5442: Dyslexia Videos - "Cracking the Code" and "Black, Male, and Dyslexic" by Jill Marie Williams

"Cracking the Code"

lubarsky7 — 2023-10-09 12:46:02 UTC

I wonder how many people are aware of the association between people who are incarcerated and who struggle with dyslexia. I had no idea about this association prior to watching this video, and I think it is crucial that this awareness is raised, so that people can be given the supports that they need.

Synthesizing the two videos,

lubarsky7 — 2023-10-09 12:51:23 UTC

I notice that in both videos there is a common thread of people misunderstanding what dyslexia really is, and the consequences of these misconceptions. A student in "Cracking the Code" talks about feeling stupid on account of her dyslexia, and there is a misunderstanding that the disability ties to intelligence. Deon Butler, in "Black, Male, and Dyslexic", talks about being labeled as a "bad kid" early on, because when he would try to answer questions in class and students would laugh, he would get in trouble. The consequences of this serious mislabeling led him down paths of bad behavior, and so being diagnosed with dyslexia at age 28 was life-altering.

Synthesis of the 2 videos

2023-10-09 16:26:02 UTC

One thing I noticed about both videos is the difference between stories that are being told. One was a white woman giving her story and a lot of the language surrounding her experience was that she struggled and felt like she couldn't learn. She was able to go on and help a study on students with dyslexia. She never was labeled as a "bad kid" and instead said she was and "intellectual geeky kid" when she was younger and Deon Butler spoke about when growing up was his struggle with feeling like he was causing problems for himself and grandmother when he really was just trying to learn. I think when talking about a student who may have a disability, it is important to keep in mind a students entire life and situation rather than just assume that these children are just acting out or 'don't want to learn'. It sounds like Deon Butler really had to reshape his whole life around dealing with his dyslexia whereas now we can try and give students to get the support that they need.

"Black, Male, and Dyslexic"

2023-10-09 16:31:28 UTC

I think that if we can try and look at children who are struggling we can never just label them as trouble-makers or unable to do this thinking that they don't just want to. I think parent teacher conferences and building a community with the family and the teachers and having that line of communication open would have helped Deon a lot when he was younger. If someone would have just said the struggles he had at home and at school somebody may have along the line put the two together and his dyslexia could have been treated and helped him to "win" as he puts it.

"Cracking the Code"

clark4024_ — 2023-10-09 23:15:25 UTC

I wonder why there isn't more legislation, screening, or resources in place for dyslexia in students if studies show that it is very prevalent amidst our students. I would think that knowing that it is so common (~ 1 in 5) and that there is a correlation between dyslexia and incarceration, that would influence the educational system to make changes throughout all stages of learning to better identify, accommodate, and teach those students.

Synthesizing the two videos

taft36 — 2023-10-11 19:40:11 UTC

One thing that I was thinking about as I was watching the videos is the connection between labeling students with undiagnosed dyslexia as "bad kids" and the severe long-term effects those labels have. In "Cracking the Code", they discuss how a large group of incarcerated individuals are dyslexic. I was thinking about this in connection with the fact that Black men are disproportionately represented in the incarceration system and the school-to-prison pipeline, and I'm curious to know more about our labeling of students with undiagnosed dyslexia as "bad" in relation to incarceration rates.

Deon mentioned how the deficit mindset displayed by his teachers impacted his view of himself. He saw himself as only being the class clown and not incredibly capable of being a "good kid". Similarly, Mackenzye, one of the girls at the Louisiana Key Academy discussed how she was viewed as "stupid" and "dumb" by her peers, and how she started to believe those things to be true about herself.

My biggest takeaway from these two videos is the importance of maintaining an asset mindset for our students; when they hear consistent negative comments about their worth and abilities, they start to believe it, which can lead to problems in the future. There are a lot of misconceptions surrounding dyslexia, and it is our job as educators to make sure we are not perpetuating these misconceptions in the classroom and are actively learning to dismantle them.

