The impact of inadequate dyslexia training for teachers.
According to the Every Child A Chance Trust, poor literacy in the UK costs an estimated £2.5bn. The BDA tells us that 10% of the population is dyslexic. So why aren’t teachers getting the training that they need to support dyslexic learning and what can they do about that?
According to the Drivers Youth Trust ‘Fish in a tree’ report, nine out of ten parents of children with dyslexia say that teachers lack the proper training needed to support their child. In the same report, 84% of teachers told them that it was very important to be trained in teaching children with dyslexia.
Current teacher training has to include differentiated teaching approaches but sadly these course are not required by law to deliver specific training on how to recognise dyslexia or how to help dyslexic pupils in the classroom or more importantly when to refer a pupil for intervention.
Kids all over the country are simply not reaching their academic potential and this is the fault of the UK Education system, not the teachers but teachers can do something about this and the easiest way is to focus their continuing professional development on SEN training focused on dyslexia.
In the UK alone, the cost of poor literacy is huge especially when it directly impacts life choices.
I recently wrote an article about where teachers could find good quality CPD and this can come in many different forms. With Covid restrictions easing we can start to look forward to conferences where we can meet with peers and shares ideas whilst receiving good quality CPD from industry thought leaders. I am particularly looking forward to the Positive Dyslexia Conference in Liverpool later this year.
Equally there are plenty of online CPD courses available for teachers that help to build the skills of teachers who want to make a difference to the lives of pupils with dyslexia.
With better understanding and knowing how to arrange intervention, difficult behaviours in class will reduce so that the quality of education is greater for everyone in the class. If teachers purely focus on poor behaviour without addressing the cause of the behaviour then this becomes a stressful existence for the teacher and the child.