Notes from the Spring Convention

Held on Saturday 14 June 2008

Welcome

The meeting was opened by BDA Chair, Margaret Malpas, who welcomed delegates to the meeting. She highlighted some key activities, including the recent BDA International Conference, as examples of the BDA raising its profile and “punching above its weight”.
In her role, developing the training arm of the charity, Margaret drew attention to the variety of training courses on offer which not only led to a better understanding of dyslexia amongst teachers, governors, parents and employers, but also provided excellent opportunities for networking. She spoke of plans, in conjunction with the CASS Business School, to work with professionals with dyslexia, to further raise the profile of the BDA. Margaret likened the BDA to a champagne bottle waiting to be “popped”.
Margaret invited BDA Chief Executive, Judi Stewart, to provide a half yearly update on BDA activities; Jim Malpas (BDA Treasurer) to update on Training activities and Jennifer Owen Adams (BDA Education Director) to provide and update on policy and campaigning.

Update on half-yearly activities – Judi Stewart

1. Judi began by reflecting on the assets of the BDA:

• the name of the BDA itself
• the growing strength of the BDA membership
• the strong and committed team of staff and volunteers
• the collective knowledge and experience

2. Judi focused on the BDA vision:

“A dyslexia friendly society enabling all dyslexic people to reach their potential.”
She explained what was meant by the vision under the three headings:

• Creating Change
• Setting Standards
• Supporting/enabling
.

Judi went on to look in detail at the work the BDA was doing under each of these headings.

3. Creating Change. Judi gave examples under three headings:

• Employability Campaign
• Accessible Formats
• Early identification and support for children

3.1 Employability Campaign

• Breaking down barriers with employers and agencies which can impact on the bottom line
, and
• Encouraging the individual dyslexic person to reach their potential and take responsibility for their dyslexia

The success of the ‘Code of Practice for Employers’ publication has meant we have recently had to get it reprinted.
Working with Lucid to launch the “SPOT your potential” screening tool which is designed for individuals to screen themselves.
Working with CASS Business School, the BDA will shortly be launching a mentoring scheme using successful dyslexic entrepreneurs to assist the dyslexic individual who is either entering the workforce or who would like to enhance their coping strategies. The BDA is actively seeking funding for this. In the long term we may role out this programme to such difficult areas as the prisons.

3.2 Accessible Formats. (Jennifer Owen Adams)

• Building on the work of the New Technologies Committee, the BDA is working towards producing a policy on Accessible Formats, both for itself and for other organisations.
• The Right to Read campaign – the BDA is now represented on this group, campaigning for the “same book, at the same time and in the same place”.
• This year’s Dyslexia Awareness Week will focus on Accessible formats, working with Local Associations to take forward the campaign.
• The BDA is working with the Department for Children, Schools and Families (D.C.S.F) on a policy of accessible educational resources for learners in schools.

3.3 Early Identification and support for children.

The BDA, along with other dyslexia organisations, is part of an ‘All Parliamentary Group on Dyslexia’. The group is particularly concerned with:

• the need for Ringfenced Funding,
early screening
• focusing on S.E.N for OFStED
• establishing the right to alternative formats for the curriculum
• S.E.N. to be included in Initial Teacher Training
• Lobbying at National and Local level in Westminster, Cardiff and Belfast.
• Working with the New Chair of OFSTED, herself dyslexic, to ensure appropriate standards for Special Educational Needs.
• Other areas of the BDA’s work on Quality Mark, the ‘No to Failure’ Campaign, Specialist Teachers and the Inclusion Development Programme, all contribute to Creating Change.