"Cracking the Code"

taft36 — 2023-10-11 19:53:29 UTC

As I was watching this video, there were several mentions of private tutors and the importance of free, public education for those with dyslexia. It seems that many public schools lack the proper resources needed to support students with dyslexia, and parents must turn to outside sources that cost money to use. I'm curious to know more about free resources that schools can use to help serve their students with dyslexia and the effectiveness of these resources.

Synthesis

corbinmn99 — 2023-10-11 21:55:55 UTC

What I noticed about the two videos was the misconception of dyslexia. In both - there was a conception that failure to read meant the student was not trying or was not as smart as they should be. In Cracking the Code they mention how in those without dyslexia "reading skills mirror their IQs, with dyslexic readers whose reading skills don't," but when teachers perceive this initially they believe it is a lack of the student and they get held back. This gives a perception to the student that they are falling behind. A similar situation in Black, Male, and Dyslexic Deon Butler talks about how he did not perceive himself as smart or intelligent because teachers did not understand what was going on with him and rather than addressing what could be a barrier to him succeeding, they assumed he was just a "class clown." In both cases, the students were assumed to be poor performing on their own accord rather than there being a barrier they cannot escape on their own. Talking to students, knowing them, and digging into what can be done may have helped in both cases here.

Think, Crack the Code

shaffer709_ — 2023-10-11 22:57:48 UTC

One thing that I thought about the Crack the Code video was the disappointing nature of labeling students with dyslexia as unintelligent. The one girl saying she thought she was dumb and stupid because she could not read the same way that everybody else could was just heartbreaking. It is just so disappointing to hear that people think because somebody struggles with reading, which is just one aspect of learning, that tnhey are labelled as less than everybody else.
Then once you bring in the fact presented in the video that half of the prisoners screened in that test had dyslexia makes me think about how we need to be there for our stduents. We need to be positive supporters of all of our students because I bet some of these people in prison were told their whole life that they were not enough and in school felt that they were dumb and did not get any help which led to different problems in their lives and eventually to crime. The researcher also said that we can reduce the likelihood of these crimes by helping to give students the resources they need.
One solution in the classroom that was presented was to have students be screened for dyslexia in kindergarten which I think is a great first step. Looking at this though I'd still be afraid that we could recognize dyslexia in a student but then not give them the proper resources. Or what about the students who recently moved to the US and were not able to get a screening before. I think that we should provide that as a resource to any incoming student from outside of the US to give them the best chance to thrice as well.

Synthesis of Videos

clark4024_ — 2023-10-12 00:37:37 UTC

I noticed that both videos stress the importance of early diagnosis of dyslexia, and particularly the need for better support in the education system for all students with dyslexia. Without the proper diagnoses and support, this could result in misunderstanding and incorrect labeling of students which leads to lower educational achievement, low self perception, and in some cases, criminal behavior. The impact that teachers have on this community of students is clear, and it is vital that as teachers, we make sure the impact is a positive one.

Synthesizing

2023-10-12 15:16:52 UTC

I noticed in both videos the importance of early intervention and the lack of it. Making the connection with my inclusion class, the field of disability encompasses a broad spectrum with very little work and resources. It's important to note that things take time and lots of resources to change! However, videos like these are key components to creating change. In many circumstances, the diagnosis of dyslexia does not come until later in life, if at all. Having these casual conversations to help spread awareness is highly beneficial. Early intervention is highly valuable because it can equip students with skills to still achieve higher educational goals. As educators, seeing lower scores or failure to keep up should not signal consequences, maybe that student needs help and we should strive to set our students up for success! -Maisie Beary

