Published online: 26 Mar 2010.

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Australian Journal of Learning Difficulties Vol. 15, No. 1, May 2010, 71 79 Learning with dyslexia in secondary school in New Zealand: What can we learn from students past experiences? Linda Rowan* Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand This study uses an interpretive approach to present the prior secondary school experiences of four students with dyslexia now studying at university. Students with dyslexia in Aotearoa/New Zealand have had to contend with a compulsory education system that has not recognised their learning struggles nor supported their particular ways of learning. Students have had to develop their own support strategies to complete educational qualifications. Students experienced teacher and system ignorance of their learning difficulties and needs. Inappropriate support offered in an ad hoc manner impacted on their success. Despite this all students developed their own strengths and support networks, which helped them to progress in their education. The success of these networks influenced their decision to continue onto university. Students perceived their learning with dyslexia as different from their peers and creating difficulties within the existing educational system, but not disabling. Introduction In Aotearoa/New Zealand successive governments have resisted the move to recognise, diagnose and support learners with dyslexia on a basis of the complexity of diagnosis and resistance to labelling. In April 2007 the Ministry of Education formally recognised dyslexia as a spectrum of learning disabilities, with a working definition of dyslexia to describe a range of persistent difficulties with aspects of reading, writing and spelling (Ministry of Education, 2008, p. 2). Estimates of the number of Aotearoa/New Zealanders affected by specific learning disability or selfdiagnosed reading disability are placed at about 7% (Chapman, Tunmer, & Allen, 2003; Ministry of Education, 2006). There are no figures on how many students with dyslexia are now in the Aotearoa/New Zealand education system or how successful they are at obtaining national qualifications. There is no information on whether these students are being provided with teaching and learning opportunities that will help them to complete their secondary schooling qualifications. However, as they have not been officially diagnosed or given disability, impairment or learning difficulty labels, it may be reasonable to assume that they have not received any specialised learning support that would assist or accommodate their learning differences. Yet, despite this, students with dyslexia do complete secondary schooling and move into tertiary education. The question is *Email: l.m.rowan@massey.ac.nz ISSN 1940-4158 print/issn 1940-4166 online Ó 2010 Learning Difficulties Australia DOI: 10.1080/19404150903524556 http://www.informaworld.com

72 L. Rowan how, then, do they view their learning with dyslexia? What support did they actually have with their secondary school studies and did these experiences affect their decision to continue studying? By looking at the prior secondary school learning experiences of students with dyslexia we can identify the consequences of the lack of recognition and formal support systems on learning success, and look for opportunities for improvements for the future. Disagreement and confusion There are major disagreements about the nature and diagnosis of dyslexia, whether it has single or multiple factors and how educators should respond in assisting learners with dyslexia (Chanock, 2007; Chapman et al., 2003; Riddell & Weedon, 2006). Constructs of what constitutes dyslexia come from neurobiological, phonological, educational and social paradigms and affect approaches to working with learners (Chanock, 2007; Pollack, 2005; Riddick, 2001). However, there is agreement that dyslexia involves difficulties in reading and writing; that it is a specific learning disability that has some form of phonological deficit (Ministry of Education, 2006; Mortimore & Crozier, 2006; Pollack, 2005). In the UK, Australia and USA there is legislation to curb discrimination against learners with dyslexia. Learners with dyslexia in these countries have been diagnosed and classified as having a disability, learning difficulty or impairment. This is based on the situated nature of their perceived deficits in literacy or cognitive processing against time constrained standardised tests. A social construction approach recognises society s role in defining ability and disability. Where society values a particular skill any inability to perform at the determined standard is seen as a disability. In places where literacy is seen to reflect intellectual ability the struggles of learners with dyslexia with literacy tasks are seen as a cognitive disability. This social construction of disability is then carried into education where the system and teachers, and learners themselves, place students with dyslexia outside the norm in relation to other learners (Keys, McDonald, Myrick, & Williams, 2008; Pollack, 2005; Riddick, 2001). Chanock (2007), Dale and Taylor (2001), McNulty (2003) and Pollack (2005) have observed that in countries where the classification of disability is used learners with dyslexia (and their families) often don t understand the range of tests and diagnosis used, the need for labelling, nor the constructs on which the diagnosis of disability of dyslexia is formed. These factors impact on learners view of their ability and restrict their choices in education. Perceived disability or failure in early education is interpreted as personal failure and influences future training decisions (Dale & Taylor, 2001). Self-perceptions of learning with dyslexia Students self-esteem and their perceptions of dyslexia affect their life choices, experiences and approaches to learning. Studies by Pollack (2005) and Riddell and Weedon (2006) in the UK suggest that the use of disabilities legislation has led to a focus on learner deficits rather than strengths. Studies by Mortimore and Crozier (2006) and McNulty (2003) demonstrate that the various discourses of dyslexia used in testing people (e.g. neurological, developmental, phonological and biological) have influenced individuals perceptions of themselves, their capabilities and their educational choices. Students are more likely to regard higher education as being