4. Setting Standards. The BDA is setting standards through:

• Quality Mark work – emphasis on schools (75 verified in 3 years) and employers (8 verified in 5 years);


• Accreditation – the BDA has now introduced Continuing Professional Development for accredited teachers to ensure quality standards are maintained
;

5. Supporting and enabling.

5.1 The National Helpline, funded by a grant from the DCSF,

• has extended its opening hours one evening a week;


• opened a Schools Line and will later open a Careers Line;


• will provide training for Local Association Helpliners to work as one and share experiences;

5.2 Coping Strategies. The BDA is planning a number of events and conferences which highlight suitable assistive technology for people with dyslexia and provide hints and tips. These include:

• BDA Assistive Technology National Roadshow – Cardiff (April 2008), Manchester (July 2008), Belfast (October 2008), London (November 2008).
• BDA Jean Augur Memorial Conference – ‘Dyslexia Making Links:From theory to practice February 2009’.
• Employers Conferences in London and Birmingham (March 2009) ‘Managing Dyslexia at Work’
• By 2011 it is planned to hold a conference entitled ‘Dyscalculia, emerging issues.

5.3 Continuing the theme of ‘Supporting and Enabling’,

Jim Malpas reported on the growth and development of BDA Training during the academic year 2007-08. The BDA will have delivered 200 Training events in 60 UK towns and cities with over 2,500 delegates in attendance. This included bespoke, accredited and open short courses. Courses are delivered to a range of people: parents, teachers, governors and employers and it is estimated that over 10,000 individuals will have been helped through widening understanding and knowledge of dyslexia.

6. BDA Financial Situation

6.1 Judi Stewart reported that on average monthly income was now greater than expenditure but the BDA has four major liabilities:

• A deficit on unrestricted funds (as at 31 March 2007 the unrestricted deficit was £240K and the draft accounts for 31 March 2008 are showing that it has been reduced to a deficit of £90K). It is facing a possible dilapidations outlay on half of its previously rented premises in Reading of £68K There is a potential financial risk factor associated with the WEFO project as historically the BDA had used funds intended for the project to support other areas of its work In 2010 the BDA would need to repay a £120K loan from Margaret and Jim Malpas.

6.2 Judi highlighted one are of the BDA’s work to demonstrate how we are trying to change the practices which led to the BDA’s financial crisis. She gave the example of Membership and Publications which had risen from £98K in 2006/07 to £115K in 2007/08 but expenditure had fallen from £115K to £70K. Judi said the reduction in costs was mostly salaries and members may now feel they receive a less personal service from the BDA but she felt sure everyone recognised the need to keep income greater than expenditure.

‘Transition from Primary to Secondary School – the Afasic model’

Adele Bird, Chairman of Waltham Forest Dyslexia Association, gave the following, very inspiring presentation:
“Thank you for inviting me to speak on behalf of the Waltham Forest Dyslexia Association (fondly known as WFDA) about a new project we are piloting this year.

I became Chairman of WFDA last November, so this is my first experience of the national BDA. I recognise that there are 2 types of people who approach and become involved with the BDA. Dyslexia trained specialists and education and psychology personnel and individuals personally affected by dyslexia – ie the supply and the demand. I fall into the demand category. Because of this I am a layman when it comes to dyslexia.

I became involved with our Association simply because I was a concerned parent of a child with dyslexia, so because I’m a layman, please don’t expect me to use or understand dyslexia or special educational needs jargon.

Let me briefly tell you the story of my daughter Jessica. I have 10 year old twins. My son was able to read before he started school, but my daughter struggled even with the three words that would come home from Reception in the pencil case. I thought Jessica was normal and Matthew exceptional. However, by year 1 her teachers were concerned that her spelling wasn’t phonologically sound. I think it was identified as early as that because she was a twin and it was a one class entry school, so the comparison between them showed that it was nothing to do with the home environment – lack of access to books and reading for example. I have then been through all the battles and hurdles that most of us seem to have to tackle to get further concerns identified in year 2, Educational Psychologist involvement in year 3 and finally extra support in class in year 4 etc. etc. So that is why I became involved on a personal basis, finding WFDA to be a valuable lifeline.

Professionally I work as a Director of Recruitment for a consultancy that works solely in the charity sector. I recruit senior staff for registered charities and have had a career in fundraising, charity management and recruitment for the charity sector for the last 20 years. I am therefore not new to that sector, so am professional in that way, but am lay in terms of dyslexia and the education sector. After that preamble, let me begin.