2023-10-12 15:21:40 UTC

Something I kept thinking about was how we can ensure to recognize and help students with dyslexia, as I mentioned in my other post, disability resources are very scarce. While it would be ideal to have screenings and specialists, that is not the reality. Going of of this point, making the connection between (lets say all learning disabilities not just dyslexia) and incarceration. Often times, students with disabilities struggle to understand things such as sarcasm etc and will go to literal lengths and oftentimes wind up in trouble and this is part of the pipeline to mass incarceration. I wonder if school discipline systems need rebranded in general. Obviously you cant get rid of it but there is surely a better system that we can have in place to help kids learn from their mistakes but also give them chances to get back on track. Maisie B

Synthesizing the two video

shaffer709_ — 2023-10-12 21:19:06 UTC

The first thing I noticed when starting the Black, Male, and Dyslexic video was that he was labeled as a bad kid as a child just like how was shown in the Cracking the Code video. It is so disappointing to see that students who struggle with something can be labeled bad when they just might need some extra support. In my mind, every student will need extra support in some aspect of their learning at some point so we should always be optimistic about a student and not let it destroy them.
I also noticed between the two videos, how hard these students are trying to work and how little they feel they progress. The football player was saying how he was giving it his all but then learned that was not good enough for what the teachers expected of him. After they labeled him he began to take on a false identity which is similar to the Cracking the Code video where the little girl said she thought she was dumb for being dyslexic, which is how teachers and other students would have treated her.
Another aspect of the Black, Male, and Dyslexic video that related to Cracking the Code video that I noticed was how the football player was describing how he would pull the fire alarm or do other rowdy things to get attention because he couldn't read, couldn't do math, and just was not good at school. This relates to Cracking the Code because they said half of all inmates are dyslexic so maybe the people in prison were looking for attention too, and led them to do bigger and bigger things which caused problems, on top of having the feelings of not being good enough. Of course, I do not know this but it just seems sad that people are labeled as bad kids because they are dyslexic and then look to bad behaviors to get the attention that they and everybody else craves.
In general, I just noticed a lot of similarities within the videos in the behaviors of students with dyslexia and those of the educators around them. It is important for us to remember to always believe in every student and if we think a student is struggling with something we should be the ones to help or get them to somebody that can help. We need to show up for all our students all the time.

Synthesis

2023-10-13 01:27:32 UTC

I love that these two videos are put in conversation. With the Cracking the Code video, especially when they began speaking to the man who went to prison, and then Black Male and Dyslexic, it shows how prevalent and undiagnosed it can be in the Black community. This lack of diagnosis, and lack of early testing like Cracking the Code suggested, makes kids with dyslexia go through school lost, and feeling like they're worst than other than kids. Couple with this with so many kids in poverty in school who are struggling with disability, it makes sense that they fall into the negative labels that are placed on them without receiving any help. We have to do better, and we cannot deficit mindset these kids.

"Black, Male, and Dyslexic"

deeceezy76_ — 2023-10-13 01:34:08 UTC

I think it is so important to recognize what he had to say about how teachers talk about students, and the impact that can have. He is so often labeled as a bad kid, he almost inevitably was going to fall in that category. He was receiving no support, and he was being blamed for all of his struggles, I cannot imagine how frustrating that must be. I am very grateful that he was still able to become successful, but as we saw on the other video, a lot of other men cannot overcome feeling less than and like an outcast at school.

"Cracking the Code"

mretta25_ — 2023-10-14 03:02:53 UTC

This video really helped highlight the issues and common misunderstandings with dyslexia to me. It sounds like early diagnosis, along with support structures throughout all levels of education would give a student with dyslexia the best chance to succeed. I think as teachers we can try to strategize on an individual level. Hopefully I can be aware of decoding strategies when helping students more directly. I hope to create an inclusive environment for students with dyslexia in my classes. My issue is that I do not know who has dyslexia. I tried searching on my school’s websites for student information, but I am new to the school district. Out of my now 200+ students in the past 2 years, I haven’t known one student to have dyslexia, but obviously that is due to low information in my school district or a failure to communicate with the supporting staff. I will make it a goal to look into who would be in charge and hopefully I can recognize individuals that may need more of my support. I aim to have positive awareness and take proactive steps towards helping any of my students that struggle with dyslexia.

