Adults

HELP FOR ADULTS

Although Dudley Dyslexia Association was set up mostly to support parents with their children's dyslexia there has become an increasing interest from the adult population. Some adults realise they may be dyslexic when there own children start having difficulties at school, others have always felt they had a problem but could not quite put their finger on it.

Look at the checklist; be honest when answering the questions. Remember we are all very different. The checklist is designed to give an indication if dyslexia could be your problem. A Full assessment may be required. Contact the helpline 01384 291001 for advice on how to obtain a full psychological report. Remember a private assessment is likely to cost between £200 - £300. But it could highlight your strengths; help you explain your dyslexia to others, tell you how to improve your skills.

Dudley Dyslexia Association keeps a number of fact sheets on dyslexia related issues. Titles include The disability discrimination Act 1995 (employment), Maths and the dyslexic adult, The driving theory test, The dyslexic student, screening and assessment, basic skills tutors and disabled students allowances.

All the local colleges offer basic skills teaching. It is never to late to try to over come your problem. Many colleges will provide screening for dyslexia free of charge. Wolverhampton college provide lot's of short courses on dyslexia, so you could learn even more contact them on 01902 821068.

ADULT CHECKLIST

Please tick Yes or No to each question. Don't miss any questions out. If in doubt tick the answer that you feel is true most often:

1. Do you find difficulty telling left from right?
2. Is map reading or finding your way to a strange place confusing?
3. Do you dislike reading aloud?
4. Do you take longer than you should to read a page of a book?
5. Do you find it difficult to remember the sense of what you have read?
6. Do you dislike reading long books?
7. Is your spelling poor?
8. Is your writing difficult to read?
9. Do you get confused if you have to speak in public?
10. Do you find it difficult to take messages on the telephone and pass them on correctly?
11. When you say a long word, do you sometimes find it difficult to get all the sounds in the right order?
12. Do you find it difficult to do sums in your head without using your fingers or paper?
13. When using the telephone, do you tend to get the numbers mixed up when you dial?
14. Do you find it difficult to say the months of the year forwards in a fluent manner?
15. Do you find it difficult to say the months of the year backwards?
16. Do you mix up dates and times and miss appointments?
17. When writing cheques do you frequently find yourself making mistakes?
18. Do you find forms difficult and confusing?
19. Do you mix up bus numbers like 95 and 59?
20. Did you find it hard to learn your multiplication tables at school?

This questionnaire was completed by 679 adults divided into the following groups:-

Students enrolled on BA & BSc degree courses. 57%
Students enrolled on Certificate and Access courses. 7%
A-Level students. 15%
Non-student adults. 21%

The age range was 18 to 68 and the proportion of men and women was approximately equal.

The sample contained 32 known dyslexic individuals. A statistical procedure involving discriminant function analysis, a factor analysis and a series of t-tests was carried out. The objective was to identify those items on the questionnaire that best discriminated between dyslexic and non-dyslexic individuals.

The 12 best items in order of importance are:-
Order Item
1. Q17
2. Q13
3. Q7
4. Q16
5. Q18
6. Q10
7. Q19
8. Q14
9. Q20
10. Q4
11. Q1
12. Q11

If the majority of these items are ticked, this is a strong indication of dyslexia.

On the questionnaire as a whole (ie. all 20 items):

• 60% of people gave no more than four YES response.
• 90% of people gave no more than eight YES responses
• Nine or more YES responses on the questionnaire, as a whole is therefore a powerful indicator of a difficulty. The items ticked should be compared with the 'best twelve' shown above