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Purpose of Review: Within the past decade tremendous advances have occurred in our understanding of dyslexia., Recent Findings: Reliable data now validate the definition of dyslexia as an unexpected difficulty in reading in an individual who has the ability to be a much better reader. That dyslexia is unexpected is now codified in US federal law (PL 115-391). Replicated studies using functional brain imaging have documented a neural signature for dyslexia. Epidemiologic, longitudinal data now demonstrate that dyslexia is highly prevalent, affecting 20% of the population, affecting boys and girls equally. These data further demonstrate that the achievement gap between dyslexic and typical readers is now evident as early as first grade and persists. Evidence-based, efficient, inexpensive screening tools now offer the possibility of universal screening to identify children at risk for dyslexia as early as first grade. Specialized schools which focus on dyslexic students provide welcoming communities, ensuring that dyslexic children will not only survive but thrive., Summary: Taken together, these findings indicate that we must act and act now to ensure that this 21st century knowledge of dyslexia is disseminated to educators, policy makers, and most of all to parents of dyslexic children., (Copyright © 2020 Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. All rights reserved.)

Identifying change at the individual level is an important goal for researchers, educators, and clinicians. We present a set of statistical procedures for identifying individuals who depart from a normative change. Using Latent Change Scores models (LCS), we illustrate how the Individual Likelihood computed from a statistical model for change (IL) and from an alternative unrestricted model (ILsat) can be used to identify atypical trajectories in situations with several measurement occasions. Using LCS and linear regression, we also show how the observed and latent change residuals can be used to identify atypical individual change between 2 measurement occasions. We apply these methods to a measure of general verbal ability (from WISC-R), from a large sample of individuals assessed every 2 years from Grade 1 to 9. We demonstrate the efficiency of these techniques, illustrate their use to identify individual change in longitudinal data, and discuss potential applications in developmental research. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).

We examine the dilemmas faced by a medical student with dyslexia who wonders whether he should "out" himself to faculty to receive the accommodations entitled by federal law. We first discuss scientific evidence on dyslexia's prevalence, unexpected nature, and neurobiology. We then examine the experiences of medical students who have revealed their dyslexia to illustrate the point that, far too often, attending physicians who know little about dyslexia can misperceive the motives or behavior of students with dyslexia. Because ignorance and misperception of dyslexia can result in bias against students with dyslexia, we strongly recommend a mandatory course for faculty that provides a basic scientific and clinical overview of dyslexia to facilitate greater understanding of dyslexia and support for students with dyslexia., (© 2016 American Medical Association. All Rights Reserved.)

Objectives: To determine if differences between dyslexic and typical readers in their reading scores and verbal IQ are evident as early as first grade and whether the trajectory of these differences increases or decreases from childhood to adolescence., Study Design: The subjects were the 414 participants comprising the Connecticut Longitudinal Study, a sample survey cohort, assessed yearly from 1st to 12th grade on measures of reading and IQ. Statistical analysis employed longitudinal models based on growth curves and multiple groups., Results: As early as first grade, compared with typical readers, dyslexic readers had lower reading scores and verbal IQ, and their trajectories over time never converge with those of typical readers. These data demonstrate that such differences are not so much a function of increasing disparities over time but instead because of differences already present in first grade between typical and dyslexic readers., Conclusions: The achievement gap between typical and dyslexic readers is evident as early as first grade, and this gap persists into adolescence. These findings provide strong evidence and impetus for early identification of and intervention for young children at risk for dyslexia. Implementing effective reading programs as early as kindergarten or even preschool offers the potential to close the achievement gap., (Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background: Functional connectivity analyses of functional magnetic resonance imaging data are a powerful tool for characterizing brain networks and how they are disrupted in neural disorders. However, many such analyses examine only one or a small number of a priori seed regions. Studies that consider the whole brain frequently rely on anatomic atlases to define network nodes, which might result in mixing distinct activation time-courses within a single node. Here, we improve upon previous methods by using a data-driven brain parcellation to compare connectivity profiles of dyslexic (DYS) versus non-impaired (NI) readers in the first whole-brain functional connectivity analysis of dyslexia., Methods: Whole-brain connectivity was assessed in children (n = 75; 43 NI, 32 DYS) and adult (n = 104; 64 NI, 40 DYS) readers., Results: Compared to NI readers, DYS readers showed divergent connectivity within the visual pathway and between visual association areas and prefrontal attention areas; increased right-hemisphere connectivity; reduced connectivity in the visual word-form area (part of the left fusiform gyrus specialized for printed words); and persistent connectivity to anterior language regions around the inferior frontal gyrus., Conclusions: Together, findings suggest that NI readers are better able to integrate visual information and modulate their attention to visual stimuli, allowing them to recognize words on the basis of their visual properties, whereas DYS readers recruit altered reading circuits and rely on laborious phonology-based "sounding out" strategies into adulthood. These results deepen our understanding of the neural basis of dyslexia and highlight the importance of synchrony between diverse brain regions for successful reading., (© 2013 Society of Biological Psychiatry Published by Society of Biological Psychiatry All rights reserved.)

