Experience Dyslexia: An Impactful Simulation for Teachers
Staff across Georgetown ISD (GISD) are experiencing some of the challenges and frustrations that people with dyslexia face through Experience Dyslexia, a hands-on learning disabilities simulation.
“Experience Dyslexia gives teachers a firsthand understanding of the struggles that students with dyslexia and other learning disabilities may experience in the classroom,” Tamra Marbibi, GISD Director of Section 504 & Dyslexia said. “The training increases the empathy educators already have for struggling learners and helps them to identify some of the responses and actions students may demonstrate when learning is challenging.”
During the simulation, participants rotate through six learning stations and are asked to complete tasks that students may encounter in the classroom. The stations simulate challenges that a person with dyslexia may face, as well as dysgraphia, ADD and ADHD – learning disabilities commonly associated with dyslexia.
Teachers participate in Station 3
Station 1 simulates a beginning reading problem.
Station 2 simulates an auditory figure-ground problem.
Station 3 simulates a visual-motor and writing problem.
Station 4 simulates a letter-word identification problem.
Station 5 simulates a copying and writing problem.
Station 6 simulates an auditory discrimination problem.
After a group of teachers at Forbes Middle School completed the training, many shared that they felt “frustrated”, “tired”, “drained”, or “stuck”.
Oftentimes, a person with dyslexia will exhaust all of their energy trying to decode the words that they are reading. By the time they are finished reading, they will have forgotten what it is they just read.
Teachers read aloud in Station 4
“The biggest hope with this simulation is to build empathy and a greater understanding of what people with dyslexia experience every day,” Amy Reid, Forbes Dyslexia Specialist said. “A teacher with dyslexia actually approached me at the end of the day and shared their appreciation for the training. It was quite an emotional thing for them.”
Eight campuses and departments have participated in Experience Dyslexia, and future sessions will be offered to all staff at GISD Grow 2024, a district-wide professional development conference, in February.
Experience Dyslexia was created by the International Dyslexia Association - Northern California. To learn more about Experience Dyslexia, visit https://norcal.dyslexiaida.org/experience-dyslexia/.