Australian Journal of Learning Difficulties 73 beyond their capabilities or take lower-level courses based on social expectations of disability. In the absence of specific legislation that sets up systems of support for dyslexics in Aotearoa/New Zealand how do students view their dyslexia and its affect on their educational choices? Aotearoa/New Zealand context The government of Aotearoa/New Zealand considers education at secondary and tertiary levels a means for improving the economic, social and cultural development of the country. A key determinant of this approach is the increasing of levels of literacy and numeracy across society (Ministry of Education, 2006). Government policies promote increased participation in tertiary or post-compulsory education through providing a range of means to support selected students and institutes to meet the literacy requirements for tertiary study (Office for the Tertiary Education Commission, 2006). However there are no current policies, funding or accommodations to assist students learning with dyslexia at primary, secondary or tertiary levels of education. In December 2008 the Ministry of Education released a resource for primary and secondary classroom teachers providing a working definition of dyslexia and suggesting teaching approaches that may be taken (Ministry of Education, 2008). Students entering the New Zealand education system in the next five years should find the environment more dyslexic friendly than that experienced by past students and those students still within the system. There is a lack of research on the presence of dyslexia in Aotearoa/New Zealand. Very few studies of dyslexic learning experiences exist, those that do show that students with dyslexia must overcome teacher and system ignorance (Marshall, 2005; Sherrard, 2004). Barriers within the education system were identified as stopping students from continuing in study. Despite the lack of formal recognition of their learning differences New Zealand students learning with dyslexia have been able to complete their compulsory education and do choose to continue on to study at higher education. This study records the experiences of students now in tertiary education by looking at how they managed to succeed in spite of the lack of formal recognition and system support for their learning difference. Methods This paper presents the findings of four brief interpretive case studies conducted as a pilot study for future postgraduate research. A grounded theory approach (after Strauss and Corbin [1990] with modifications from Charmaz [2006]) was used to investigate the prior learning experiences of four students who were involved in university study in Aotearoa/New Zealand in 2008. Semi-structured interviews provided the forum for recording the experiences and events as perceived by the individual. This approach helps in understanding the links between educational environments and individual learning (Cohen, Manion, & Morrison, 2000; Mutch, 2005). Participants Four students from one university in Aotearoa/New Zealand were interviewed. Participants were contacted using the snowball method, invited to join the study and consent and privacy requirements agreed (Cohen et al., 2000; Mutch, 2005).

74 L. Rowan Participants selected the pseudonyms used in this study. Two of the students were in their first year of tertiary study having taken a gap year between Year 13 of their secondary schooling 1 and the first year of tertiary study. One student was in the final semester of their bachelors degree having gone straight to university on completion of Year 13. The final participant was a mature student who was completing a masters degree having left school at the age of 15. Data collection Student experiences were recorded during one-hour semi-structured interviews conducted as one-to-one conversations (Cohen et al., 2000; Mutch, 2005). Conversation was loosely based on discussion questions that the participants had been provided with prior to their interview. Thick description field notes of observations made during the conversations, were recorded by the researcher at the end of the interviews and narratives of participants experiences recorded during the interview were transcribed (Charmaz, 2006). As the researcher was reliant on the participants acknowledgment that they had dyslexia, the British Dyslexia Association (2006) Adult Dyslexic Checklist was used to provide an indication of where dyslexia impacted on daily tasks for each individual. All participants acknowledged 11 or more of the key indicators as giving them problems. Transcripts of the conversations were analysed looking at key words or phrases in context and constant comparative analysis (Charmaz, 2006; Straus & Corbin, 1990). The question this research sought to explore was: How did the lack of recognition of dyslexia affect students prior learning experiences in Aotearoa/New Zealand? Results Perceptions of learning with dyslexia Intriguingly all four participants of this study acknowledged that at no time during their secondary schooling could they recall having the characteristics of dyslexia, and the implications for their learning in the classroom environment or studying at home, explained to them. They simply saw dyslexia as a part of their autobiographical self the identity of themselves as learners shaped by earlier learning experiences (Pollack, 2005). These students had a strong self-knowledge and used a wide range of terms to describe their learning which created their own discourse of the characteristics of dyslexia. Four main descriptors were used. Firstly, dyslexia was an integral part of their person seen as: part of me, with no physical aspects, I take longer, I can t like listen... and do other stuff, I ll say something really, really stupid participants saw themselves as always having had dyslexia and therefore not knowing what it must be like to work in another mode. Secondly, students described their dyslexia in terms of emotions associated with working with literacy rich tasks: frustrating, annoying, gets in the way, confusion, Oh the frustration of getting something to work cause you know what you re trying to put there, I was struggling. Thirdly, these emotions were reflected in describing the impact of time restrictions on cognitive processing particularly difficulties faced in literacy tasks associated with study: slows reading down, things take longer, one task at a time, spelling, proof-reading. However other comments suggest that time alone was not the only issue: I d probably read it four or five times but couldn t see it.

