Causes of dyslexia
On our page Causes of dyslexia we describe in detail all possible causes that lead to the development of the problems in the 1st Social factors: Causes in the family Causes in the school 2. Constitutional causes:
These are all causes that can be considered on a genetic, physical or psychological level for the development of dyslexia. 1. social factors: 2. constitutional causes: These are all causes that can lead to the development of dyslexia on a genetic, physical or psychological level.
- Causes in the family
- Causes in the school sector
The diagnosis of dyslexia is made by a psychologist or child and adolescent psychiatrist.
Various tests are performed for this purpose. These include a standardized reading/spelling test, a neurological and possibly an internal medicine examination, a sight and hearing test, motor function tests and an assessment of the child’s emotionality, personality and behavior. In addition, the reading and spelling weakness is often compared with intelligence, by means of an intelligence test.
A so-called discrepancy diagnosis is made, which means that the child has a significantly lower reading and writing performance than would be expected based on the existing intelligence. On the basis of these tests, a disorder-specific therapy plan is drawn up for the affected child. A test for dyslexia is carried out by a doctor for child and adolescent psychiatry or a child and adolescent psychotherapist.
Another test option is offered by a social pediatric center. Testing is particularly relevant if parents want to apply for compensation for the disadvantages of their child. According to the Federal Association for Dyslexia, the following three areas are examined in a child’s testing.
The first area deals with the assessment of school performance and learning status. These include: In the second area, the overall development and subsequent problems are assessed. These include: In the last sub-area, the general conditions and external factors are assessed.
The type of school and the quality of teaching, the number of class or school changes, school motivation and the family situation play a decisive role.
- Level of performance
- Sheet music
- Reading comprehension
- Reading accuracy
- Reading speed
- Spelling
- And intelligence diagnostics that is as free of language as possible.
- Language and motor development
- Visual and auditory performance
- Attention
- Concentration
- Social behaviour
- Mental stress and psychosomatic complaints, such as stomach or headaches.
There are various tests for dyslexia that are tailored to the child’s age and the possible level of schooling. However, it should be noted that there is no test that diagnoses dyslexia exactly, but only tests that indicate the strength of the symptoms.
In summary, the different tests always test one of the following three areas or a combination of them: for this reason, there are many different tests on the market. There are already tests for preschoolers, such as the Bielefeld screening, which is designed to detect at-risk children at an early stage. The difficulties that dyslexia brings with it are often particularly noticeable in elementary school, and many tests are therefore tailored to primary school children.
From the second grade onwards, for example, the Hamburg writing test provides a good insight into the developmental status of speech and writing. A standardized test that examines spelling performance and is frequently used is the Salzburg spelling test. In addition to tests for primary school pupils, tests for grades 5 to 8 have also been developed.
For even older test persons the so-called adult tests exist. Only one test corresponding to the age should be carried out in order not to falsify results.
- Spellability
- Readability
- Intelligence.
