Prolonged Phase of Inertia: Overcoming the Drag

The Big Bang

As a child, growing up with Dyslexia, in the 1970's, I did not find school fun. Nor, did learning come easy for me. The standard classroom set up was, desks in rows, teacher at the front lecturing, students taking notes, and then a worksheet for homework. This was pretty much a standard routine, in all of my classes. We had some labs in science, albeit, a cookie cutter one, with step by step instructions, leaving no room for deviation or discovery. This regiment of learning is exhausting for any child, even more so, for one struggling with Dyslexia.

I had to adjust to my disability quickly, my teachers were not going to repeat the notes and they expected me to take thorough ones. They checked them at the end of class. This generally put me in a tail-spin, because I was so focused on trying to take notes, that I missed 1/3 of everything they were saying. Needless to say, I didn't get good grades. I was a left-handed, Dyslexic student, sitting at a right-handed desk (there were no left-handed desks), who was expected to write quickly, understand content the first time, and most importantly, to not ask questions. My teachers hated it when we asked questions. So adjusting, became my middle name. Basically, I faked it.

I scribbled some nonsense down, as my teachers were direct teaching and added some numbers and drawings, for good measure. My notes never made sense, but because the teacher had to check 30 sets of them, by scanning not reading, I learned quickly, how to cheat the system. This got my teacher off my back, but it sunk me into a deep hole of despair. I had zero notes and no way to get the information, except to read the textbook. I was a slow reader and it took me hours to read one chapter. This would get me a glare and disapproving comment, from my mother, who thought I was playing around, rather than doing my homework. Except, I was doing my homework. What took most kids 30-40 minutes to complete, took me 2-3 hours. I rarely completed my homework, because I spent all my time reading the textbook, to get the notes, I was missing out on, in class. Vicious circle. Brutal epiphany.

Expansion

I had to change my tactics. By middle-school, I had mastered the art of note-taking. It took me a little longer, to become a ferocious reader, but once I did, the world was my oyster. Now, I read every day and it has become a joy for me. I just finished an amazing book. David and Goliath by Malcolm Gladwell. In his book, he explains that we all have natural talents, skills we excel at, those that come easily to us. They are the tasks we enjoy, because we don't have to think about them much. We just lean in and do them. We may improve our craft, broaden our skill base. But, in this case, we are adding accomplishments and comprehension, to an already firm foundation. Capitalization learning occurs when we are fortifying knowledge, strengthening our technique and expanding our command of information.

Gladwell compares capitalization learning with compensation learning, which occurs when we are weak in one area and are trying to fix it. For instance with Dyslexic students, like myself, we tend to become great listeners, because we often struggle with reading, this is an attribute that has helped me a lot in my adult life. I do not have to focus, on detailed note-taking, rather simply listening intently and I remember most, of any lecture. A task that you labor with, like reading, can be beneficial, a desirable difficulty, forcing you to adapt to note-taking and reading difficult textbooks, by concentrating on spoken rather than written words. Or, it may cause some detrimental results, like when we give up on a task or project, out of irritation and exhaustion. Which, ultimately, leads to self-doubt and low self-esteem.

Compensation learning is difficult and arduous. Frustrating and prolonged. But, with determination and momentum, we can move past the inertia and eliminate the lack of friction that is slowing our pace. However, before we can overcome our obstacles, we have to accept that we have limitations and find strategies to minimize them. This can be difficult for students. They may not understand why they are not successful in a class, even when they are doing all their homework. Why they study hours for a test, yet still fail it. This is why building relationships with our students is essential. When we truly understand how our students learn, we can design lessons that best match their skill-set. But, when we know how they think, what makes them tick, we know how challenging we can make our activities. We recognize when they are shutting down and tuning out, before they do. So, we have counter-measures in place, to break those prolonged phases of inertia. We have thrusters at the ready, to give the burst of energy needed, to redirect their course. The more we listen, the more we can help our students. We have to make sure students reflect and understand how they think. We have to help them see their limitations, but rather than succumb to them, use them as desirable difficulties rather than determining factors.

Galaxy Stabilized

I was attending elementary school before Dyslexia was recognized and treated. But, I can tell you the experience of being misunderstood and labelled as an underachiever, turned out to be for me, very much desirable difficulties, because they pushed me to become a good listener and independent thinker. I had to find my own strategies to compensate for my interruptions. I call them interruptions because they started as prolonged inertia, a halting of my learning, but over-time became brief setbacks. Slight alterations to my plans. I had to study harder in college (I graduated with my first Bachelor's before computers or the Internet). I had to make sure I could stream-line my notes, basically use short-hand, because in the massive lecture halls at UCLA, professors were not going to repeat themselves or answer questions. I had to acquire new skills. These new skills, let’s call them, the grease on my wheels, have allowed me to maintain my course. Dyslexia is permanent, but the adversities are beatable- we just have to generate enough power to overcome the drag.

Create a safe-haven: both stable and nuanced. Be active: in listening and interacting. Understand the dilemma inside a child's mind. Their struggles. Their inconsistencies. Start the spin and let gravity take over. Create a place where uniqueness and failure are welcomed. Where challenges are accepted. This is when a galaxy forms. It expands with the voices of dissension and disturbance. Until finally, it holds its place, forms its expansive shape and yields to the nature of gravity. Gravity, the force of interaction and collaboration. When teachers and students cooperate, no one gets left behind.