I’m dyslexic. I was extremely fortunate to have inspiring teachers at school and incredibly patient parents that helped me to develop coping strategies and explore different ways of learning when I was young.

But maybe it goes some way to explaining why I surround myself with strong writers and editors, and how the odd late night typo-ridden blog posting slips through.

But it’s bollocks apparently. Dyslexia doesn’t exist according to Graham Stringer MP writing in Manchester Confidential. His belief is that it’s a fiction and the result of a shoddy education system. The story has been picked up by the BBC, The Times and Sky TV, among others. It’s an age old argument and is plainly wrong.

Stringer has made the mistake of focusing on some of the symptoms of the condition, namely poor spelling and reading difficulties, rather than the condition itself. He reckons that a return to synthetic phonetics in schools would stamp out dyslexia.

I attended a progressive primary school in the 1970s and was taught using phonetics and it helped, but it hasn’t cured me. Yes, dyslexics can learn to overcome difficulties with literacy, but that still means that they are still dyslexic.

Richard Branson, John Chambers, Charles Schwab and Ted Turner will all tell you that it isn’t a fiction. It impacts six million people in the UK. It is not related to intelligence, race or social background. And there isn’t a cure. It isn’t an illness.

Tag: dyslexia, grahamstringer