Davis Dyslexia Correction

Davis Dyslexia Correction is a counseling-based approach for addressing issues commonly associated with dyslexia, ADHD, ADD, dysgraphia, dyscalculia, and related learning disabilities. The goal of the program is to enable children and adults to recognize and control the symptoms which are viewed as causing them difficulty, and to use their natural creative and imaginative strengths for learning.

The methods have been used since 1981, and are currently used worldwide by approximately 450 authorized practitioners in 39 nations and in 29 languages.The program is not referenced in mainstream textbooks on Learning Disabilities and there is little research on its effectiveness. The program typically consists of an initial period of intensive, one-on-one work between a trained Facilitator and client. This is followed by an at-home program of continued practice with reading exercises and clay modeling of commonly used function words in the student's language. (See )

History of method
The method was created by Ronald D. Davis, from techniques he used to overcome his own difficulties with reading at age 38. Davis opened his first clinic in California in 1981. In 1994, he outlined his theories and the basic techniques used in the first edition of his book, The Gift of Dyslexia.

The Davis theory is based on premises that differ from the traditional view of learning disabilities as stemming from a neurological defect. However, Davis's work has recently been cited by British researchers interested in exploring the connection between dyslexia and visual-spatial thinking. The method has also aroused the interest of the British , which reported a case study involving two learners in its publication, "A Framework for Understanding Dyslexia". The program has also received qualified support from the British Charity , which characterized the program as having "valuable elements and positive aspects". In 2006, the Virginia Branch of the International Dyslexia Association included a session on Davis methods presented by a Davis Facilitator among the presentations at its annual conference.

The Davis methods are currently promulgated through [http://www.dyslexia.com/ddai.htm Davis Dyslexia Association International (DDAI)], a commercial organization which provides training in Davis methods and also licenses qualified Facilitators to use Davis trademarks such as Davis® or Davis Dyslexia Correction® in connection with their work. DDAI was initially founded as a membership organization in California in 1995 by Ronald Davis along with his wife and three other individuals, and the first Facilitators to complete training via DDAI were licensed in 1996. The DDAI currently has affiliated organizations in multiple countries, including the Davis Learning Foundation in the UK; Davis Dyslexia Association Pacific, based in New Zealand; DDA-D.A.C.H., based in Germany; and DDA-Nederland, DDA-Mexico, and DDA-Israel. DDAI and its affiliates do not provide services directly to or receive fees from dyslexic clients; rather, those services are provided by the licensed Facilitators who have completed training with DDAI.

The Davis facilitator training consists of a combination of seven weeks of workshops and about 150 hours of field assignments spread out over the course of a year. The Davis providers are independent practitioners who set their own fees for private services, or may be employed by schools to provide services directly to pupils.

Orientation / disorientation theory

Davis theorized that dyslexic individuals are primarily picture-thinkers, who experience confusion when encountering symbols and words representing abstract concepts, particularly the small function words of language (“trigger words”). Davis asserts that picture-thinking is faster than verbal conceptualization, and that the creative thought processes associated with dyslexia gives rise to talents in art, music, and athletics. However, when words have no associated mental picture, the picture-thinker experiences confusion that leads to a state of disorientation, which in turn alters visual and auditory perception. For example, the student may experience reversals or transpositions of letters, or fail to correctly hear or interpret spoken words. The key to correcting dyslexia, according to Davis, is to eliminate the source of the confusion through a system of clay modeling to gain a full understanding of letters and words. The methods described in the books can be used at home, by parents working with their own children. Davis describes the goal of Symbol Mastery to be learning "all three parts" of a word - what it looks like, what it sounds like, and what it means.

:Summary: Twenty Afrikaans-speaking students in grade 5 to 7 from a South African school for children with special educational were randomly assigned to an experimental and a control group. All children had previously been diagnosed with a reading disorder. The participants of the experimental group were given a 14-hour intervention based on certain Davis techniques, comprised of seven weekly sessions of two hours each. The control group received no intervention. Both groups were evaluated at the beginning and end of the study period by means of four measuring instruments to determine reading and spelling levels; the Davis group showed significant improvement on 3 of 4 of the measures. Follow-up tests performed 12 weeks later showed that the initial improvement had been maintained.