The project that I’m here to talk about that we are piloting is a week long summer school for children with dyslexia or dyspraxia who are in transition from primary to secondary school.
The course is modelled on one that has taken place in some London Boroughs and one other location, built up during the last 8 years, in partnership with the speech and language charity Afasic and the Speech and Language teams in those locations.

Back in March, I attended a discussion day organised by a local children’s charity in our Borough on the emotional issues of Transition. I heard about the event through WFDA, but attended as I was already encountering issues and concerns around transition for my twins who are now in year 5.
While listening to the numerous speakers during the day, I was enthused and inspired by a presentation given by the Waltham Forest Speech and Language department about this Summer Course they run in partnership with Afasic for children with Speech and Language impairments.
As they described the course, I could see how it seemed to almost exactly address the challenges children with dyslexia or dyspraxia would encounter in transition to secondary school.
The objectives of the course they outlined were:

Addressing pupils’ concerns about transfer

Preparing the pupils for differences they will encounter in the secondary environment

Empowering the children with strategies for problem solving

Improving their social and organisational skills

The course covers a range of skills and topics and aims to be fun – it is asking the children to come to school for a whole week during the summer holidays after all, so there has to be some incentive!
The course introduces features of secondary school including:

Having a timetable and learning how to read it – which lesson at what time, which location, which teacher etc.

Having a course diary

They are given a small daily homework task

They are taught to read maps to navigate their way around a secondary school building and also for their journey to and from school

Some of the courses have included a Q&A session with a year 7 child who can answer the children’s questions around their experience. Needless to say the child is well briefed beforehand on what to say and what not to say!
During the course the children explore topics such as:

Bullying – how to deal with it and who to tell

Making and keeping new friends

Getting help when required, including how and when to interrupt a teacher appropriately

A range of problem solving strategies

Improving their listening skills

Understanding the need for school rules and how to avoid the dreaded detentions

Opportunities to correct the misconceptions many of the children may have from hearsay.

Having heard of such a course dealing with these issues, I discussed it with other parents at our literacy and touch typing classes the following week. Two of them had children in year 6 and were really keen on the idea for their children. One of them even went away and contacted the Speech and Language department in our borough to see if they would include their child on the course. Unfortunately they wouldn’t as they only offer it to children on their speech and language impairment register.
So I decided to explore the idea further and contacted Afasic. I explained how I’d heard about the course and how I felt it almost exactly addressed the challenges of transition for children with dyslexia or dyspraxia. They completely agreed, and I was overwhelmed to find an email just 24 hours later telling me that they would let me have access to all their course materials and support, and a £3,000 grant for us to pilot the course this Summer!

Now that I had 2 parents interested in the course for their children, funding and the resources, I knew I had to make it happen and I now needed to find a venue.
A secondary school building seemed the perfect location, as I wanted it to be in that environment to really give the children a taste of secondary school. However, I didn’t want them to rattle around – a small group of children in a building that takes over 1000.

Two of my co-Trustees have children at The Forest School so suggested I contact that school. This seemed perfect to me as a Summer Camp is held there, so there would be lots of other children bustling around for that. Also, because private schools have to be seen to do things that support the local community in order to retain their charitable status, it seemed that the Forest School may be willing to help for that reason if no other. I found that they were willing to help. However, instead of offering us the bear minimum, to meet that criteria, they are bending over backwards to be accommodating and have offered us use of a whole host of facilities including the swimming pool, theatre, art room, woodwork room, IT suite, a chill out room with a pool table and a link to the summer camp so that we can access go karts, a trampoline and a climbing wall. All free of charge.

I then needed to find teachers. Some of our literacy and touch typing tutors agreed to be involved and I have promoted the vacancies through a mailing to SENCo’s and schools in our borough. I now have a mixture of qualified dyslexia trained teachers, qualified teachers, classroom assistants and some 16-18 year olds too.
A meeting is planned next week with the qualified teachers and one of our new literacy tutors will act as a kind of Head Teacher and co-ordinate the timetable and programme and allocate the staff to the different activities and sessions.