Australian Journal of Learning Difficulties 75 The fourth descriptor centred around self-esteem, with participants describing their experiences of learning and the internal and external motivators that drove their work habits: at some stages I m fine and I ll see things really super clearly and then I feel real smart and happy, I thought I ve got to work really hard to get it, just me saying I was going to do it. Proving to myself, I couldn t, I failed, I wasn t the most enthusiastic. Internal motivators and achievement by hard work were seen to be the factors for success and the driving forces behind students choosing to continue to study at university. Two participants recognised at some stage late in their secondary schooling that they believed they were capable of study at a higher level. This was also recognised by another participant while studying part-time in their working years. The final participant had a social expectation of study at university and didn t see dyslexia as a limitation to this direction. A fifth descriptor that defined their dyslexia for this group was in terms of the perceptions of a close subset of their peer group during their secondary schooling. Their colleagues saw these students as smart, humourous and capable: they found it really amusing, they understood why, they didn t really believe that I was dyslexic as they always thought that I was smarter than that, they just took me for me. Friends were accepting of the participants and willing to help when asked. Support systems Three of the four participants received some form of learning support after a parent, or someone other than the classroom teacher, recognised that the learner had more potential than they were demonstrating. Parents then arranged and funded students to be tested outside of the education system for some identification of the discrepancy between ability and achievement. This resulted in a recommendation by the independent tester for the setting up of some form of learning assistance during their school years. The type and level of support provided appeared dependent on the tutors and schools understanding, or lack of understanding, of dyslexia. The appropriateness of the type of support was a key feature of discussions. All four students had had quite different experiences of support. Jane found the support provided to be condescending. She felt that tutors didn t recognise her age or capabilities. She refused to go to her tutor and decided that she would have to find her own way: They made me go to an English tutor and like I had to do things like when two vowels go walking the one goes talking but I hated it. I felt like I was being taught like the little kids and didn t want anything to do with it. I refused to go back and when I was struggling with maths I had to go to a maths tutor and like they treat you like you re a little kid. I always found it like that. So I always thought that I could be good at maths and knew that I was going to have to do that myself. Karen found the whole process embarrassing and humiliating with those organising and providing the support not thinking about the process, the needs and the feelings of the individual: The school knew I was dyslexic so every year they would call me to the office and go like do you want help?... And like I was doing an exam one time and the reader/writer was my next door neighbour and I was like really awkward. And then we were doing a history paper and she didn t put a single full stop in or change of paragraph or things

76 L. Rowan like that. I was like I already know how to do that myself. I would have done that automatically and wouldn t have had to tell myself to do that. So it just ended up being an awful paper and I thought I m never doing that again. So I found that every time they offered it I thought no just leave it. Also the effect on the classroom social environment of directing special attention at one student was ignored: I d be sitting in the class and the teacher would go like talking about something and then just turn around and look at me and say did you understand that? in front of everyone! It s like yeah, arrh. Like way back in the class they re turning around and asking why s he asking her? (Karen) However, Fred s experience of learning support was well organised, thanks to parental involvement and a knowledgeable teacher, and proved to be very successful: I think my Mum set that up, she anticipated that the reality of learning at this level might be hard for me. It happened. I had an extra English teacher and she was the main drive pushing me in the right direction. I don t know how it affected me but I came away with some outstanding English marks five excellents and I came away thinking well that s not that hard then. But that was with some well-calculated teaching. Beth s experience reflected the intolerance for anything outside the norm of the period of her schooling when support was non-existent. She worked hard under her own ability with the help of siblings: All by myself. Absolutely hours of homework at home at night. Where the teachers said half an hour it was an hour-and-a-half more. But that suited me cause I knew what I was trying to do. The appropriateness and communication of the support provided influenced the participants acceptance of help and, ultimately, the educational outcomes of these learners. Fred confidently passed the required National Certificate of Educational Achievement (NCEA) 2 standards in all subjects at the various levels; Jane struggled on by herself, or with self-sought assistance, passing enough NCEA standards to progress in chosen subject areas and Karen struggled through not completing the final Level 3 year. Beth left school in Year 11 after finding employment. Relationships and the nature of support It became apparent in the conversation with the participants that relationships the learner had with friends, teachers and family played an important part in their attitude to learning and acceptance of their learning struggles. Three levels of support in their learning were identified by the participants in this study. Closesupport consisted of one or two close friends whom students were able to laugh with at mistakes, to ask for help and be encouraged by and whom they allowed to proof read their work: My best mate. Huge amounts of support. Regularly I would take work to him and he would proof read stuff for me and I think that I ve found that the whole time I ve been in education there s been someone round me who I ve been able to go to. (Fred) My two best friends would give me help if I like needed help but they would basically tell me to get on with it and they didn t really believe that I was dyslexic as they always thought that I was smarter than that. (Jane)

