Described are the history of the study of language disabilities, briefly outlining the work of Samuel Orton, Judson Herrick, Adolph Meyer, and Paul Schilder; Lauretta Bender's development of the Bender Visual Motor Gestalt Test; and the basic principles of language disorders, including familial patterns, maturation lag, plasticity, and nonfixated…

This paper examines the influence of Norman Geschwind's model of connectionism, in which complex functions are built up by connecting primary areas in the brain, and notes his studies of the effects of disconnection on dyslexic individuals. Connectionist-based behavioral studies are reviewed, focusing on intracortical association connections and…

This literature-based review examines the relationship between the acquisition of segmental awareness and the acquisition of alphabetic literacy. Cited studies show that the segmental analysis ability of most dyslexics is very poor and suggest one factor may be related to the conscious representation of speech on which the analytic capacity…

Writing readiness theories and the evolution of writing styles are reviewed, noting the strengths and weaknesses related to the special needs of dyslexic or learning-disabled students. Also discussed are the Children's Handwriting Evaluation Scale and its counterpart for college students, which provide objective measures of rate and quality of…

Studies with Nootropic psychoactive drugs (such as Piracetam) suggest that Piracetam lacks significant side effects; promotes memory and learning; and improves the reading ability of dyslexics, possibly by directly affecting the left-brain hemisphere. Results are contrasted with studies showing the lack of effectiveness of intensive teaching.…

Because visual short-term memory deficits are common in children with reading problems, a series of experiments were reviewed which examined the role of phonological processes in short-term memory. Results suggest that both developmental and individual differences in verbal memory span are related to efficient phonological processes. (Author/DB)

The paper discusses problems with traditional definitions of dyslexia and reviews research that suggests a more comprehensive definition, viewing dyslexia as a developmental language disorder that involves a deficit in phonological processing. The disorder is seen as manifesting itself in various phonological difficulties as well as in a specific…

Genetic research has shown that dyslexia is familial, substantially heritable, and heterogeneous in its genetic mechanisms. Evidence also supports the view that the primary symptom in dyslexia is a deficit in the phonological coding of written language, a symptom that appears to be heritable. (Author/JDD)