Because of the resources we have available to us at the school, we will be able to teach the course in a very creative way, and I am hoping to include drama to get some of the messages across. For example, role playing of what looks like good listening – posture and attitude and what looks like bad listening. Maybe role play a bullying and a making friends scenario too. I am particularly keen to use creative activities to get the messages across, as this addresses the multi-sensory approach and for many children with dyslexia, the creative side can also be where they excel. Therefore this week at a secondary school will be a positive experience, doing things they can excel at and then enabling them to start in September with a positive attitude to secondary school.

I also selected a secondary school building, so they can have the practical experience and challenge of finding their way to different parts of a school building in time for different lessons. There is nothing like doing it for real – the multi-sensory approach again. The next thing I needed to do was promote the course. This is where I started to learn more about recording incidences of dyslexia compared with speech and language impairment. The Speech and Language unit hold a register of children, so immediately know which families to contact. No such list exists for children with dyslexia. So we have promoted the course through interschool mailings to SENCo’s and heads and through our Borough Parent Partnership newsletter and Educational Psychologists.

I really struggled to get anyone in our Education Department to talk to me about this project, even after talking to the Mayor of our Borough of that frustration on 2 separate and unrelated occasions. Finally however, I have made it through and they have sent a mailing out promoting it too. We have also sent a mailing to our WFDA membership and we have promoted it at our classes as well. So far 15 pupils are signed up. I was only going to offer 15 places, but, with the number of staff offering their services (23 at the last count although I don’t need and can’t afford to use them all) I will offer places to 20 and split them into 2 groups of 10.

There is a tool that they will be given out and worked on with the children on the Course – a Communication Passport. In this they will be able to list things they have trouble with, things they can do to help themselves and things their teachers can do to help them. If they then have a problem, they can show this wallet sized communication passport to the teacher. Speech and Language have an example from a parent who said that her son kept getting into trouble for forgetting his PE kit. She reminded him he had this communication passport with him all the time, so he showed it to the PE teacher who then understood and worked out ways to help him remember his kit in the future. I can see such a tool being very useful for the children on our course to take away and assist them when they start secondary school. If possible, I hope that we can also help each individual student plan and map the route they themselves will have to take to their secondary school, helping give them the confidence for that which can also be a daunting part of transition.

My hopes for this course are that it will give children with dyslexia or dyspraxia a rare head start. Also, as I mentioned before, give them a positive experience of the secondary school environment – not straight in to face classes with subjects with which they often struggle. I hope that our course will be a variation on the speech and language one, and be a course that could then be rolled out and used by others.

I also had a bit of a hidden agenda with this course. Since becoming Chairman of WFDA, I wanted to find a way to build a relationship with the Education Department and I felt this course would be an ideal opportunity to open that door. It has, and I am delighted to report that I have been invited to join the Working Party to support schools to ensure the SEN Inclusion Development Programme is well delivered in our Borough. Hopefully that will lead to WFDA being recognised, involved in, and listened to on dyslexia issues within the Education Department and the Borough’s schools.

I now look forward to the course taking place from 4th August. I will be very happy to feed back to any of you that are interested, the outcomes from it. We will be asking the students what they feel about secondary school before they start the course, and then again at the end of it, and then we hope to follow up a few months after they started school, to see if they felt it did help them.

The course will be free and we are really hoping that the schools have helped us identify hard to reach children, children whose parents are not particularly proactive in helping support their child’s difficulties.
When speech and language did the questionnaire for children before the course, a couple of them expressed no real concerns about transition, but at the end of the course expressed some. The reason was that they were clueless as to what to expect, so were fearless, but, after the course, now had a better understanding of what to expect, so were better resourced to cope. These are the children who need our help the most.”

7. Membership Proposal.

Part 1 – LAB Regional Amendment Proposal.

Robert Venables, Management Board Observer presented the following proposal on behalf of the Local Associations Board (LAB). “It has been suggested by the LAB that the areas used for selecting members of the LAB should be adapted to coincide with the Government’s Regions. The purpose of this paper is to consider the effect that would have on the membership of LAB, and the BDA areas used.

Annex 1Annex 1lists in columns 1 and 2, the BDA regions as they are now. Column 3 shows the areas which would be gained and/or lost by each, and in column 4 the name of the current LAB member.

