British politician believes dyslexia a myth

NOTE TO SELF: THIS MAN WAS ELECTED TO SERVE HIS CONSTITUENTS?


"It is time that the dyslexia industry was killed off and we recognised that there are well-known methods for teaching everybody to read and write."
Graham Stringer MP


Nobody said that politicians had to be smart to get elected. Case in point, a British Labor Member of Parliment who commented in an online column that dyslexia was a myth perpetrated by educators to cover up poor teaching.

I'm sure those who are in education must have been in shock to read this statement.

The politician, one Graham Stringer, described the condition as "cruel fiction" and should be consigned to the "dustbin of history." Furthermore, he says he believes that many children can't read or write because - well - merely the wrong teaching methods are used.

Silly teachers! All those years of university to acquire knowledge and know-how to pass on to young, fertile minds only to hear from a non-teacher that they have been using the wrong methods. It's so...logical! Were that only the case...

Responding to the politician's conclusion, Charity Dyslexia Action said that dyslexia was real to the six million people in the UK who were affected by the condition.

In the column, which appeared in the Manchester Confidential, Stringer opined that millions of pounds were wasted on specialist teaching for what he labeled, a "false" condition. He also wrote that children should instead be taught to read and write by using a system called, synthetic phonics.

And the politico knows this...how?

"To label children as dyslexic because they're confused by poor teaching methods is wicked.
If dyslexia really existed then countries as diverse as Nicaragua and South Korea would not have been able to achieve literacy rates of nearly 100%. There can be no rational reason why this 'brain disorder' is of epidemic proportions in Britain but does not appear in South Korea or Nicaragua."

Financial considerations appear to be a factor in his statements. He wrote that "currently, 35,500 students receive disability allowances for dyslexia at an annual cost of £78.4m."

Furthermore, certified dyslexics get longer in exams.

Makes sense to me. If you have trouble reading/understanding the question, it takes longer to write an answer!

Read the rest of Stringer's beliefs and reader's comments and reactions related to the story, here: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/manchester/7828121.stm

TEACHERS ACCOMPANY STUDENTS HOME ON BUS FOR SAFETY

NOTE TO SELF: SOME TEACHERS GO ON AND ABOVE THE SCHOOL CURRICULUM

It wasn't that long ago that students who walked to and from school playfully jostled each other, while still others took public transportation.

Passing courses aren't the only things students attending schools in London, England, have to worry about these days. Seems that stabbings are becoming more and more frequent and it's not part of their teaching manual or job description, but some teachers are worried enough to personally intervene.

In the wake of concern about the level of knife crime among young people, one London teacher tells of the extraordinary lengths he and his staff go to, to keep their pupils safe.

Headteacher Tom Mannion surveyed the street from his seat on a London bus and pointed to where one of his pupils was stabbed last month.

Read the entire story here: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/7448817.stm

Seems like centuries ago now that teachers main concern was ensuring that their pupils learn the 3 R's. Sad and a sign of the times that they have to turn into bodyguards and it's to their credit that some do.