Synthesis

rubytracy1 — 2023-10-14 20:24:48 UTC

I think there are a lot of similarities in the two videos. For example, both “Cracking the Code” and “Black, Male, and Dyslexic” highlight the connection between dyslexia and students that are labeled “bad kids”. Too often, students who have dyslexia or other learning disabilities are also the ones who are labeled “troublemaker” early on in their academic career. This makes me think about asset and deficit thinking. As educators, we must try to avoid deficit thinking when it comes to our students, their intentions, and their abilities. Like we saw in Deon’s story, when a student hears something about themself over and over, they start to believe it. When we put kids in these kinds of boxes, we’re doing them an enormous disservice. This deficit mindset about students with disabilities contributes to the school-to-prison pipeline. This is something I was thinking about as I was watching the part about inmates with dyslexia in “Cracking the Code”.
Both videos also talk about what dyslexia actually is. They address the common misconceptions about the learning disability, its impact, and students who are affected by it. As teachers, we need to be informed and educated about dyslexia. For our students with dyslexia, we play a key role in helping them succeed.

“Cracking the Code”

rubytracy1 — 2023-10-14 20:33:22 UTC

Watching “Cracking the Code” made me wonder about the school-to-prison pipeline. We have talked about this pipeline in several of our classes, learning about the ways that Black students are punished (suspended/expelled) in school at a rate that’s much higher than that of their White peers. For a student whose Black and has a learning disability, like dyslexia, this experience is intensified. This also makes me think about our conversations about intersectionality, as I think about the challenges a Black dyslexic student, like Deon, must face. I wonder if there is research about how Black students with dyslexia are treated in school compared to White students with dyslexia. How can we, as educators, make sure that we’re supporting all of our students with learning disabilities?

"Cracking the Code of Dyslexia"

jkkahrmann19 — 2023-10-14 21:07:44 UTC

It was really interesting to see how reading capability has no bearing on someone's intelligence. I know that IQ is a very flawed measurement of one's intelligence, but seeing that IQ was more or less the same for those with and without dyslexia was very eye opening. I wonder if this perception of people with dyslexia as being "dumb" or "stupid" has had an effect in society perceiving Black people in much the same way, especially with the fact that such a large proportion of incarcerated individuals have dyslexia and those individuals are more than likely Black. I will get into this aspect of the two videos a bit more in my synthesis response. Overall, I thought that this video provided some interesting insights into the prevalence of dyslexia in our society, and how it might shape how people are treated.

2023-10-14 21:16:49 UTC

One of my biggest takeaways from "Cracking the Code" and "Black, Male, and Dyslexic" is just how important it is for students with disabilities to receive the interventions and accommodations that they need. I was shocked to learn just how many incarcerated people had undiagnosed dyslexia. It makes you wonder how different their lives would be if they received the necessary, proper support. Not receiving this support can leave students with disabilities feeling isolated, frustrated, and like something is just wrong with them. It would be easy for a student like this to become prone to behavioral outbursts, which would in turn further isolate them from their teachers and peers. All of this to say, I like others have said too, am beginning to notice this relationship between undiagnosed disabilities and future incidents/incarceration. Zach L

Synthesis

jkkahrmann19 — 2023-10-14 21:20:17 UTC

After watching both of these videos, I think it is pretty clear how much dyslexia and the unwillingness to diagnose it or respond to students who have it has influenced the school to prison pipeline. This "pipeline" refers to how certain children (mainly Black children) are almost setup for failure by the system. They are treated differently, disciplined differently, and because of that and environmental factors often end up in prison shortly after they are out of school (sometimes they don't even graduate). We can see from Deon Butler that dyslexia can cause a myriad of issues within and without the classroom. Behavioral issues at home and at school and poor grades meant the parent teacher conferences were just meetings where Deon was told that he was more or less a failure. He was told this so much that he began to believe it. This self fulfilling prophecy is a key part of school to prison pipeline and one that we see in both videos. Students with dyslexia have trouble with school, they are then told either explicitly or implicitly that they are "bad students", and then act out. These students often don't get diagnosed until they are already adults and they might already be in prison. I think it is pretty clear that education often fails students with dyslexia and thus contributes to the school to prison pipeline.