Annex 2 is an attempt to show the areas on a map taken from the internet. The boundaries shown in green are the BDA regions as they are now. The boundaries shown in red are the boundaries of the Government Regions.

Annex 3 is a map, prepared by Jean Hutchins, showing the Local Associations/Support Groups in each existing BDA LAB region.

Annex 4 is a map, prepared by Jean Hutchins, showing the Local Associations/Support Groups in each of the Government regions.
There are some particular points to note.

1. The South East and North West regions become very large.

• The South East would move from having 7 groups to having 14 (0r 16) groups; this depends on whether the Jersey and Guernsey groups are transferred – they are included for different purposes in the Diocese of Winchester in Hampshire.


• The North West would move from having 6 groups to having 15, and would stretch from the southern edges of Cheshire to the Scottish border.
2. The two BDA areas in Greater London would merge to become one (see 5 below).
3. All of these presently have 2 members on LAB.
4. One member of LAB (Denise Taylor) would no longer have an area to represent because the area she presently represents would be divided between the South East Region, and the East of England Region.
5. This suggests three possible solutions:
a. Greater London should continue to have 2 representatives, and Denise would join Jean Hutchins in representing the South East Region; or
b. Denise would transfer to representing the (presently vacant) East of England Region, Trevor Hobbs would transfer to represent the South Eastern Region with Jean Hutchins and Greater London would reduce to 1 representative; or
c. Greater London Region would retain 2 members and a new representative would be appointed for either the South East Region or for the East of England Region.
6. The North West Region presently has Jeff Hughes and Joan Flannery as representatives but would also gain the whole of Cumbria. It would have to be asked whether that was too large an area for 2 members.”

Part 2 – Membership proposal to join Local Dyslexia Associations (LDAs) and Support Groups (DSGs) and act as one with the BDA.

1. Judi Stewart outlined the proposal to merge LDAs and DSGs with representation from both ‘Groups’ on the Management Board through the Local Associations Board (LAB). Under this proposal:-

BDA brand would be franchised to the ‘Group’ with jointly agreed rules and conditions;

Groups would be independent of the BDA but linked by common objectives, goals and brand;

Existing and new ‘Groups’ maintain or gain charitable status, if they wish;

The BDA would work towards centralised membership with the LDAs and DSGs.

2. Those attending the meeting received the Local Groups Review background paper explaining the current differences and similarities between LDAs and DSGs.

3. Judi explained that if members ultimately agreed to the proposal, there would be a step by step process of change.

4. Judi outlined the following timetable for change:

A small group will be set up to draw up the detailed proposal;

Between now and the AGM, there will be consultation with LDAs and DSGs through the LAB;

A “fleshed out” proposal will be put to members at the AGM in November 2008;

Steps from there would depend on members agreement to the proposal.

5. Arran Smith, Young representative on the LAB, went on to argue the case for change:

5.1 To bring all LDA and Support groups under one banner , ‘franchised’ –

• Using the BDA logo
• To have a brand
• To have one image
5. Available Screening methods
• To be one
• To promote dyslexia
• To be and to act the BDA Vision
• To be heard
• To be “your Local Dyslexia Association”

6. Arran went on to explain why it is important to work as one:-

• Image
• Brand
• Purpose
• Statistics
• Campaigning
• Support
• Knowledge
• To be there for dyslexic people

7. Arran outlined some of the suggested criteria for ‘Groups’:-

• Operate exclusively as a charity with charity objectives
,
• Have a constitution,
• Support BDA objectives
,
• Have a minimum of 5 members
• Have a minimum of 3 trustees
• Define geographic area covered
• Have an LAB representative

Group work – Consideration of both parts of the Membership proposal

1. Those attending the Convention were divided into 4 groups; each group was asked to consider both parts of the membership proposal, considering particularly:

• What do you like about the proposal?
• What don’t you like about the proposal?
• What suggestions do you have to make the BDA/LDA/DSG more effective?
• What support do LDAs/DSGs need?
• What can we share with each other?
• What name and what criteria is needed to form a ‘BDA Group’
.