Davis Learning Strategies pilot study (published in a refereed journal)

:Title: The Effect of the Davis Learning Strategies on First Grade Word Recognition and Subsequent Special Education Referrals (Pfeiffer, Davis, Kellogg, Hern, McLaughlin, & Curry, 2001) (Report of 7-year pilot study of Davis Learning Strategies primary level classroom early intervention program)

:Summary: The purpose of this study was to measure the effects of integrating various Davis techniques, primarily Davis Symbol Mastery (the clay modeling of words and their meanings), on basic word recognition skills among primary level students. First grade students were tested on a list of 100 core sight words at the beginning of the school year, and again at the end of the school year. Students in 3 classrooms who received the Davis intervention were compared with a matched control group of students who did not receive the Davis program. Both groups scored similarly on pretests. The students receiving the Davis instruction scored significantly higher than the control group on the post-test, with 37 of 40 students scoring at or above 80% (mean score=9.70). Of the control group, only 28 of 46 students were able to recognize 80% or more of the words (mean score=8.02). Follow-up data on the Davis group indicated that there were no special education referrals from that group two years after the initial intervention.

:This research was conducted in California public schools from 1994-2000 and was sponsored by the and supervised by a professor at Gonzaga University in Spokane, Washington. The classroom teachers were trained and mentored by Davis Facilitators.

Comparison to traditional methods

The Davis Dyslexia Correction method represents a departure from traditional educational views of dyslexia and dyslexia remediation, and is viewed with skepticism by many mainstream educators. Traditional reading remedial programs typically teach phonetic strategies in addition to word recognition, vocabulary building, reading comprehension, fluency, and writing skills. The Davis method does not encourage reliance on phonetic strategies for word recognition.

The Davis approach is not strictly a method for teaching reading, as its aim is to address factors that trigger perceptual confusion and difficulty with attention focus, which are assumed to underly the reading difficulties, coupled with providing learning techniques that can be applied independently by the student in any context. The specific techniques for reading are geared to building letter sequencing and visual word recognition skills, and emphasize understanding of word meaning and sentence comprehension through association with visual imagery. The program emphasizes use of a dictionary and/or dictionary pronunciation key to provide an auditory component to word study, but it does not utilize or encourage phonetic segmenting or blending as a decoding strategy. The Davis method is premised on gearing teaching to the perceived visual-spatial learning strengths of students with dyslexia, rather than attempting to remediate weak phonetic skills.

A related program, Davis Learning Strategies, is an early intervention program geared to at-risk learners, rather than a dyslexia treatment program. While it incorporates many of the same techniques, it is given in a classroom setting and is intended to complement other classroom instruction. This is not a fee-based treatment program, but rather a classroom methodology that can be implemented by regular primary level teachers after attending a 2 or 3 day practical workshop.

Criticism

In 2001, the International Dyslexia Association included an article by Regina Cicci, Ph.D., about the Davis program in an issue of its newsletter Perspectives devoted to "Controversial Therapies" for dyslexia. Based on a review of the book The Gift of Dyslexia, the author concluded:
* There did not appear to be outside literature to support the Davis orientation and disorientation theories.
* Available reports on the method were largely anecdotal.
* The Davis methods ignore the phonological base for reading, even though widespread research shows that dyslexic children have difficulty associating printed letters to the sounds of speech.
* The Davis methods rely mostly on visual perceptual components of the learning process for reading and other literacy skills.

Cicci also stated that "Actual teaching to read or even teaching to learn seems absent from the Davis methods." The meaning of this statement is unclear, as the article also devoted several paragraphs to describing the Davis word study (Symbol Mastery) and reading practice exercises (Spell-Reading), without specific criticism of the methodology.

Cicci also raised concerns about the research design of the Davis Learning Strategies early intervention study because it was not specifically geared to children who could be identified as dyslexic.

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