Australian Journal of Learning Difficulties 77 Yes they never used to get angry with me and would help with spelling and that sort of thing. (Karen) One-step-away support consisted of individual teachers who students were willing to approach for extra tuition and who understood the students abilities. These teachers would make themselves available, often outside teaching hours, taking extra time to explain information in a variety of ways that met the students learning preferences. These were highly regarded teachers who recognised the students interest in the subject and their ability: The one who got me going at school he was originally my maths teacher in 4th form and then in 5th form he was my physics teacher. I completely failed physics but I enjoyed his teaching and we got along really well and then in 6th form and 7th form I was doing bio and I hated my bio teacher and I knew the other teacher did bio so I used to go to him for extra bio tutoring with him after school. So I passed bio because of the second teacher rather than the original teacher I had. (Karen) Our maths teacher was amazing I loved maths so much he was like always there and he would always be there to teach you maths in your lunchtime and just always be there to help you and if you had any questions he was there to help you and things like that. (Jane) I ve had one person at certain points along the way, maybe more than one, certainly some teachers and my extra teachers certainly very understanding and comfortable taking work and stuff to them. (Fred) Finally, there was a general level support from family and other teachers who recognised their ability with parents and siblings often those who helped to initiate other general support systems. Discussion Overall the descriptors used suggest that the students with dyslexia in this study see their dyslexia as part of their autobiographical self (Pollack, 2005). Their view is that they are merely different to their peers in their approach to learning and the time it takes them to complete some tasks. This contrasts with the notion of having difficulties or disabilities. For example, when looking at the cognitive processing of information, descriptors with polarity were used by participants being slow at reading but quick at understanding ideas. By far the greatest explanation was given to the steps, or multiple staging, that would be involved in the completion of learning tasks. Students were acutely aware of the processes involved and how these were time-consuming; these were accepted rather than negatively framed. The appropriateness and communication of the support provided influenced the participant s acceptance of help and, ultimately, the educational outcomes of these learners. These educational experiences are similar to those found in international studies (Pollack, 2005) and reflect ownership of the learning difference. Where learners experienced negative learning support situations they were hesitant about, or refused, further assistance when it was offered. They also showed reluctance to seek help later at university (Mortimore & Crozier, 2006). In this study, all learners showed a strong sense of independence and had established their own learning strategies, which they employed at school and later at university. At university they only sought help when pushed to by their siblings or friends when once again their assessment marks didn t reflect their levels of knowledge.

78 L. Rowan For all students the situated nature of the support is important. Peers and close friends must be people who can be trusted and trust is based on genuine respect for the other person s skills and abilities (Clegg, Bradley, & Smith, 2006). Family help is seen as naturalised an accepted part of the ongoing long-term nature of the relationship and not specifically identified as a support system by the time students left secondary school (Clegg et al., 2006). For the participants in this study the nature of this support was clearly important. All students identified specific people who had played important roles in support in their prior education. Past teachers support and acknowledgement of the student capabilities was highly regarded. Specific teachers words of encouragement were recalled in students goal setting. Siblings and parents played a role in support of the decision to keep on studying. At later stages in secondary education some siblings pushed these students into finding appropriate support for their learning and helped them with the decision making processes that were involved in choosing tertiary courses that would suit the students interests and abilities. Conclusion This paper has provided an insight into the resilience and determination of four students with dyslexia who continue to learn in the Aotearoa/New Zealand education system without formal recognition or support of their learning differences. Overall these students remained positive in their view of their past experiences with a strong self-knowledge despite limited knowledge by themselves and Aotearoa/New Zealand educationalists of what dyslexia is. In general they saw learning with dyslexia as different rather than as an impairment. The impairment was perceived to be related to particular literacy tasks conducted under time pressures within the learning environment. They had had mixed experiences of learning in prior education but in tertiary study all appeared to have good self-esteem. The impact of the limited nature of support offered at secondary school, in recognising students learning differences, raised concerns about their future study at tertiary level. Students reluctance to seek help through formal support systems in tertiary study related to their strong sense of independence, self-reliance and ownership of learning with dyslexia developed from their prior experience of school support systems. The role of peers, respected teachers and family support networks should not be underestimated in assisting these students to maintain a positive attitude to learning with dyslexia. This acceptance by others helped in the acceptance of the learner of their own characteristics of dyslexia and their belief in their ability. These glimpses into the experiences of a small group of students who learn with dyslexia in Aotearoa/New Zealand, who have successfully negotiated the way though secondary schooling and into tertiary training, provide us with possibilities to improve educational outcomes for learners. From the stories of these learners there are three things we should consider when implementing strategies for assisting learners with dyslexia:. Do we focus on dyslexia as a learning disability or a different way of learning?. How can we improve understanding of and support for learners with dyslexia? and. How can we help in the development of positive self-image of learning with dyslexia in early education?