2. After 40 minutes of group work, the individual groups fed back to the full meeting. A summary of the feedback from each group is given below.
Group 1

1) Regions – no objections

2) Criteria for new groups:

• Merger of LDAs and DSGs result in better national coverage
• BDA to help Local Groups to find funding
• Current constitution says it is local dyslexia organisations which determine the criteria for new groups: problems with some of the critiera – only joining criteria, 2 members/2 trustees?

3) Branding:

• Need Risk Assessment for BDA and existing LDAs/DSGs as there are risks to both sides.
• Possible undermining of local groups – BDA holding them back.
• Logo needs to be more modern – more “street”, less corporate. Should be more “visual”.

4) Common ground:

• fundraising information sharing
• filtering from BDA to regions

.

Group 2

• Regions – no objections
• Very positive about membership proposal
• Strengthens links from grass roots to BDA family
• Inclusive
• Adds kudos and recognition to the local groups
• Strengthen by numbers the BDA position

The group felt it important to protect the organisation from rogue groups/individuals.
There were also concerns about administration issues – filing accounts with BDA as well as Charity Commission.

Group 3

Liked :

• Geographic shift
• Concept of merging DSGs and LDAs

Concern:

• Proportion of representation
• Use of logo with local name

Worry:

• Defining the geographical area the group covers

Want:

• More contact with LAB rep
• More networking opportunities

Group 4

1) Geographical regions – seems a good idea in principle. Need to know who is/will be the LAB rep and what they do. 2) Broader membership proposal is a good idea; it should:

• beef up professionalism and knowledge,
• the organisation would be seen to be more cohesive
• the BDA would be in partnership with its local groups
.

3) Do not like word “franchise”; it implies financial implications. 4) Concern about criteria to join.

3. Judi Stewart concluded the feedback session by:

• noting the general consensus of those present to the change in LAB regions in line with Government regions. She reported that this would now be taken to the Management Board on 26 June to seek their agreement to the change;
• noting the general agreement to the broader membership proposal to merge LDAs and DSGs. This would now be discussed in detail by a working group with representation from the LAB and Management Board. A more detailed proposal would then be put to the BDA members for agreement at the AGM on 15 November 2008.

‘SPOT Your Potential – Kevin Thomas, Lucid. A preview of a new on-line screening tool to be launched in July 2008.

1. Kevin Thomas, Managing Director of Lucid Research Ltd introduced himself and gave some background information about Lucid and its products.

• The core team of Lucid operated at a partnership prior to company’s incorporation as Lucid Research Limited in 1995. Lucid is made up from university researchers, psychologists and educational software developers. The team carried out a ground breaking 5 year prospective study where 27 new computerised tests were developed to predict future literacy (and maths) difficulties and identify those individuals who have dyslexia. This study led to the creation of Lucid’s first product called CoPS (Cognitive Profiling System).


• Lucid’s Research Director is Dr. Chris Singleton who is a Chartered Psychologist and senior lecturer in educational psychology. He has been a member various influential steering committees including the British Psychological Society’s (BPS) Test Standards, and he chaired the National Working Party Report on Dyslexia in Higher Education 1999.


• Lucid has 11 main UK language products and produces programs that offer something new to the marketplace. Lucid has been pioneering the field since the early nineties.


• Lucid’s products have been developed in several other languages including Swedish, Norwegian, Italian, Arabic and Dutch.


• As researchers and developers Lucid can meet individual localisation requirements and has a great deal of experience working with professional partners from commerce, academia and education.


• Lucid’s products comply with the British Psychological Society’s Test Standards for Computer Based Assessment
.

2. Lucid’s core product range includes:

• Memory Improvement (4 -11 yrs) - improves memory skills, attention and concentration


• Reading & Listening Comprehension Improvement (7-14) - improves thinking skills, reading speed and vocabulary


• Baseline Assessment (4 - 5 ½ yrs) - literacy, maths, communications, social skills


• Ability Assessment (4 – 16 yrs) - non-verbal & verbal reasoning plus general conceptual ability


• Cognitive Profiling & Diagnostic Assessment


• Memory, phonics & phonological awareness, reading, spelling, ability - used to personalise learning, identify LD / Dyslexia (4 -16 yrs)


• Screening for Visual Stress in Reading (8 -16 yrs) - Aka Irlen Syndrome


• Dyslexia Screening (4 - adult)


• Quick screening – including www.SPOT-Your-Potential.com

3. Why identify dyslexia?

• Incidence of 10% of the population. Well known implications throughout personal life, education and work. Issues of self-perception, self-esteem, anxiety, shame, guilt, and frustration. Many people would withdraw and act defensively or would appear truculent and aggressive.


