How Microsoft's Immersive Reader tackles Dyslexia head on — and wins

I read the above-captioned article on the internet this morning. Here are some extracts and my comments.

Dyslexia is a language-based learning disability that makes reading, interpreting words, letters, and other symbols difficult. See how Microsoft is helping those who suffer from it.

My comment: I have written about the above definition many times and I repeat. This is the kind of nonsense that people with vested interest write and gullible readers read and believe. If one can speak but is unable to read in English can you claim it to be a language based problem? Do the millions of kids who can read in Italian, Malay, Spanish and many other languages but are unable to read in English have a language-based learning disability?

Dyslexia affects five to 10-percent of the world's population with more than an estimated one in five children affected in the U.S. Dyslexia does not affect intelligence.

My comment: I don’t know where these guys get their statistics from but let us say we agree with the above statement. If 10% of the world population are dyslexic but 20% (one in 5) is estimated as dyslexic in the US then to say Dyslexia is a language learning disability cannot be correct, can it? It has to be a problem in reading in English.

Why is an advanced country like the US having 20% who cannot read while the world average is 5 to 10%?

Dyslexia impacts men and women equally and is found among all demographics and across all social-economic levels. It has a more profound impact, however, in low social-economic communities resulting in higher reading failure rates due to insufficient support. Many school districts don't have the resources or (in my experience as a special education advocate) prefer not to tackle Dyslexia due to the cost of supporting students if the disability is acknowledged.

My comment: Is the article saying that the US has a higher ‘low social-economic community’ than the rest of the world?

Every year millions of students with dyslexia have needs that are not directly addressed as cash-strapped school systems create accommodation plans that show that they're doing "something" while not doing exactly what is needed for the student. More appropriate and costly supports, like an Orton Gillingham tutor (trained to help students with Dyslexia) and other methods are often bypassed ultimately resulting in schools failing to give these students a free and appropriate education (FAPE).

My comment: If educators are not willing to listen to experienced teachers who have successfully taught so-called dyslexic kids for more than a decade than no one can help the ill informed US. We have educators of teachers like Timothy Shanahan and David Boulton who instead of discussing matters brought to them delete comments and disconnect well meaning teachers who disagree with their findings.

What does “while not doing exactly what is needed for the student” mean? Does anyone in the US know what is needed for the student who cannot read?

Is this an advertisement for Orton Gillingham?

A majority of children who are classified as dyslexic can easily be prevented from going for remediation if they are taught correctly in the first place.

Many parents, after leaving a Planning and Team Meeting (PPT) where support for their child are discussed with teachers and school administrators, feel powerless when unyielding administrators don't provide the tools their child needs.

My comment: What tools do these children need other than being taught correctly from the onset?