I see we are now getting to the point where nonsense takes over.

The idea that dyslexia is a gift is simple horlicks. It is a specific learning difficulty. You can call it a disability of you like - I don't and never have. End of.

And Ron Davis, who calls it a gift, also calls it a problem and sets out to cure it. Remarkably he has just the answer to get rid of the "gift". and it is a mere £1500.00. You know, if I knew the answer I'd give it away.

Here is what he says -

Davis Dyslexia Correction® provides tools to overcome problems with reading, writing, and attention focus. These methods enable children and adults to recognize and control the mental processes that cause distorted perceptions of letters and words. Once students can be sure that their perceptions are accurate, they can resolve the underlying cause of their learning difficulties through methods that build upon their creative and imaginative strengths.

Actually - that's precisely what specialist dyslexia teachers do if it is appropriate, though it isn't always.

The only difference is it's £1500.00 less expensive. The problem is that instead of spending the money on such specialist dyslexia teachers (and they are very rare) people prefer not to pay taxes.

It also costs money to train such teachers. The vast majority are practising teachers who study at night and perhaps get one day a week off their normal job to do the training and work experience it entails.

And the idea that someone can tell which musicians are dyslexic by looking at them is also horlicks unless you are a most insensitive person.

How could anyone know for sure? Do someone really go up to them and say "Excuse me but it seems to me that you are dyslexic - do you mind me asking if it is true" or some such nonsense?

And how does anyone then know they have told you the truth? I can think of a number of reasons why they might not want someone to know.

Anyone with this remarkable instinct for people with dyslexia shouild think about selling their services~!! It would save a lot of people a lot of money to have someone standing there watching people perform various tasks and saying "Dyslexic - Not Dyslexic - Not sure" as people did things in front of them.

Anyone who claims this might ponder on how they know someone is dyslexic from a bad speller.

I am still waiting for someone to show me the detailed evidence that shows a connection between dyslexia and creativity.

The Sheffield College where I used to work tries to test every single student for dyslexia and similar specific learning difficulties on entry, first of all with a simple screening test and then later if necessary with a more complex series of tests if needed. Many schools do not have that sort of facility, the college does.

Not infallible I grant you but it does sometimes help with early identification. In fact many specific learning difficulties are picked up at an early age nowadays - well before people get to college. Whether schools can afford to do something about them is a different matter.

(The one-to-one teaching that is often needed with learning difficulties is very expensive. It is why I believe in some cases that home education is an alternative. But I also believe such education needs to be structured and precise. I also feel a good case can be made for subsidising this work).

As far as I am aware there is little difference between the departments of the college as to the proportion of students with any particular difficulty. The particular part of the Sheffield College where I worked is a specialist art, sport and computing college with a wide range of "A" level provision as well, so you would have thought something might have shown up. As far as I know (1988 - 2003 when I worked there) nothing has.

Now if anyone has any evidence to contradict that from somewhere else? I really would love to see it.