Synthesis

2023-10-15 00:11:06 UTC

I noticed from both videos that regardless of age or grade level students can be not diagnosed with dyslexia despite having it, which can impact them in various ways in school as well as outside of school. It is important as future teachers to look at the perspectives in these videos in order to understand how we can recognize our students and become more knowledgeable about their backgrounds and where they are coming from.
-Liam McMahon

"Cracking the Code"

2023-10-15 00:26:12 UTC

Whilst watching the video and learning the frequency of dyslexia as well how it can go undiagnosed throughout grade levels, it makes me wonder why we do not do more to test students? I also wonder if there are similar numbers to the amount of kids in juvenile detention with dyslexia as adults in prisons with dyslexia due to the school to prison pipeline.
-Liam McMahon

"Cracking the Code"

corbinmn99 — 2023-10-15 12:18:00 UTC

What I had a genuine wonder about was a couple of things. First, if we had more focus on identifying dyslexia early on in elementary school what steps could we provide to build students who struggle with dyslexia to still have them move on in their education while still learning to read. Second, by focusing on younger students with dyslexia could we start to fix one section of the school to prison pipeline that seems to be created by the inability to really read because there was a failure to identify and assist students with dyslexia rather than just push them on through the system.

Synthesis comment

2023-10-15 23:12:29 UTC

Jonathan, I agree and have some of the same thoughts on the videos. The videos highlight the real challenges faced with dyslexia and how it can lead to negative consequences in school. I believe I have observed a similar cycle of behavior issues combined with poor performance leading to low motivation in my classes. I think many of the students struggling could use support, however many schools do not have the resources or adequate detection systems in place. A few others posted about screening earlier. I do think it would be a better idea to screen earlier during elementary school, as by high school the negative feedback loop has caused too many barriers. I think some important questions to ask would be what specific policies our school districts could add to help identify students with dyslexia. As a high school teacher, I still am not aware of which of my students struggle with dyslexia. So obviously my district could benefit from better communication. I’d also want to learn more about how socioeconomic factors play into the relationship between dyslexia, education, and the school-to-prison pipeline.

"Black, Male, and Dyslexic"

jnininger23 — 2023-10-16 17:45:56 UTC

While I was watching the second video, I couldn't stop thinking about students that skip class and how it all makes sense now. For as long as I can remember, I have always said, "Why do students skip class? What else could they possibly be doing with their time?" Whenever a student would skip class (while subbing and in my student teaching placement). Now that I think about it, the students that habitually skip are the ones that seem to struggle the most with their classwork. It is very likely that they decide to skip class because they don't want to show up and feel "dumb" while all the other students seem to be excelling in their work.

Synthesizing both videos

jnininger23 — 2023-10-16 18:00:41 UTC

Something I noticed from both videos is how dyslexia is misunderstood and more complex than people tend to think. I have always been under the impression that dyslexia is just words appearing jumbled or backwards and whatnot, but in the first video I learned that there are different types of dyslexia. I also noticed between both videos that students with dyslexia are usually not getting the help they need and they are overlooked by teachers who may think they just have trouble reading, but that it will eventually improve. A quote from Deon that I really liked is, "I can read as many books as I want, but I'm still going to be dyslexic." This stood out to me because he is bringing attention to how struggling with reading and learning isn't something that fixes itself as we grow and advance in school but instead something that (if addressed properly) we learn to manage and work with in order to be successful.