Developmental dyslexia is defined as an unexpected difficulty in reading in individuals who otherwise possess the intelligence and motivation considered necessary for fluent reading, and who also have had reasonable reading instruction. Identifying factors associated with normative and impaired reading development has implications for diagnosis, intervention, and prevention. We show that in typical readers, reading and IQ development are dynamically linked over time. Such mutual interrelationships are not perceptible in dyslexic readers, which suggests that reading and cognition develop more independently in these individuals. To our knowledge, these findings provide the first empirical demonstration of a coupling between cognition and reading in typical readers and a developmental uncoupling between cognition and reading in dyslexic readers. This uncoupling was the core concept of the initial description of dyslexia and remains the focus of the current definitional model of this learning disability.

Extraordinary progress in functional brain imaging, primarily advances in functional magnetic resonance imaging, now allows scientists to understand the neural systems serving reading and how these systems differ in dyslexic readers. Scientists now speak of the neural signature of dyslexia, a singular achievement that for the first time has made what was previously a hidden disability, now visible. Paralleling this achievement in understanding the neurobiology of dyslexia, progress in the identification and treatment of dyslexia now offers the hope of identifying children at risk for dyslexia at a very young age and providing evidence-based, effective interventions. Despite these advances, for many dyslexic readers, becoming a skilled, automatic reader remains elusive, in great part because though children with dyslexia can be taught to decode words, teaching children to read fluently and automatically represents the next frontier in research on dyslexia. We suggest that to break through this "fluency" barrier, investigators will need to reexamine the more than 20-year-old central dogma in reading research: the generation of the phonological code from print is modular, that is, automatic and not attention demanding, and not requiring any other cognitive process. Recent findings now present a competing view: other cognitive processes are involved in reading, particularly attentional mechanisms, and that disruption of these attentional mechanisms play a causal role in reading difficulties. Recognition of the role of attentional mechanisms in reading now offer potentially new strategies for interventions in dyslexia. In particular, the use of pharmacotherapeutic agents affecting attentional mechanisms not only may provide a window into the neurochemical mechanisms underlying dyslexia but also may offer a potential adjunct treatment for teaching dyslexic readers to read fluently and automatically. Preliminary studies suggest that agents traditionally used to treat disorders of attention, particularly attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, may prove to be an effective adjunct to improving reading in dyslexic students.

The past two decades have witnessed an explosion in our understanding of dyslexia (or specific reading disability), the most common and most carefully studied of the learning disabilities. We first review the core concepts of dyslexia: its definition, prevalence, and developmental course. Next we examine the cognitive model of dyslexia, especially the phonological theory, and review empiric data suggesting genetic and neurobiological influences on the development of dyslexia. With the scientific underpinnings of dyslexia serving as a foundation, we turn our attention to evidence-based approaches to diagnosis and treatment, including interventions and accommodations. Teaching reading represents a major focus. We first review those reading interventions effective in early grades, and then review interventions for older students. To date the preponderance of intervention studies have focused on word-level reading; newer studies are beginning to examine reading interventions that have gone beyond word reading to affect reading fluency and reading comprehension. The article concludes with a discussion of the critical role of accommodations for dyslexic students and the recent neurobiological evidence supporting the need for such accommodations.

Developmental dyslexia is characterized by an unexpected difficulty in reading in children and adults who otherwise possess the intelligence and motivation considered necessary for accurate and fluent reading. Dyslexia is the most common and most carefully studied of the learning disabilities, affecting 80% of all individuals identified as learning disabled. Although in the past the diagnosis and implications of dyslexia were often uncertain, recent advances in the knowledge of the epidemiology, the neurobiology, the genetics, and the cognitive influences on the disorder now allow the disorder to be approached within the framework of a traditional medical model. This article reviews these advances and their implications for the approach to patients presenting with a possible reading disability.

