Critical Review

Critical Review: Children at Familial Risk of Dyslexia

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Critical Review: Children at Familial Risk of Dyslexia

Introduction

This paper will discuss Valerie Muter and Margaret J. Snowling article “Children at Familial Risk of Dyslexia: Practical Implications from an At-Risk Study”. In this article, the authors identify link between phonology and early language, evaluation of the poor reader needs, assessing difficulties regarding maths, language, visuo-spartial and attention, as well as promote and recognise the development of compensatory strategies.

Muter and Snowling study aim to determine the dyslexia incidence in children, particularly in a family where one parent was identified as dyslexic; signify the developmental associations among phonological awareness, oral language and reading skills; identify the risk and shielding factors that modify the dyslexic predisposition expression; investigate to what extent the behaviour of children and self-esteem are influence by their dyslexia during their adolescent years; and take into account co-occurring difficulties presence such as language disorder, arithmetic and attention problems.

This study showed that if a close family member has dyslexia perhaps increases literacy difficulties in children. The finding of the study showed that children who faced difficulty in language development and slow speech exposed to high risk regarding reading problems. Hence, need to closely monitor reading during early years. Moreover, study identifies good verbal skills serve as protective factors to facilitate early compensation that have a dyslexia genetic risk.

Methodology

Muter and Snowling apparently signify that this study was conducted to assess the problem of dyslexia in children. In order to assess this phenomenon, the study was measured at four assessment points at the age of three, six, eight and thirteen years. They conducted this research in order to identify children at dyslexia risk, assess children with dyslexia, manage children with dyslexia, and long-term outcome in at-risk children with dyslexia.

This study was conducted among seventy-three children who have participated voluntarily and all participants belong to middle-class families. Close relatives of all participants reported to be suffering from dyslexia. Similarly, a control group was also taken into account where no sibling or parent was reported to be dyslexic. Sixty three participants who were exposed to dyslexia and thirty four participants belong to control group. In the first and second phase, children of age three, nine and six years were taken under study. On the other hand, data was gathered from children and from their families in order to measure aspects of their self-perception, their behavioural and emotional adjustment, and their learning and family environment (Muter & Snowling, 2009: 37-41).

The methodology of this research is quite clear and appropriate for this type of research, as well as facilitates in achieving desired research objective. The phases and demographic characteristics of the research were also clearly established. The population was segmented appropriately to gauge the dyslexia risk among children based on their ages.

Researchers employed appropriate methodology in order to answer research questions effectively. They appropriately adapted a longitudinal study in accordance to their study population and to answer research questions. For instance, ...