A Silicon Bullet for Dyslexia

Mike Matvy
School Psychologist / Assistive Technology Specialist
Knox County Schools, Knoxville, TN
e-mail: matvym@k12.tn.net

Date: 11/22/2002

(Also see STARTING TO USE ALTERNATIVE METHODS FOR READING, Mike Matvy, 9-8-95)

Who needs to use alternative methods for writing?

Students who:

• are unable to produce normal handwriting and/or cannot read their own writing because of inadequate reading ability, and
• are able to use oral language to communicate ideas, to solve problems, and to learn, and
• are of mid-average to very superior mental ability, and
• have parents and teachers who are willing to try an alternative approach to learning.

What alternative methods are there for students who are inadequate writers?

• Dictate and Edit Procedure has: (1) the student dictate into a standard dictation device, (2) a teacher or aide typing the dictation into a computer (in lower case with no punctuation), (3) the student adding capitalization, punctuation and any other changes before printing the work to turn in. (see THE DICTATE AND EDIT PROCEDURE - PART D & E, Mike Matvy, 5-20-95)
• Computer Assisted Writing has the student using a computer with word processing, spell checking, grammar checking, word prediction, and voice synthesizing software. (see COMPUTER ASSISTED WRITING PROCEDURE Mike Matvy, 9-9-95)
• Writing Assistants (or Standard Dictation) has the student dictate to a person who writes what the student says.
• Modified Handwriting has the student increase the use of his limited handwriting ability by (1) making better decisions about when to attempt handwriting and when to employ other methods of writing, (2) making realistic estimates about what can be accomplished using his handwriting skills and, (3) accepting less than perfect handwriting in order to increase functioning in critical writing situations where alternatives are not practical to use.
• Typing has the student using a computer or portable wordprocessor for producing written work.
• Facilitated Dictation has the student dictating to a teacher who praises efforts while writing what the student says, asking for more information and avoiding giving ideas or using leading questions.

How to start?

• Someone must recognize that the student with a disability for handwriting could be producing more and learning more by using alternative methods for writing. It is recommended that an M-team be convened for the purpose of discussing the use of alternative approaches to written work at school.
• An evaluation might be conducted to determine the student's functional abilities for writing using the following approaches: (1) pencil and paper, (2) typing, (3) dictation with dictation device, (4) dictation with someone writing, (5) facilitated dictation. This kind of evaluation seeks to determine the method(s) necessary for getting the student's language into a written form. Once a method is found that will enable the student to get his/her ideas on paper, planning for using alternative methods can begin.

How is a program planned?

• Once an evaluation indicates what method(s) might allow the student to function in situations that require writing, a strategy is developed for teaching and applying the method(s) for use in regular classes.
• The goals of this plan will be for the student to produce written work: (1) that is of a quality commensurate with the student's general ability for using language, (2) that uses methods which will maximize the students ability to function independently, (3) that maximizes participation in regular school curriculum.
• The most restrictive method, Facilitated Dictation , is seldom used. The Dictate and Edit Procedure is often used, frequently in combination with other methods.
• To ensure full use of language ability for writing while maximizing the student's ability to function independently in situations that require writing, more than one method is learned. No one method will fit all situations. Each writing situation is looked at to determine which method(s) to use.
• A plan will need two stages (1) teaching the student the new method(s) and (2) teaching the student and staff to use the new method(s) for completing written assignments for the regular class.

How can the student learn to use alternative writing methods?

• An instructional program for alternative writing is much like a conventional writing program with introduction of basic skills and a daily regimen for practice before moving on to more advanced skills. The big difference is that the onset for instruction in paper and pencil writing was in 1st grade while the onset of alternative writing instruction often starts at 5th to 8th grade.
• Students who start alternative methods typically have had years of failure with writing and have missed out on important language training because of their inability to write with pencil and paper. They usually are skillful with oral language, yet they see themselves as failures in language arts skills. They speak in sentences but may have trouble dividing their dictation (or typing) into sentences; they use voice inflections to indicate phrases but may not be able to use commas to punctuate those phrases. They have missed out on the experience of committing their words to paper. They have not learned the skills which come from being confronted by the difficult task of deciding how to express ones ideas with words on paper.
• They need to be told and shown that they possess the most important communication skill, namely oral language, and that they can learn how to use that oral language to produce written language. They will need to learn in months the writing skills that their peers have been practicing for years. They will have to be retaught the skills needed to use language in written form. But, use of punctuation, grammatical structure, and writing style will have to wait for the basics of the equivalent of learning how to hold the pencil - learning skills like, typing, computer assisted writing, dictate and edit procedure, dictation, modified handwriting, and/or interactive transcription . It is beyond the scope of this document to give detailed instruction on how to teach each of these skills.
• As soon as the student has learned some of the basic alternative skills the transition to classroom assignments begins with practice on work typical of what will be expected in the regular class. For instance, a 5th grade student might practice by using computer assisted writing for writing a paragraph each day on a teacher-assigned topic like my favorite animal, how I use what I learn from T.V.; or a 9th grade student might practice by using the dictate and edit procedure for writing some examples of personal and business letters. Once the student is able to produce written documents that are acceptable for regular classes the student is ready for regular class participation with the new skills.

How can schools enable a student to use alternative writing methods?

• The student's classroom teachers first learn how the alternative methods will work and how to plan for written assignments. This may mean that assignments will be given a day in advance so the student will have time to dictate and have the work transcribed so he/she can edit and print it: or, it may mean the teacher will need to plan on having the student take a test to a teacher's aide who can take dictation for the student's short-answer questions. It also may mean that the teacher encourages the student to attempt writing with pencil and paper on tasks that require one and two word responses
• The special education teacher will make a transition plan to move the student from doing training activities to doing classroom activities. At first the student may be asked to do one written assignment per week for one class, i.e., writing a summery of a passage from the Science chapter on D.N.A. to be turned in for extra credit.
• Later the regular and special Ed. teachers might plan for adapting more of the regular class curriculum to accommodate the student's writing needs. As the student shows more ability to complete class work with alternative writing methods, a plan is developed to address all of the classes' requirements.
• This approach has the child writing for the same objectives as other students but just doing it in a different way.
• The role of the special education teacher is prominent in the first few months to ensure that the program gets a good start. Later, this role becomes one of monitor, consultant, and advocate to make sure that the plan is appropriately meeting student's needs and to help in the transition to new classrooms.
• By the time the student is in high school the student should take over some of this preparation and planning. By end of high school, the student should be able to handle all writing situations independently including making arrangements for any needed assistance.

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