How To Teach Dyslexics Foreign Language

My son is not studying a second language at school. Due to the fact that he has a language-based learning disability, he is entitled to a waiver. Having grown up with dyslexic family members and seen the difficulty they faced in learning a second language, I have supported the view that it would be in his best interest to forego that course of study. Lately though, I have begun to experience a change of heart.

Many colleges require foreign language study. According to this article featured on about.com, competitive colleges require at least two years of foreign language classes. Some require three or four years.

My son is only in the sixth grade. I am not concerned with his college admission at this point. The reality is, however, that he will need to take a foreign language. Given that the acquisition of his primary language was more challenging for him due to his learning profile, a foreign language no doubt will present similar challenges. Once more, if he lacks early exposure to a foreign language, will those challenges become more pronounced relative to his peers who have benefited from several years of foreign language study prior to entering high school?

My husband, who is European, has never been comfortable with the waiver. He maintains that in today’s world, a second language is an important asset. I understand his perspective, yet at the same time, I also have wanted to keep my son’s school experience a positive and rewarding one. Up to this point, I have maintained that the study of a second language would negatively impacts his self perception as a learner.

The reality is that little support exists for non-traditional learners in foreign language study. While schools now seem to well understand that some children need added support in reading, writing, and mathematics, foreign language does not seem to warrant similar support. Although my child has a language-based learning disability, he is now a proficient reader due to the fact that he has benefited from phonics-based instruction. His writing too is beginning to improve due to the techniques his teachers are using. As a result, he is doing well in school and has strategies to cope with his challenges in language arts. Even more importantly, his self-perception as a learner is improving. He is beginning to accept that he is smart despite his non-traditional learning style.

Despite those successes, he still faces big challenges when it comes to foreign-language study. For one, research on the best methods of foreign-language instruction is far less prevalent than research for other fields of study. After some work, I was put in touch with Dr. Judit Kormos, a researcher and senior lecturer in Linguistics and English language at Lancaster University. One of her areas of study has been on language learners with special educational needs. She kindly directed me to her helpful article on “Dyslexia and language teaching” which appeared in Melting Pot, The Journal of IATEFL Hungary. In it, Kormos maintains that many of the methods used to instruct dyslexic children in reading and other disciplines need to be utilized in foreign-language instruction. Among them are specific multi-sensory suggestions and the opportunity for in-class practice. She, of course, lists these suggestions with the caveat that no two dyslexic learners are the same.

But the challenge, as I see it, is that foreign language teachers often don’t seem to be trained in these methods. In my own search for tutors and specialists to contact to list on mykidsupport.com, I have yet to find a language tutor trained specifically in these methods for this population– a seemingly obvious need. Once more, due perhaps to that long-perceived view that a second language is non-essential (a view that colleges don’t seem to share), schools seem disinclined to allocate resources to remedial support in foreign-language study.

So, what’s a parent to do? I’ve decided that my son will take a foreign language next year. He may struggle and when he does, I will do my best to ensure he gets support in some form, beginning with alerting his teacher to his learning style. My main concern will be his confidence when it comes to his perception of himself as a learner. Whether his teachers, his school, and indeed perhaps even the tutoring community, are equipped to support that mission, I don't know. Time will tell.

November 12, 2009

(Author Elizabeth Wilcox is founder of mykidsupport.com, author of The Mom Economy (Berkley, 2003) and a longtime journalist focused on parenting, children and women's issues.)