to develop like other people. Having difficulty in reading, communication and comprehension are not inabilities in academics (McNulty, 2003). Dyslexic children with appropriate support can perform better in both academic and social life with appropriate support. It is confirmed that with guidance and encouragement they become admirable people in the society. It is therefore very important for the teachers to learn special ways of handling learners with dyslexia (Stein & Lounsbury, 2004).
References
Humphrey, N., & Symes, W. (2010). Perceptions of the social support and the experience of bullying among the pupils with an autistic spectrum disorders in the mainstream secondary schools. European Journal of the Special Needs Education, 25(1), 77-91.
McNulty, M. A. (2003). Dyslexia and the life course. Journal of learning disabilities, 36(4), 363-381. The benefits of the learning: The impact of the education on the health, family life and the social capital. Routledge.
Riddick, B. (2009). Living with the dyslexia: The social and the emotional consequences of the specific learning difficulties/disabilities. Routledge.
Stein, M. T., & Lounsbury, B. (2004). A child with the learning disability: navigating the school-based service. Pediatrics, 114(Supplement 6), 1432-1436.