Objective: To examine age-related changes in the neural systems for reading in nonimpaired and dyslexic children and adolescents., Methods: Functional magnetic resonance imaging was used to study age-related changes in the neural systems for reading in a cross-sectional sample of 232 right-handed children 7 to 18 years of age (113 dyslexic readers and 119 nonimpaired readers) as they read pseudowords., Results: In nonimpaired readers, systems in the left anterior lateral occipitotemporal area developed with age, whereas systems in the right superior and middle frontal regions decreased. In contrast, in dyslexic readers, systems in the left posterior medial occipitotemporal regions developed with age. Older nonimpaired readers were left lateralized in the anterior lateral occipitotemporal area; there was no difference in asymmetry between younger and older dyslexic readers., Interpretation: These findings offer a possible neurobiological explanation for the differences in reading acquisition between dyslexic and nonimpaired readers and provide further evidence of the critical role of the left occipitotemporal region in the development of reading.

We studied error-related negativity (ERN) and error positivity (Pe) during a discrimination task in 319 unmedicated children divided into subtypes of ADHD (Not-ADHD/inattentive/combined), learning disorder (Not-LD/reading/math/reading+math), and oppositional defiant disorder. Response-locked ERPs contained a frontocentral ERN and posterior Pe. Error-related negativity and positivity exhibited larger amplitude and later latency than corresponding waves for correct responses matched on reaction time. ADHD did not affect performance on the task. The ADHD/combined sample exceeded controls in ERN amplitude, perhaps reflecting patients' adaptive monitoring efforts. Compared with controls, subjects with reading disorder and reading+math disorder performed worse on the task and had marginally more negative correct-related negativities. In contrast, Pe/Pc was smaller in children with reading+math disorder than among subjects with reading disorder and Not-LD participants; this nonspecific finding is not attributable to error processing. The results reflect anomalies in error processing in these disorders but further research is needed to address inconsistencies in the literature.

Converging evidence from a number of lines of investigation indicates that dyslexia represents a disorder within the language system and more specifically within a particular subcomponent of that system, phonological processing. Recent advances in imaging technology, particularly the development of functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), provide evidence of a neurobiological signature for dyslexia, specifically a disruption of 2 left hemisphere posterior brain systems, 1 parietal-temporal, the other occipital-temporal, with compensatory engagement of anterior systems around the inferior frontal gyrus and a posterior (right occipital-temporal) system. Furthermore, good evidence indicates a computational role for the left occipital-temporal system: the development of fluent (automatic) reading. In addition, fMRI studies of young adults with reading difficulties followed prospectively and longitudinally from age 5 through their mid 20s suggests that there may be 2 types of reading difficulties, 1 primarily reflecting a genetic basis, the other, and far more common, reflecting environmental influences. The brain systems for reading are malleable and their disruption in children with dyslexia may be remediated by provision of an evidence-based, effective reading intervention. These studies offer the promise for more precise identification and effective management of dyslexia in children, adolescents, and adults.

DYX2 on 6p22 is the most replicated reading disability (RD) locus. By saturating a previously identified peak of association with single nucleotide polymorphism markers, we identified a large polymorphic deletion that encodes tandem repeats of putative brain-related transcription factor binding sites in intron 2 of DCDC2. Alleles of this compound repeat are in significant disequilibrium with multiple reading traits. RT-PCR data show that DCDC2 localizes to the regions of the brain where fluent reading occurs, and RNA interference studies show that down-regulation alters neuronal migration. The statistical and functional studies are complementary and are consistent with the latest clinical imaging data for RD. Thus, we propose that DCDC2 is a candidate gene for RD.

Converging evidence from a number of lines of investigation indicates that dyslexia represents a disorder within the language system and more specifically within a particular subcomponent of that system, phonological processing. Recent advances in imaging technology, particularly the development of functional magnetic resonance imaging, provide evidence of a neurobiological signature for dyslexia, specifically a disruption of two left hemisphere posterior brain systems, one parieto-temporal, the other occipito-temporal, with compensatory engagement of anterior systems around the inferior frontal gyrus and a posterior (right occipito-temporal) system. Furthermore, good evidence indicates a computational role for the left occipito-temporal system: the development of fluent (automatic) reading. The brain systems for reading are malleable and their disruption in dyslexic children may be remediated by provision of an evidence-based, effective reading intervention. In addition, functional magnetic resonance imaging studies of young adults with reading difficulties followed prospectively and longitudinally from age 5 through their mid twenties suggests that there may be two types of reading difficulties, one primarily on a genetic basis, the other, and far more common, reflecting environmental influences. These studies offer the promise for more precise identification and effective management of dyslexia in children, adolescents and adults.