Synthesizing both videos

joeypcasto — 2023-10-16 19:09:36 UTC

Something I noticed in the two videos is that there is a common theme of kids being labeled as "bad" early on because of their dyslexia, and this causing them to live according to that label. In "Cracking the Code," we see that about half the population of the prison surveyed was dyslexic, and that the individual interviewed had a hard time early on and got mixed up with bad people. In "Black, Male, and Dyslexic," Deon Butler talks about how his label also influenced him to get mixed up with the wrong people. In both videos, it is shown that there are serious consequences to assigning labels to kids early on.

"Black, Male, and Dyslexic"

joeypcasto — 2023-10-16 19:12:56 UTC

One thing I wonder as I'm watching the video, is how many people go undiagnosed that struggle with dyslexia. Deon went on for a lot of his life before he actually found out why it was difficult for him to read, so I'm wondering how many people out there are still struggling without a diagnosis, or maybe aren't necessarily struggling as much anymore but went through a lot more trouble with learning to read without understanding why. I feel like that has to be really frustrating but also relieving to find out something like that after all that time.

"Cracking the Code"

crowe276_ — 2023-10-17 00:03:18 UTC

I think that we have come a long way in understanding dyslexia and how to help those who have dyslexia, but we still have a long way to go. Before watching this video, I would have never considered how many currently incarcerated individuals have dyslexia. Growing up in a middle class family in a good community, I have never considered that students who struggle with dyslexia could turn to "the streets" or crime because they are discouraged by school and are not receiving the help they need academically. In several of our classes and our readings throughout this program, we have discussed the school-to-prison pipeline. Students with dyslexia who are not being screened for dyslexia or receiving assistance for dyslexia is feeding into the school-to-prison pipeline. Dyslexia is something that affects human beings throughout their whole lives, not just in school. It is important that young people with dyslexia, their families, and their school are made aware and can give those who need assistance with dyslexia.

Synthesizing both videos

crowe276_ — 2023-10-17 00:19:37 UTC

I notice that in both videos, dyslexia causes issues for students/people in school but also outside in the real world. In "Black, Male, and Dyslexic", Deon mentions that he was discouraged in school because of his learning disability and that it led him to act out and seek attention that he was not receiving from his teachers. Between both videos, I noticed that many young students are not being made aware that they have dyslexia and are not receiving appropriate help throughout their education. The lack of help and recognition for students with dyslexia has historically led to students having low self-esteem, being discouraged by school, being treated differently than students who are performing better in school, and has led students to act out and seek attention in ways that may deem them as a "bad kid" in Deon's case or may lead them to the school-to-prison pipeline. In both videos, there are examples of people with dyslexia that have felt like they are stupid, but in reality, dyslexia and intelligence are not related. After viewing both videos, I have noticed that dyslexia affects many people and many of those people have not received the help and recognition they deserve to be more successful in school and not led into the school-to-prison pipeline.

On another note, I remember watching Deon Butler whenever he played against Ohio State back when I was around 7-8 years old.

“Cracking the Code”

2023-10-19 04:59:27 UTC

I wonder why we aren’t doing more to help and supplement material for dyslexic students at earlier ages. In the video we see that dyslexia has diminished high schools graduation, college entry, and college graduation. We also see that over 50% of inmates are dyslexic. When the dyslexic students were interviewed their confidence was not high and you could tell they were fearful. I wonder why we aren’t screening at a younger age and doing more to help these students. Especially when we have been able to correlate the disability with so many hardships later in life.
-Josh V

