10 Responses

1. Look at the printed material you give her

   Hi Mark

   Not sure if this is what you want help with, but I understand that written material is easier for people with reading difficulties if it is printed in Comic Sans font. Also, think about having lots of white space rather than cramming the sheets full of text. If most of her own learning is delivered face to face with the written material as a back up she may be able to absorb it more easily and be able to relate it to the written material.

   Hope you get loads of help here.

   Jenny

2. Dyslexia & Employees

   Hi Mark,

   There is a lot that can be done, first is to establish if she has been diagnosed with dyslexia? This is the starting point, then there are reasonable adjustments that can be made, from colour paper, font size, style, appropriate lighting, but the list is very long. Each dyslexic will be different and it’s not a good idea to be prescriptive, so the assessment is important to establish the person’s strength and weakness, also having an ICT needs assessment would be good to see what technology would support her needs.

   There is funding through Job Centre plus for the technologies and support. Dyslexia, dyspraxia, dyscalculia, ADD and ADHD all come under the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 so there is a plethora of government funding to support people in employment with disabilities.

   I am the CEO of one of the largest national dyslexia charity and I am also a trainer with dyslexia. We run various course for HR and educational practitioners. We have partnerships with many government organisations. Have a look at our website for information and there is some good video information too:

   http://www.dyslexia-help.org

   If you need any help give me a call on 0151 709 0545

   Regard

   Steve O’Brien

   Adult Dyslexia Access

3. Dyslexic Trainer

   Hi Mark

   You might also find that hypnosis or nlp techniques could help her develop her skills for learning and remembering information.  It may not suit everyone but it can help reinforce their ability to learn and remember informtion as well as improving self-esteem and confidence.

   I’m not sure where you are based but happy to discuss this aspect with you if that would be of help.

    

   Anne

4. Freelance Facilitator and Coach

   Hi Mark

   I have been working in the field of facilitation and training for many year and have slight dyslexia which tends to trip me up if my stress levels are high. Managing my stress has been a great help and one way I have found works for me is to mention I may get "blind" to spelling some words on the flip chart and to ask for help in an informal way at that time. This has achieved two things for me, one it stops my stress spiralling and two it has amazed me how many people have said they also have moments like these and that my role model really helped to the point of some using the flip chart themselves for the first time in syndicate exercises. The underlying motivation for revealing this information came from a comment on a reactionaire which was something to the effect of " i wasn’t any good at my job because i spelt words incorrectly" – knowing just one person was judging me in this way has been enough to prompt some positive action on my part. As a lot of my training delivery has an undercurrent of diversity and emotional intelligence it is also easy to make connections in acceptance of difference.

   Some training briefs I work with are far too verbose and can trigger a panic response so I condense them into mind maps which gives me the flow for the day and each session.

   I am happy to discuss this further if it would be of help to yourself or the person you mentioned.

   Celia

5. JobCentre Plus Support
   Hi, just wanted to reiterate the point made above. Support is available via Jobcentre Plus for those in work (and seeking work) who experience Dyslexia. A local Disability Employment Advisor or Work Psychologist (a role I previously held) can give advise on aids, adaptations, funding and support. They can tailor this support to the individual’s strengths and the specific nature of the role. They can also support you as the manager to understand how to support and get the best out of this individual.

   Wishing you all the best.

   Fiona

6. Thanks

   Thanks for your advice – we’ve already got someone coming from Remploy to do a screening on the trainer to asses her fully so this will give us a clearer picture. Lots of advice points on your response tho – thanks and we will definitely keep these in mind as we build our plan for working with her through the coming months.

   Mark

7. Remploy

   Hi Mark,

   I personally trained about 150 of the Remploy staff, so they know what they are doing, they have a good national network too…

    

   Good Luck

   Steve

8. Re: Remploy

   Brilliant Steve – thanks and let’s hope Pam is one of the ones you trained. The Team Manager is aware of this thread and is closely following so we can ensure that all recommendations and advice is being collated.

    

   Thanks again

   Mark

9. Dyslexia and Binocular instability

   Hi Mark

   Binocular instability is frequently an undiagnosed cause of dyslexia.  After all dyslexia simply means difficulty with reading, it doesn’t tell us why a person has this difficulty.  Much more is known about this these days but only a minority of opticians are trained to identify it and provide the proper reading glasses.  Here is a link to one.  http://www.edinburgh-eyetests.co.uk/dyslexia.htm

10. Dyslexia isn’t just a reading issue
    The term is used as a cover-all for many individual learning conditions. It is common to believe it is about ‘reading’ but it may be as much about ordering of data, processing priorities, synergetic working, etc.

    Dyslexia is a recognised condition under DDA and the learning conditions that the individual have should drive your response and so I would take great care in creating what you think the person needs before considering the recommendations from the Remploy assessor.