Background: A range of neurobiological investigations shows a failure of left hemisphere posterior brain systems to function properly during reading in children and adults with reading disabilities. Such evidence of a disruption in the normal reading pathways provides a neurobiological target for reading interventions. In this study, we hypothesized that the provision of an evidence-based, phonologically mediated reading intervention would improve reading fluency and the development of the fast-paced occipitotemporal systems serving skilled reading., Methods: Functional magnetic resonance imaging was used to study the effects of a phonologically based reading intervention on brain organization and reading fluency in 77 children aged 6.1-9.4 years (49 with reading disability and 28 control subjects). Children comprised three experimental groups: experimental intervention (n = 37), community intervention (n = 12), and community control subjects (n = 28)., Results: Immediately after the year-long intervention, children taught with the experimental intervention had made significant gains in reading fluency and demonstrated increased activation in left hemisphere regions, including the inferior frontal gyrus and the middle temporal gyrus; 1 year after the experimental intervention had ended these children were activating bilateral inferior frontal gyri and left superior temporal and occipitotemporal regions., Conclusions: These data indicate that the nature of the remedial educational intervention is critical to successful outcomes in children with reading disabilities and that the use of an evidence-based phonologic reading intervention facilitates the development of those fast-paced neural systems that underlie skilled reading.

Background: This study examined whether and how two groups of young adults who were poor readers as children (a relatively compensated group and a group with persistent reading difficulties) differed from nonimpaired readers and if there were any factors distinguishing the compensated from persistently poor readers that might account for their different outcomes., Methods: Using functional magnetic resonance imaging, we studied three groups of young adults, ages 18.5-22.5 years, as they read pseudowords and real words: 1) persistently poor readers (PPR; n = 24); 2) accuracy improved (compensated) readers (AIR; n = 19); and 3) nonimpaired readers (NI, n = 27)., Results: Compensated readers, who are accurate but not fluent, demonstrate a relative underactivation in posterior neural systems for reading located in left parietotemporal and occipitotemporal regions. Persistently poor readers, who are both not fluent and less accurate, activate posterior reading systems but engage them differently from nonimpaired readers, appearing to rely more on memory-based rather than analytic word identification strategies., Conclusions: These findings of divergent neural outcomes as young adults are both new and unexpected and suggest a neural basis for reading outcomes of compensation and persistence in adults with childhood dyslexia.

Background: Converging evidence indicates a functional disruption in the neural systems for reading in adults with dyslexia. We examined brain activation patterns in dyslexic and nonimpaired children during pseudoword and real-word reading tasks that required phonologic analysis (i.e., tapped the problems experienced by dyslexic children in sounding out words)., Methods: We used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to study 144 right-handed children, 70 dyslexic readers, and 74 nonimpaired readers as they read pseudowords and real words., Results: Children with dyslexia demonstrated a disruption in neural systems for reading involving posterior brain regions, including parietotemporal sites and sites in the occipitotemporal area. Reading skill was positively correlated with the magnitude of activation in the left occipitotemporal region. Activation in the left and right inferior frontal gyri was greater in older compared with younger dyslexic children., Conclusions: These findings provide neurobiological evidence of an underlying disruption in the neural systems for reading in children with dyslexia and indicate that it is evident at a young age. The locus of the disruption places childhood dyslexia within the same neurobiological framework as dyslexia, and acquired alexia, occurring in adults.

The authors report findings on reading and IQ from a contemporary study of 145 individually tested incarcerated men and women in two maximum-security prisons in Louisiana. To their knowledge this study is the first to use the definition of dyslexia from the First Step Act (FSA) and the first to incorporate an IQ measure to differentiate those with dyslexia from individuals with cognitive impairment. The authors' findings indicate that almost half (47%) of the participants are classified as having dyslexia, 36% proficient, and 17% cognitive impairment. Both dyslexic prisoners and nondyslexic prisoners reported academic and behavioral problems in school that led to decreased years in school and decreased high school graduation rates, with 87% reporting dropping out of school with many inmates dropping out in middle school (mean age of completion of 9.6 years of school), 97% reporting having been in special education or received accommodations, and 59% having failed to receive a high school diploma or equivalency. The authors note that although the FSA calls for the Bureau of Prisons to screen prisoners for dyslexia using a screener that is evidence-based, with proven psychometrics for validity, efficiency and low cost, as well as readily available, a screener is not a diagnostic instrument and we discuss the next steps after inmates are screened as being dyslexic.

