Sunday, January 28, 2007

Dysgraphia/written output struggles -- we want to hear from you

There's a very interesting comment been posted at an earlier posting http://writtenoutputdisorder.blogspot.com/2007/01/dysgraphia-vs-written-output-disorder.html on this blog that I encourage you all to read.

Brent, just about to graduate with his master degree, (bravo!) details his background being gifted with dysgraphia.

It's very insightful to hear these stories. There's so few resources on written output struggles and first hand accounts are fascinating and help us gain a better understanding.

At the library yesterday I was looking at Samuel Beckett's theatrical notebooks. They were written in a squared notebook. I looked at three of them, curious to see how long he could maintain such upright, clear writing. In two of them it slanted to the right. While I was looking at them, (they are actually in German) I remembered the terrible cramps in my hands writing essays and exams. It made me wonder if unbeknownst to me at the time I had had my own struggles with physical writing. Obviously they did not impede me to the extent that I see my own child challenged by them, but I am far more fluid on a keyboard.

I often noticed that doctors handwriting can be completely illegible for example. It would be very interesting to hear from people who have been challenged by written output and have had to make choices based on those challenges because I am thinking the implications forty or fifty years ago of such a challenge would have been vastly different from today where accommodations can be made with technology.

A lawyer recently told me he was most certainly penalised for his poor handwriting all the way through university.

If you know anyone with such stories please encourage them email to writtenoutputdisorder.blogspot.com if they do not wish to comment on the actual blog. I can post them anon. as blog postings if they prefer. I'm very happy for people to consider this compiling of information rather than "sharing" of stories, which understandably not everyone feels comfortable with. Most people reading this blog are looking for strategies, so it's very valuable to hear the strategies people used to cope and what the implications of these challenges have been for them if they care to disclose. If not, that's fine. In short just tell us what got you through.

Someone recently suggested to me that one way to deal with ADD is to accept you might need to have five different careers in your lifetime. I thought that was quite a genius of a concept.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Ghotit (www.Ghotit.com) offers unique writing and reading online services for people who suffer from dyslexia, dysgraphia or people who are not native-English speakers. Ghotit’s first service is an online context sensitive spell checker.

What people have to say:

My god I have been look for this for all-my life, help that understands me. I write with a dictionary and thesaurus and some times cant even find the word looking for. I could not hold back the tears from the emotion then when I worked out how helpful this spellchecker will be for me.

• i really like it and i'm so glad i found it!! it will really help with my homework etc and my teachers wont get angry at me annymore!!

• Thank you for contacting us with your product. I tinkered with the spell checker for sometime this morning, entering common mistakes that our dyslexic students (and ADD) students make in spelling. I must say that I am extremely impressed with your product and would certainly like to further evaluate it with our students over the next several weeks.

• that spell checker is SO good, its actually waaay better than microsoft because it tells you the reasen why you are usuing the correct word. i really like it, its really good!!

Anonymous said...

You might be interested in a better spell checker for people with Dyslexia

Ginger Software has developed groundbreaking text-correction technology that is unparalleled in the industry. Ginger Software is the only automatic text correction software available today.

With Ginger in the mix, you get:

• Automatic correction of entire sentences
Ginger automatically replaces incorrect words with accurate alternatives. Other spell checkers require users to review each individual error and manually select an alternative.

• Correction of unusual spelling mistakes
With a single click, Ginger automatically corrects unusual spelling mistakes at a level unmatched by other spell checkers. For example: “phisik is my faverd sudgekt” is automatically changed to “physics is my favorite subject“.

• Correction of misused words
Ginger identifies and automatically corrects misused words that other spell checkers do not pick up. For example, “Which which is which” is automatically corrected to “Which witch is which”.

• Accurate results that make your point
Ginger's unique technology corrects words by analyzing their context. Other spell checkers perform limited, if any, contextual analysis. Ginger makes accurate word replacements by taking your intention into account.

• Successful Beta trials
Ginger is used by schools, universities and dyslexia organizations in the US and the UK.

Ginger Software’s beta version is available for download FREE OF CHARGE at: Ginger spell checker

Sincerely,

The Ginger Team

www.gingersoftware.com

Anonymous said...

A better spell checker for people with Dyslexia

Ginger Software has developed groundbreaking text-correction technology that is unparalleled in the industry. Ginger Software is the only automatic text correction software available today.

With Ginger in the mix, you get:

• Automatic correction of entire sentences
Ginger automatically replaces incorrect words with accurate alternatives. Other spell checkers require users to review each individual error and manually select an alternative.

• Correction of unusual spelling mistakes
With a single click, Ginger automatically corrects unusual spelling mistakes at a level unmatched by other spell checkers. For example: “phisik is my faverd sudgekt” is automatically changed to “physics is my favorite subject“.

• Correction of misused words
Ginger identifies and automatically corrects misused words that other spell checkers do not pick up. For example, “Which which is which” is automatically corrected to “Which witch is which”.

• Accurate results that make your point
Ginger's unique technology corrects words by analyzing their context. Other spell checkers perform limited, if any, contextual analysis. Ginger makes accurate word replacements by taking your intention into account.

• Successful Beta trials
Ginger is used by schools, universities and dyslexia organizations in the US and the UK.

Ginger Software’s beta version is available for download FREE OF CHARGE at: Ginger Spell checker

Sincerely,

The Ginger Team

www.gingersoftware.com