Synthesizing the two videos

2023-10-19 05:16:47 UTC

One thing I noticed between the two videos is how dangerous undiagnosed dyslexia can be for young people. In “Black, Male, and Dyslexic” Deon talks about his struggles growing up with dyslexia. He often found himself running around and misbehaving getting in trouble. He knew he was doing the wrong things but this is where he felt like he belonged, even though he watched his grandmother struggle to handle all of this. In “Cracking the Code” we see how dyslexic students often struggle to graduate high school, and college. We also see that over 50% of the prison population is dyslexic and many of them were unaware of this. Dyslexia obviously has a connection with many behavioral issues students deal with when growing up. It can make students feel less than or different when they cant perform the same as other students around them. This can lead to them refusing to do the work for many reasons such as embarrassment of failing. As Deon discussed not wanting to give answers in class because people would laugh. This sets many students on a struggling path where which many dont recover. In both videos we can see this point, although in one we see the success of Deon and his overcoming. In the other we can see how many do not recover and wind up in the prison system which only hurts them more and more. Bringing me back to my wonder point of why we aren’t doing more to combat this when we can easily see these connections and correlations between behavior and dyslexia. Dyslexic students need to be seen and heard and require supplemental material. As we see in the video their ability to read does not reflect their intelligence. We must understand this and help these students as best as we can!
-Josh V

Wonder & Synthesis

2024-02-27 13:48:37 UTC

With these two sources, I wonder who many people in my school were dyslexic or had a type of reading disability and didn't tell anyone. Thinking back, I can remember who the "smart" and "dumb" kids were, but I now wonder if some of them were super intelligent, but just could not physically apply themselves in the classroom like I could.

One comment that reflects a synthesis of both videos is that those who are dyslexic are not dumb, and not receiving extra aid can lead to paths of bad behaviors and crime. This is due to wanting attention, especially in youth, because they do not receive any positive attention or praise within the classroom.

-Olivia Hawk

Cracking The Code

gabriellehornung1 — 2024-02-27 20:51:22 UTC

One thing that I wonder is what can we do as outsiders to help people with dyslexia more. Specifically when thinking about the statistics of people in prison with dyslexia. That was a huge eye-opener for me when they said they conducted a test and saw that over 50% of the people at that prison were dyslexic. What can we do and what can the prison do to support people who may have always struggled with this? I know that education in prisons is difficult as it is, but as an educator, I cannot help but wonder what we can do as English teachers to help them process this difficulty and improve their situation in life.

Gabrielle Hornung

Synthesizing the videos

2024-02-28 15:41:30 UTC

When watching both videos ("Cracking the Code" and "Black, Male, and Dyslexic") I noticed the importance it is for students with disabilities to get the accommodations needed for them to operate in the classroom. Knowing a person with dyslexia and the problems they go through to succeed in the classroom and the world. It was shocking to see how labeled they are. They are seen as bad kids due to them getting frustrated and not being able to read, making it seem they aren't willing to learn. This can leave these children feeling isolated and like they don't fit in with other kids, which can be detrimental to their development as a person and students. One of my best friends growing up was dyslexic and I know exactly the struggles they had in the classroom, fortunately, he didn't let it stop him from doing well in class. So, from personal interactions I noticed exactly how it makes someone feel.

Quinn Brown

Thinking (Black, Male, and Dyslexic)

2024-02-28 15:47:21 UTC

One thing I thought about post-video watching, was how it relates to me personally. It makes me think of why I deal with test anxiety, I do very well in most aspects of every course, and I know the information, but when it comes to the exams, everything just disappears and I am lost. It reminds me of when in the documentary students skipped class, maybe because they knew in the end that they would not do well in the class no matter how hard they tried. I can relate to this because I know I can get good grades, I just can't do well on exams no matter how much I prepare.

Quinn Brown

"Black, Male, and Dyslexic"

gabriellehornung1 — 2024-02-29 16:38:28 UTC

One thing that I noticed about this video is that it is important to make accommodations for students who need them in the classroom. We are able to see how these actions, whether small or big, are able to have a huge impact on the teaching and learning experience for students with dyslexia. I will be taking things that I have learned about from these videos and this week in class into my classroom when I am able to use these practices.