We review the evolution of the conceptualisation of dyslexia and along with it the current, 21st century definition of dyslexia. Our starting point is the seminal report by Pringle Morgan in 1896, followed by early 20th century reports by Hinshelwood, and continuing with concepts of brain injury and minimal brain dysfunctions then to the emergence of 'learning disability' in the mid-20th century. Within this historical framework we note the emergence and scientific validation of an 'unexpected' model culminating in the first definition of dyslexia in U.S. federal law in late 2018 and in recent U.S. federal civil rights law. We next address the issue of whether dyslexia is 'real' by showing how advances in non-invasive functional brain imaging have led to a replicated, robust neural signature for dyslexia. We close by illustrating how science has informed policy, emphasising the focus on evidence-based practices beginning with the report of the National Reading Panel and including the creation of the What Works Clearinghouse. Early screening for dyslexia represents another important policy accomplishment with dyslexia laws now passed in over 30 states. Evidence-based effective interventions for dyslexia, including free, public charter schools specialised for dyslexic children exemplify the most recent policy initiative.

Identifying change at the individual level is an important goal for researchers, educators, and clinicians. We present a set of statistical procedures for identifying individuals who depart from a normative change. Using Latent Change Scores models (LCS), we illustrate how the Individual Likelihood computed from a statistical model for change ("IL") and from an alternative unrestricted model ("ILsat") can be used to identify atypical trajectories in situations with several measurement occasions. Using LCS and linear regression, we also show how the observed and latent change residuals can be used to identify atypical individual change between 2 measurement occasions. We apply these methods to a measure of general verbal ability (from WISC-R), from a large sample of individuals assessed every 2 years from Grade 1 to 9. We demonstrate the efficiency of these techniques, illustrate their use to identify individual change in longitudinal data, and discuss potential applications in developmental research.

The past decade has witnessed an unprecedented collaboration between science and education, so that there has now been a sea of change, not only in understanding the underlying basis for reading and reading disability, but perhaps most critically, in the recognition that teaching reading must be driven by science. This article discusses evidence-based education, and explains why this new era in education demands knowledgeable teachers who understand the science of reading and their critical role in teaching children to read. (Contains 3 figures and 19 endnotes.)

This paper elaborates on components of a working definition of developmental dyslexia proposed in 1995 by G. R. Lyon. The 2003 revised definition, based on converging scientific evidence, was developed by a working group of the International Dyslexia Association. The new definition notes the condition's neurobiologic origin and typical presence of a deficit in the phonological component of language. (Contains references.) (DB)

Dyslexia is among the most common neurodevelopmental disorders in children, yet despite its high prevalence all too frequently goes undiagnosed. Consequently dyslexic children all too often fail to receive effective reading interventions. Here we report our findings from a study using a teacher completed evidence-based dyslexia screener to first screen then test predominantly African-American children in grades kindergarten through second grade in two inner city public charter schools in New Orleans. Almost half (49.2%) of the children screened as at risk for dyslexia and of these the majority were found to be dyslexic on more detailed testing. Our results suggest that large numbers of African-American students with dyslexia may be overlooked in schools. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We review the evolution of the conceptualisation of dyslexia and along with it the current, 21st century definition of dyslexia. Our starting point is the seminal report by Pringle Morgan in 1896, followed by early 20th century reports by Hinshelwood, and continuing with concepts of brain injury and minimal brain dysfunctions then to the emergence of 'learning disability' in the mid-20th century. Within this historical framework we note the emergence and scientific validation of an 'unexpected' model culminating in the first definition of dyslexia in U.S. federal law in late 2018 and in recent U.S. federal civil rights law. We next address the issue of whether dyslexia is 'real' by showing how advances in non-invasive functional brain imaging have led to a replicated, robust neural signature for dyslexia. We close by illustrating how science has informed policy, emphasising the focus on evidence-based practices beginning with the report of the National Reading Panel and including the creation of the What Works Clearinghouse. Early screening for dyslexia represents another important policy accomplishment with dyslexia laws now passed in over 30 states. Evidence-based effective interventions for dyslexia, including free, public charter schools specialised for dyslexic children exemplify the most recent policy initiative. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