Australian Journal of Learning Difficulties 79 Answers to these three key questions should provide powerful (and sensitive) guidance for appropriate forms of intervention and support. Notes 1. New Zealand Secondary Schooling covers Years 9 13. 2. National Certificate of Educational Achievement has three levels associated with year of compulsory schooling Level 1 (Year 11), Level 2 (Year 12) and Level 3 (Year 13). References British Dyslexia Association. (2006). Adult dyslexia checklist. Retrieved 27 March, 2008, from http://www.bdadyslexia.org.uk Chanock, K. (2007). How do we not communicate about dyslexia? The discourses that distance scientists, disabilities staff, ALL advisors, students and lecturers from one another. Journal of Academic Language & Learning, 1(1), 33 43. Chapman, J.W., Tunmer, W.E., & Allen, R. (2003). Findings from the International Adult Literacy Survey on the incidence and correlates of learning disabilities in New Zealand: Is something rotten in the State of New Zealand. Dyslexia, 9, 78 98. Charmaz, K. (2006). Constructing grounded theory: A practical guide through quantitative analysis. London: Sage. Clegg, S., Bradley, S., & Smith, K. (2006). I ve had to swallow my pride : Help seeking and self-esteem. Higher Education Research & Development, 25(2), 101 113. Cohen, L., Manion, L., & Morrison, K. (2000). Research methods in education (5th ed.). New York: RoutledgeFalmer. Dale, M., & Taylor, B. (2001). How adult learners make sense of their dyslexia. Disability & Society, 16(7), 997 1008. Keys, C.B., McDonald, K.E., Myrick, S., & Williams, T.T. (2008). Disabilities. In N.J. Salkind (Ed.), Encyclopedia of educational psychology. Retrieved 10 January, 2010, from http://sage-ereference.com/educationalpsychology/article_n68.html. Marshall, S.A. (2005). What it s like being us: Stories of young New Zealanders who experience difficultly learning (Unpublished Masters of Health Science, Auckland University of Technology). McNulty, M.A. (2003). Dyslexia and the life course. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 36(4), 363 381. Ministry of Education. (2006). Literature review: An international perspective on dyslexia. Retrieved February 3, 2008, from http://www.tki.org.nz/r/literacy_numeracy/ lit_dyslexia_e.php Ministry of Education. (2008). About dyslexia. Wellington: New Zealand Government. Mortimore, T., & Crozier, R. (2006). Dyslexia and difficulties with study skills in higher education. Studies in Higher Education, 31(2), 235 251. Mutch, C. (2005). Doing educational research: A practitioner s guide to getting started. Wellington: New Zealand Council for Educational Research. Office for the Tertiary Education Commission. (2006). 2007/2012. Developing the second tertiary education strategy. Wellington: Ministry for Education. Pollack, D. (2005). Dyslexia, the self and higher education: Learning life histories of students identified as dyslexic. Stoke on Trent, UK: Trenton Books. Riddell, S., & Weedon, E. (2006). What counts as a reasonable adjustment? Dyslexic students and the concept of fair assessment. International Studies in Sociology of Education, 16(1), 57 73. Riddick, B. (2001). Dyslexia and inclusion: Time for a social model of disability perspective? International Studies in Sociology of Education, 11(3), 223 236. Sherrard, I. (2004). People who have an impairment and tertiary education. New Zealand Journal of Adult Learning, 32(1), 66 74. Strauss, A., & Corbin, J. (1990). Basics of qualitative research: Grounded theory, procedures and techniques. Newbury Park, CA: Sage.