Learning Disability in High School:
Question and Answer
QUESTION:
I have a sixteen year old son that has always struggled with school. We've been homeschooling since fifth grade, which helps, but everything is still just really difficult for him compared to most kids. In particular, he struggles with reading comprehension and long term memory. We did vision therapy last year, which helped slightly and we also do Brain Builder software.
Can the Audiblox program be used with a teenager?
ANSWER:
When you read this answer please keep in mind that
Human learning does not take place on a single level — it is a stratified process. For example, one must teach a child to count before one can teach him to add and subtract. Suppose one tried to teach a child, who had not yet learned to count, to add and subtract. This would be quite impossible and no amount of effort would ever succeed in teaching the child to add and subtract.
The cause of a reading problem is that the foundational skills of reading have not been automated yet.
Audiblox develops and automates the foundational skills of reading (and spelling and writing).
The cause of an adult’s, a teenager’s, and a child’s reading problem is exactly the same, namely that foundational skills have not been automated. Regardless of the age of a person, the solution to the problem remains that these skills must be taught and practiced until they become automatisms. An example should make this clear.
Suppose there was a man of 50 years who has never learned to count and therefore cannot add and subtract. The fact that he is already 50 years old does not mean that there must be a different way for him to learn to add and subtract. He must also first learn to count, and only then will it be possible for him to learn to do calculations.
In the same way, if one should encounter an adult (or teenager) who has a reading problem, there is no other way to improve his reading ability than by first teaching and practicing the skills foundational to reading. It is also never too late to do something about such a learning problem, because it is just as meaningful to improve the quality of life of the older person as it is of the younger one.
Below you will find links to pages containing stories of teenagers and adults who used Audiblox:
The program in Chapter 20 of The Right to Read — and most of the exercises in the program — is quite suitable for most teenagers. At the bottom of page 231 appears a list of the exercises that may be omitted. In the supplementary manual you will also find a more advanced program. However, this program is only recommended for teenagers who are only about a year behind in reading. If the teenager is more than a year behind in reading he/she has to follow the program in The Right to Read first, before doing the advanced program.
In all the cases so far where Audiblox did not achieve good results with teenagers, the reason could usually be found in a negative attitude towards work and learning.
A favorable predisposition towards work and learning consists of the following qualities:
Motivation and perseverance: A child must be taught to keep on trying even if he does not succeed the first time;
A positive attitude: A child must be taught to be positive toward his work. He must, in other words, be task orientated and attach value to the end product;
A sense of responsibility: A child must be taught that there are some things in life that one HAS to do, even though one may not like doing them.
One can teach a young child these qualities, but it is no longer possible to teach them to a sixteen-year old. It is simply too late. Therefore, Audiblox is not recommended if a teenager displays a negative attitude towards work and learning.
Audiblox can be applied one-on-one and in a group setting.
For more information on Audiblox visit Audiblox2000.com
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Learning and Learning Disabilities