DYX2 on 6p22 is the most replicated reading disability (RD) locus. By saturating a previously identified peak of association with single nucleotide polymorphism markers, we identified a large polymorphic deletion that encodes tandem repeats of putative brain-related transcription factor binding sites in intron 2 of DCDC2. Alleles of this compound repeat are in significant disequilibrium with multiple reading traits. RT-PCR data show that DCDC2 localizes to the regions of the brain where fluent reading occurs, and RNA interference studies show that down-regulation alters neuronal migration. The statistical and functional studies are complementary and are consistent with the latest clinical imaging data for RD. Thus, we propose that DCDC2 is a candidate gene for RD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Converging evidence from a number of neuroimaging studies, including our own, suggest that fluent word identification in reading is related to the functional integrity of two consolidated left hemisphere (LH) posterior systems: a dorsal (temporo-parietal) circuit and a ventral (occipito-temporal) circuit. This posterior system is functionally disrupted in developmental dyslexia. Reading disabled readers, relative to nonimpaired readers, demonstrate heightened reliance on both inferior frontal and right hemisphere posterior regions, presumably in compensation for the LH posterior difficulties. We propose a neurobiological account suggesting that for normally developing readers the dorsal circuit predominates at first, and is associated with analytic processing necessary for learning to integrate orthographic features with phonological and lexical-semantic features of printed words. The ventral circuit constitutes a fast, late-developing, word identification system which underlies fluent word recognition in skilled readers. MRDD Research Reviews 6:207–213, 2000. © 2000 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT. Objective. The outcome in adolescence of children diagnosed as dyslexic during the early years of school was examined in children prospectively identified in childhood and continuously followed to young adulthood. This sample offers a unique opportunity to investigate a prospectively identified sample of adolescents for whom there is no question of the childhood diagnosis and in whom highly analytic measures of reading and language can be administered in adolescence. Design. Children were recruited from the Connecticut Longitudinal Study, a cohort of 445 children representative of those children entering public kindergarten in Connecticut in 1983. Two groups were selected when the children were in grade 9: children who met criteria for persistent reading disability in grades 2 through 6 (persistently poor readers [PPR]; n = 21) and a comparison group of nondisabled children, subdivided into average readers (n = 35) and superior readers (n = 39). In grade 9, each child received a comprehensive assessment of academic, language, and other cognitive skills. Results. Measures of phonological awareness (but not orthographic awareness) were most significant in differentiating the 3 reading groups, with smaller contributions from measures of word finding and digit-span. Academic measures that best separated good from poor readers were decoding and spelling, whereas measures of math and reading comprehension did not. Measures of phonological awareness, followed next by teacher rating of academic skills were the best predictors of decoding, reading rate, and reading accuracy. In contrast, the best predictor of reading comprehension was word finding, with digit span and socioeconomic status also contributing significantly. Using a growth curve model (quadratic model of growth to a plateau) all 3 groups demonstrated similar patterns of growth over time, with the superior group outperforming the average group, and the average group outperforming the PPR group. Ther... [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A response by Sally Shaywitz to a letter to the editor about her article "Dyslexia," in the January 29, 1998 issue is presented.

The authors report findings on reading and IQ from a contemporary study of 145 individually tested incarcerated men and women in two maximum-security prisons in Louisiana. To their knowledge this study is the first to use the definition of dyslexia from the First Step Act (FSA) and the first to incorporate an IQ measure to differentiate those with dyslexia from individuals with cognitive impairment. The authors' findings indicate that almost half (47%) of the participants are classified as having dyslexia, 36% proficient, and 17% cognitive impairment. Both dyslexic prisoners and nondyslexic prisoners reported academic and behavioral problems in school that led to decreased years in school and decreased high school graduation rates, with 87% reporting dropping out of school with many inmates dropping out in middle school (mean age of completion of 9.6 years of school), 97% reporting having been in special education or received accommodations, and 59% having failed to receive a high school diploma or equivalency. The authors note that although the FSA calls for the Bureau of Prisons to screen prisoners for dyslexia using a screener that is evidencebased, with proven psychometrics for validity, efficiency and low cost, as well as readily available, a screener is not a diagnostic instrument and we discuss the next steps after inmates are screened as being dyslexic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]