• The National Working Party Report on Dyslexia in Higher Education (1999) identified that around half of people with dyslexia at university were identified at university not prior to this.


• There will be many adults who have dyslexia but are unaware of it. Many people with dyslexia show great skills and competencies in other areas.


• To alter self-perception and encourage self-belief in new ways.


• To better understand difficulties and ways of managing these whilst maximising the prospect of reaching the individual’s potential. Opening up the world.


• The DDA describes a disabled person as anyone “with a physical or mental impairment which has a substantial and long-term adverse effect upon his or her ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities”. Some people with dyslexia would meet this criteria and others probably would not. Once it is established and the employer is aware of this, the employer (with more that 15 employees) must not discriminate against that person. Care must be taken not to unfairly disadvantage that person – covering application forms, interviews, tests, terms of employment, promotion, transfer, training, benefits, dismissal or redundancy. Furthermore, the employer is obliged to make “reasonable adjustments” to reduce any substantial disadvantage. An example might be not to ask the person with dyslexia to take notes, or write a reference manual. It is not mandatory to inform an employer (unless specifically asked) but if deliberately concealed during the job application process and it became evident later, the employer may not be under an obligation to make reasonable adjustments.

4. What is screening?


4.1 Diagnostic assessment

• Interview covering educational and life history is normal part of the assessment process. Emotional factors would normally be discussed including anxieties and avoidance behaviours. Testing is centred around areas of expected deficit – phonological processing, working memory, sequencing and visuo-motor skills.


• Assessments would also tend to include attainment measures such as reading and spelling. A normal assessment would include measuring intellectual ability. This has implications for professional potential and there is an important counselling role here. Discrepancies are normally identified between the predicted potential and the actual achievement. Strengths and relative strengths may also be identified as part of this process.

4.2 Screening

• Origins come from screening, or separating out, coal from stones using a wire mess. It was accepted that this screening was not perfect and so some stones remained with the coal and some coal ‘slipped through the net’. Screening is now widely used within medicine and increasingly so within education. Screening should be seen as a probabilistic measure where an ‘at risk’ quotient is given, or a probability of group membership is provided. It is very important that all types of misclassifications as well as correct true classifications are taken into consideration.

• There are two types of correct true classifications – ‘true positives’ and ‘true negatives’.


• There are two types of misclassifications – ‘false positives’ and ‘false negatives’.


• You should look at all four accuracy rates (true positive rate, true negative rate, false positive rate, and false negative rate) for a comprehensive consideration of the device.


• However, educational and psychological research often follows the medical model which focuses on two aspects, namely sensitivity and specificity.


• The term ‘sensitivity’ quantifies how well the test accurately predicts those that have the ‘condition’ – in our case how accurately the test identifies people with dyslexia. Sensitivity is the number of true positives divided by the number of true positives plus the number of false negatives. In other words the number of dyslexics that the test identified out of the total number of dyslexics. In medical usage a high sensitivity is required when early treatment is crucial or the disease is infectious.


• The term ‘specificity’ quantifies how well the test accurately identifies those without the ‘condition’ - in our case how accurately the test identifies the non-dyslexics. Specificity is the number true negatives divided by the number of true negatives plus the number of false positives. In other words the number of non-dyslexics that the test identified out of the total number of non-dyslexics. In medical usage a high specificity is required when treatment is harmful or expensive.

4.3 The main differences between diagnostic and screening

• Diagnostic is relatively costly and time consuming.


• Diagnostic is less available often with restricted tests and requiring specialists to carry out the assessment.

5. Available Screening methods

• Normally a combination of interview and / or questionnaire.


