Developmental dyslexia: from theory to intervention

Developmental dyslexia affects about 10% of the population worldwide. It impedes academic achievement and indirectly puts individuals’ psychological well-being at risk. Research of dyslexia will be briefly reviewed including its historical origin, various issues in definitions, and a summary of the most important work on its neurological and cognitive basis. By studying developmental dyslexia in different languages including Chinese, the prominence of different cognitive deficits related to the different languages will become clear. The cognitive characteristics of dyslexia and its manifestations in Chinese-speaking population will be reviewed. Recent research on the cognitive profiles of Hong Kong Chinese dyslexics learning English as a second language will also be highlighted to demonstrate the distinctive characteristics of the two languages. Next the recent progress on studying the cognitive deficits of Chinese dyslexic individuals and the development of assessment instruments for identification of dyslexia should help to provide a solid foundation for further research. The need for translating theory into evidence-based practice in developing intervention programs for Chinese dyslexic individuals will be discussed.