Gabrielle Hornung

Cracking the Cod

2024-02-29 20:37:33 UTC

One idea that I wondered about is, knowing the extreme prevalence of dyslexia in the US (1 in every 5 children), why are there not more developed, more integrated, more accessible options for teaching literacy and reading to dyslexic students? In my personal experience, I do not know someone who has been diagnosed with dyslexia (or at least hasn't revealed it to me). Either way, dyslexia is either highly stigmatized & people avoid discussing it, or people are not recognizing it as dyslexia and not receiving help for it!

Peyton Williams

Synthesizing the Videos

2024-02-29 20:46:59 UTC

I noticed that a sense of frustration and desperation and even loneliness permeates in students with dyslexia who are not diagnosed with it. When students are struggling with a task, like reading a story for class, that most other students have no issue with, it can be very disheartening. The children in the CBS video mentioned that they didn't realize they could love reading before being diagnosed; and in the 'Black, Male, and Dyslexic' video, not being diagnosed until his late 20s made him realize that he wasn't reaching his potential struggling through college and high school. Being diagnosed with dyslexia opens them up to their true selves and true potential.

Peyton Williams

Cracking the Code

2024-02-29 20:51:12 UTC

In this video, it discusses the possibility of doing dyslexia screenings in prisons. While I think this is a wonderful idea, I wonder that this may lead to next. Would this lead to inmates being put in classes that may help these folks overcome their learning difficulties or will it just be data that prisons have. I wonder if the data collected will be something to catalyze change or if will be something for legislators to pat themselves on the back for thinking of. I would like to imagine that there would be programs to help inmates with dyslexia while they are in prison and even after they leave.

I also wonder how the dyslexic breakdown would be based on racial background. Considering that oftentimes, young Black men fall through the cracks of the education system and eventually are pushed through the school-to-prison pipeline, I am interested if what pushed many of these Black boys into prison was their dyslexia.

Iqra Abdi

"Cracking the Code"

2024-02-29 23:48:30 UTC

I wonder what steps would need to be taken to lower the stigma of dyslexia in the academic setting. Those who struggle with dyslexia should not be treated as less than, nor should those with dyslexia believe they are incompetent or less intelligent than their peers. Both videos exemplified the lack of resources of public education for students with dyslexia, which is a significant problem considering how prevalent the condition is in youth. I also wonder if overall awareness of dyslexia could help reduce the negative stigma and self-image that dyslexic students possess.

Kenedy Moody

Synthesis

2024-03-01 00:05:53 UTC

Both videos share a relative theme surrounding dyslexia and how it impacts children behavior, depicting them as “trouble-makers” or “bad kids”. Often times, students with dyslexia are not up to the same speed in their learning process as other students, and it is important to consider their condition during their academic journey and development. As shown in both videos, children with dyslexia can be given negative labeling due to the their behavioral responses in the classroom. Many students tend to act out or misbehave not because they are “bad”, but simply due to their struggles and frustrations with learning. The outlook that parents and teachers have on their dyslexic children/student indefinitely impacts the child’s mindset and deprives them of what they truly need to be successful learners and human beings. Specifically shown in “Black, Male, and Dyslexic”, there are many victims of circumstances in terms of untreated and neglected dyslexia. Many black children have undiagnosed dyslexia and are wrongfully disciplined to combat their behavioral responses to their condition. These children are often brought up in an environment that only leads to their lack of education and proper participation in society. There is no doubt a need for awareness and dyslexia-specific programs in the public education system.

Kenedy Moody

Sythesizing two videos

2024-03-02 04:28:08 UTC

One thing that I noticed in both videos is how much socio-economic status plays in getting a dyslexia diagnosis. I think about my mom who has dyslexia but was never properly diagnosed because she did not have the resources to get a diagnosis. I noticed that both in her and many of the children and adults shown in the two vides have a terrible relationship with education because of it. And when we consider how race plays a role in SES and how Black and Brown folks are more likely to be apart of low SES communities, this means that Black and Brown students with dyslexia are even more likely to be overlooked and their issue not be taken seriously.

Iqra Abdi