Dyslexia is an ever present entity. For myself, it is part of who I am, but also what I am dedicating my life to learning about and I am seeking ways to help and support my fellow dyslexics. Dyslexia tends to have an interesting relationship with society and by extension the Further Education community. It seems to me that you can almost have a sense of pride in being bad at Maths. It is almost a badge of honour. Yet, being bad at English, in any way, carries a stigma. It carries shame.
Let's look briefly at shame. According to Dr Brene Brown (who researches shame, trust and vulnerability) shame can be defined as “I am bad”. Shame focuses on the self, and the feeling that you are flawed, broken or not enough. By being unable to read, by being unable to spell or by not being able to master skills that society has deemed important, it places you on the path to shame.
You’re bad at Maths? Be proud! You’re bad at English? Time to keep it a secret. Time to hang your head. When we then factor dyslexia into this equation - the feelings of shame and unworthiness can be multiplied.
