Dealing With Learning Difficulties In Training...

[penfold]

dyscalcula is basically dyslexia with numbers,eddie.

[Peter]

dyslexia = words

 

dyscalcula = numbers

 

dyspepsia = steak & chips

[josharb87]

apparantly i suffer from a form of dyslexia (had the tests) although i dont really notice it, im no retard (my opinion others may not agree) and im not dumb, but am daft!

for me school was looking through rose tinted glasses (literally, i had rose tinted glasses as black on white text constantly goes out of focus or wobbles) the glasses have gone (so not cool) but the black on white problem still persists

and if something doesnt intrest me, boy is it hard for me to concentrate-i mean its really really hard-most people wouldnt imagine how difficult concentrating can be, even now people dont realise how incredibly boring they, and some things can be-and just how tollerant im being (although sometimes i just cant be arsed with being as tolerant as i should)

 

my advise to a tutor is to make things as intresting as possible-if doing a lecture on saw safety for example, stick some gorey images of injuries in-it'll focus the mind on the subject for a few minuites, have a laugh, regular breaks (10 min an hour pref) and this may be a bit controversial but swear! swearing emphasises things

 

even writing this, a subject i am intrested in i noticed about 1/3 my time was looking out the window, at pictures on the wall, blah blah blah!

[DriveLink]

Thanks for your post josharb87, not sure I agree with everything you say, but it's interesting to note that reading between the lines, training should be about having a laugh and not just listening to someone talking for ages.

 

It's certainly something that I try to do (and I'm sure many other trainers here do the same thing). In teaching terminology, most people that attend my courses are visual / kinaesthetic - which basically means that they want to see and do, not be talked at for hours on end!

 

So, humour is important as is doing stuff - something as simple as getting a student to get up and point to something is more interesting for the learner than being told it by a trainer.

 

Thanks for your input josh, I hope other students add their comments...

[b101uk]

My personal opinion is quite a lot of people who are “dyslexic” are not, its just an excuse overly used by the education system to the point ware the meaning of being “dyslexic” is lost &/or devalued or trivialised as a means to cover mere mediocrity.

[Mike Hill]

My personal opinion is quite a lot of people who are “dyslexic” are not, its just an excuse overly used by the education system to the point ware the meaning of being “dyslexic” is lost &/or devalued or trivialised as a means to cover mere mediocrity.

 

I totally agree.

[DriveLink]

You may have a point - the rise in dyslexia is alarming and it can make one question whether the rise we have seen over the years is down to an actual increase in dyslexia, or an increase in those who are not trying to learn.

 

Now it's not my place to answer that, but I understand the sentiment. However, one thing that I have learnt is that for those who declare some form of learning difficulty, altering how I present information can make a big difference to their success.

 

That doesn't mean that I'm doing stuff for them, just altering the way I put across information.

[skyhuck]

My thoughts on this, as a dyslexic, are that some peoples brains work differently to others, the way language is put into written form suits some peoples (those who came up with it) brains better than others.

 

I have great difficulty remembering lists, I have to sort of sing my mobile number, a number I have had for over 10 years, if I give some one my number and they say it back too me at a different rhythm to my own I cannot tell them if its right, I have to start again and say it in my own rhythm.

 

Same goes for PIN numbers, I cannot remember the number, so I remember the patten of the number on the key pad.

 

I find illogical spelling almost impossible to remember, I use spell check for all my posts.

[DriveLink]

Hi skyhuck,

 

I think it's quite common for those with dyslexia to find it more difficult to grasp lists of things, or to grasp something on a step-by-step basis.

 

So what would be the best way for you to take on-board a new skill? If I'm right in assuming that breaking something down into a series of steps is not easier for you, what would be the best way?

 

Would demonstrating the whole thing first, and then you having a go work better? Would showing you the first step, then you practicing that, before showing you the next step (and so on) be better? I guessing the first option may help as you'll be able to see the bigger picture - but you tell me...

[skyhuck]

To be honest, I have never been big on training.

 

I am pretty much self taut, I tend to find my own solutions to problems.

 

I do like watching how a task is done then adapt what I have seen to methods that suit me best.

 

I first started felling for fire fire wood, I got an operators manual with my first saw, it had illustrations of basic felling techniques, its very simple to grasp the concept of a "hinge" the gob and back cut are a means to an end, IMO, so once I had the concept of the hinge and holding wood the rest is common sense.