Event Title
Dyslexia, Rhythm, and Advocacy for Music
Date of Publication
3-26-2021
Document Type
Paper
Abstract / Program Notes
Dyslexia and related disorders affect 5-10% of the population, and some estimates are even higher. Screening is mandatory (since 2017) in Texas schools at kindergarten and first grade. There is an 85% accuracy of screening children in mid-kindergarten. If intervention is not provided before the age of 8, the probability of reading difficulties continuing into high school is 75%, as a child’s phonology (speech-sound system is usually developed by age 8, so early identification and remediation is critical. The inability to keep a steady beat can be an early marker for preschool children who are at risk for difficulties in learning to read. Research indicates that a simple test of tapping a steady beat can be used to identify children who may be at risk for reading difficulty. Music training has also been shown to lead to improvements in phonological, reading, and spelling skills for students with dyslexia. Rhythm training helps students with dyslexia read better and more fluently. Tracking is a skill that is often difficult for those with dyslexia, and can be improved by reading rhythms. This is an important point to advocate for NOT taking students out of music for remedial reading and for increased exposure to music activities that include rhythm reading and rhyming. This paper presentation will be an overview of the literature regarding the intersection of dyslexia and musical aspects of identification and intervention, with ramifications for advocacy for music education in early childhood and elementary settings.
Biography
Vicky V. Johnson is the Head of the Department of Fine Arts and Associate Professor of Music at Tarleton State University in Stephenville, Texas. She is a graduate of Boston University with a DMA in Music Education, Sam Houston State University with an MA in Music Theory, and Tarleton State University with a BM in Music Education. She is the Coordinator of the online Master of Music in Music Education program at Tarleton and her primary interests are in music education and music theory.
Keywords
Music education, early education, advocacy
Dyslexia, Rhythm, and Advocacy for Music
Dyslexia and related disorders affect 5-10% of the population, and some estimates are even higher. Screening is mandatory (since 2017) in Texas schools at kindergarten and first grade. There is an 85% accuracy of screening children in mid-kindergarten. If intervention is not provided before the age of 8, the probability of reading difficulties continuing into high school is 75%, as a child’s phonology (speech-sound system is usually developed by age 8, so early identification and remediation is critical. The inability to keep a steady beat can be an early marker for preschool children who are at risk for difficulties in learning to read. Research indicates that a simple test of tapping a steady beat can be used to identify children who may be at risk for reading difficulty. Music training has also been shown to lead to improvements in phonological, reading, and spelling skills for students with dyslexia. Rhythm training helps students with dyslexia read better and more fluently. Tracking is a skill that is often difficult for those with dyslexia, and can be improved by reading rhythms. This is an important point to advocate for NOT taking students out of music for remedial reading and for increased exposure to music activities that include rhythm reading and rhyming. This paper presentation will be an overview of the literature regarding the intersection of dyslexia and musical aspects of identification and intervention, with ramifications for advocacy for music education in early childhood and elementary settings.