• May include assessment of literacy


• DAST


• Study Scan & Quick Scan


• Amidyslexic


• Spot-Your-Potential

6. Accuracy of Screening systems

• Kevin drew attention to the fact that unfortunately there are not many studies that quantify accuracy comprehensively or even at all.


• Kevin also drew attention to the fact that many ‘Gold Standard’ assessments used may also be subject to variation or error.


• Improving the rate of false positives generally means that the rate of false negatives worsens and vice versa.


• Kevin illustrated this by quoting the Harrison and Nichols 2005 study.


• It is important to consider more than sensitivity and specificity alone. Another example showed sensitivity at 80%, specificity at 96% and yet 33% of the positive predictions were inaccurate.


• These examples emphasise the importance of considering all four accuracy measures, namely true positives, true negatives, false positives and false negatives.

7. The benefits of computerised assessment

• Speedier administration (especially if adaptive)


• Standardised administration


• Less training of administrators required


• Assessment private and non-threatening


• No recording or marking


• Results available instantly


• Improved accuracy of measurement


• Labour and cost saving


• Can assess large numbers

8.

www.SPOT-Your-Potential.com online screener. Kevin went on to demonstrate some of the elements of the ‘Spot-your-potential’ screening tool. He indicated that it was based on the successful ‘LADS’ and ‘LADS Plus’ tools and was friendly and non-threatening. Kevin illustrated the various screens and showed some examples of the report results produced using the tool. His examples included the graphs and results of individuals both at high and low risk of dyslexia.

9.

Kevin reminded the audience that ‘Spot’ is intended as a first step and can be used by the public to screen themselves in the comfort of their own homes. It was hoped that the screening tool would be available to “purchase” on the BDA website in late July.

‘Project Success’: an update on the BDA WEFO project – Joanne Gregory, BDA Quality Mark Manager and former WEFO Project Manager

1. Joanne began by outlining the objectives of Project Success:

• To enhance the educational experience of 1600 young people aged between 13 and 19 across all Objective 1 areas of Wales;
• Focusing on those who are disenfranchised with their learning environments as a result of a Specific Learning Difficulty;


• Working collaboratively with stakeholder organisations in providing an ‘added value’ component to the learning experience of the target group;


• Supporting beneficiaries in helping them achieve optimum success from their education, training and support programmes.

The project was funded through the European Social Fund (E.S.F.) It operated in 41 learning centres varying from schools, Pupil Referral Units, Further Education Colleges and Alternative Curriculum Providers. These 41 learning centres were drawn from 15 of the 22 Local Authorities in Wales. The project recruited 1654 beneficiaries , of which 1561 left the project having achieved a successful outcome.

2. Joanne went on to outline some of the project resources:

2.1 The Dyscovery Profiling tool. This computer based screening tool was designed by professionals at the Dyscovery Centre in University Wales Newport. It enabled the project personnel to identify young people at risk of difficulties in:

Reading and Spelling

Social and Communication

Attention and Concentration

Organisation and Co-ordination

2.2 ‘Roots to Success’. Using this computer based tool, the young person with difficulties and any of the areas identified in 2.1 above, could then be given ideas and strategies on how to help themselves in any of the following areas:

• School


• Home
• Workplace


• Further Education

3. Still under the heading of project resources, Joanne went on to give examples of some of the software resources available to help the young people on the project, such as ‘Mindful’ (Concept Mapping Software), ‘Claroread’ and Typing Instructor Software. Joanne also explained that young people at the learning centres could also under take ‘Open College Network Courses’ (O.C.N.) which helped them to develop their skills and confidence in a number of areas.
4. Joanne explained that at the end of the project, those learning centres that had participated in Project Success were left with both the tools and staff trained to use the resources so that young people could continue to be helped and supported.
5. Joanne concluded her talk by summarising one of the many success stories of the project; “Stephen was a student who was introverted and with poor self-esteem and body image. He reluctantly took part in the Social and Communication Skills O.C.N. but once started, never looked back. It was lovely to see him gain in confidence as the weeks went by . . . Stephen left to go to college to further his education in I.T.”

Updated 3 July 2008