July 15, 2008

Dyslexia Research…catching up with Ronald D. Davis?

Listen to audio here

When I first received the call from Laura Clarizio, a national news correspondent wanting to interview me for a story on dyslexia, I was thrilled to have the opportunity to share my knowledge…in hopes of shining some new and different light on how people perceive it.

She told me that there was some new dyslexia research that had been done at Boston Children’s Hospital, dealing with auditory processing and fMRIs that tracked how the dyslexic brain was processing when dyslexic children listened to fast-changing sounds. This was very interesting to me, as one of the common diagnoses I see in clients is “auditory processing disorder.”

Of course, I signed on right away – and, with her interest in interviewing a dyslexic child as well, I invited my youngest son, Jake, to come along! Equipped with lapel microphones, bright lighting, and filming equipment, Jake and I were interviewed for about 30 minutes. Despite most of our interview ending up on the cutting room floor, it was fun to be involved in a story such as this.

Although New England Dyslexia Solutions is not affiliated with any of the research in this news clip, the fact that the technology shows that “the brain is very plastic and so the brain learn[s] and reconnect[s] and builds a new network” is a giant step toward understanding how dyslexia can be corrected. Dyslexia is not a permanent “neurological disorder” – instead the brain can re-route itself when given proper stimulation.

In the same way, it is our belief that continued use of the Davis® Orientation Counseling technique (as outlined in The Gift of Dyslexia) opens new neural pathways which reconnect and build effective networks that enable clients to correct their perception.

Davis Dyslexia Association International (DDAI) is “on the record” for being open for researchers to use the same fMRI technology to see how the Orientation Counseling affects the brain’s wiring. Anyone interested in conducting such a study could contact DDAI directly at ddai@dyslexia.com.

How the mind works with the brain’s wiring is a key piece of the puzzle that science has yet to grasp a hold of. However, recent articles are showing that researchers are now looking into how attention, focus, and the mind’s eye affect the brain and a person’s ability to perceive accurately…something that Ron Davis has been talking about for almost 20 years! See the following exciting articles recently posted on the news wire:

'Mind's Eye' Influences Visual Perception (Medical News Today—July, 2008)

If you have read Ron Davis’ The Gift of Dyslexia, this article will make perfect sense to you! It is very exciting to see the scientific and medical community beginning to study the effects of the mind’s eye, imagination, visual imagery, and perception as part of the equation!

As the article states:

“Letting your imagination run away with you may actually influence how you see the world. New research from Vanderbilt University has found that mental imagery--what we see with the 'mind's eye'--directly impacts our visual perception.”

Read the article here.

Research is seeking what Davis already has…!

Attention class
Paying attention is a more important skill than you might think - and new evidence suggests it can be taught (The Boston Globe—June 29, 2008 )

Since opening the Reading Research Council in 1982, Davis Dyslexia Association International has been demonstrating that attention and focus skills CAN be effectively taught and used by people of all ages.

As this article states:
“If focus skills can be groomed, as research has begun to hint, the important next question is whether, and how, attention should be integrated into education. Will attention become a 21st-century "discipline," a skill taught by parents, educators, even employers? Already a growing number of educators are showing interest in attention training, mostly through the practice of meditation in the classroom.”
Read the article here.

It is my hope that science will continue down the path of researching more than just the physical elements of dyslexia and catch up with Ron Davis, a true pioneer in the field of learning! As Thom Hartmann, author of Attention Deficit Disorder: A Different Perception, and many other top selling books has said,


"Ron Davis is a revolutionary and profound thinker and has discovered what history will record as one of the great insights in the fields of learning and how the mind works."

I have to agree…!

For more information on the Davis Dyslexia Correction Program or New England Dyslexia Solutions, visit http://www.ne-dyslexia.com/, email karen@ne-dyslexia.com, or call 978-337-7753.

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