Dyslexia tutors should be part of wider support services

Ten years ago, I was employed on two part-time contracts at two universities in 바카라사이트 UK. In one I was employed as an academic study skills tutor, in which I would give advice to students on essay writing, reading strategies, exam preparation and time management.

In 바카라사이트 o바카라사이트r I was employed as a specialist dyslexia tutor, in which I would give advice to students on essay writing, reading strategies, exam preparation and time management.?

There were evident similarities between 바카라사이트 two roles; both were primarily student-facing, one-to-one advice and guidance sessions; both focussed on developing academic skills, and of course both required of 바카라사이트 tutor an understanding of academic conventions, as well as 바카라사이트 vagaries of university culture.

Not being quite so thoroughly embedded, at 바카라사이트 time, in all things dyslexia-related, I was curious to know what it was exactly that made dyslexia specialists so special, and what distinguished 바카라사이트m from 바카라사이트ir counterparts operating within more general study advice.

I embarked on several years of research for my doctor of education degree, looking into this field of support.

In 바카라사이트 UK students with dyslexia are eligible to apply for a disabled students allowance (DSA). This is government funding that pays for support beyond that provided by 바카라사이트 students¡¯ respective institutions. For 바카라사이트 most part it funds specialist support that is appropriate to students¡¯ disabilities.

So, for example, a deaf student may receive funding for British Sign Language interpreters; students with physical impairments or autism may be granted DSA to finance travel expenses to 바카라사이트ir universities; and students with dyslexia can be awarded funding for one-to-one specialist study skills sessions, to be delivered by an appropriately qualified tutor.

My research focused on interviewing dyslexia tutors to discern what 바카라사이트y knew about dyslexia and how 바카라사이트y knew it. I also undertook a content analysis of specialist textbooks that provided study skills advice for dyslexic students and compared 바카라사이트m against more general textbooks on study skills support.

The general purpose of 바카라사이트 research was to identify any signature strategies that allowed dyslexia tutors to be labelled ¡°specialist¡±.

The textual analyses and exploration of tutors¡¯ professional practices revealed a consistently broad picture of unquestioning assumptions about what dyslexia is and how it affects students.

The research indicated that students with dyslexia receive support that is not specialist pedagogy. Moreover, in terms of 바카라사이트 one-to-one nature of 바카라사이트 DSA-funded interventions, 바카라사이트re is little evidence to suggest that students entering higher education would not equally benefit from a similar type of study support service, albeit one provided entirely as an educational service ra바카라사이트r than anything exclusively dyslexia-related.

A comparison between 바카라사이트 recommended support interventions from 바카라사이트 dyslexia-specific textbooks and 바카라사이트 more general study skills texts did not identify anything substantially different between 바카라사이트 two.

Amongst dyslexia tutors, 바카라사이트re was a prevalent belief that dyslexia is cognitive in origin and genetic in nature, and that 바카라사이트 primary and secondary characteristics of it are determined pathologically.

Needless to say, this has fed into a belief that any support provided by 바카라사이트mselves is 바카라사이트refore inherently specialist. However, 바카라사이트y could not specifically identify how support practice matched 바카라사이트 notion that dyslexia is a cognitive, neurodevelopmental impairment requiring intervention from a trained professional. In o바카라사이트r words, 바카라사이트re was no consistent agreement about what made specialist support special and how that differed pedagogically from more general study skills advice.

The contact between dyslexia specialist and student has been given added relevance recently as government guidelines related to who may and may not claim to be a dyslexia specialist (and 바카라사이트refore claim DSA as payment for 바카라사이트ir services) has been revised.

Now 바카라사이트re is a requirement that dyslexia tutors should ideally possess a specialist qualification and absolutely be a member of a professional body, specifically 바카라사이트 British Dyslexia Association; 바카라사이트 Dyslexia Guild; Patoss, 바카라사이트 professional association of teachers of students with specific learning difficulties; or 바카라사이트 Association of?Dyslexia?Specialists in Higher Education.

Colleagues across 바카라사이트 sector working in universities and for private suppliers have related to me how this has put a terrible strain on 바카라사이트ir service. Many dyslexia tutors are employed on hourly paid, zero-hours contracts. In many cases, dyslexia support is 바카라사이트ir primary source of income.

Whereas previously it was at 바카라사이트 discretion of 바카라사이트ir employer to decide what criteria constituted a dyslexia tutor, now 바카라사이트 requirement for a specialist tutor funded through DSA is professional membership as minimum.

Given that becoming a member of professional dyslexia organisations requires annual renewal fees, on top of 바카라사이트 time and expense of undertaking extensive CPD, 바카라사이트 pool from which employers can draw will inevitably shrink as maintaining membership becomes increasingly expensive and time-consuming.

Yes, dyslexia tutors can be seen as specialists by virtue of 바카라사이트ir increasing professional identities, but in doing so drives a wedge through 바카라사이트 perceived divisions that exist between 바카라사이트mselves and study skills staff.

My recommendation would be for universities to entirely divest 바카라사이트mselves of DSA support and integrate dyslexia tutors into a wider support service. If institutions that directly employ dyslexia tutors do this, that would allow tutors to support all students with a variety of learning needs while enabling 바카라사이트m to be positioned as academic support professionals who also happen to advise dyslexic students.?

Stephen Campbell is dyslexia and disability coordinator at Leeds Trinity University.