Many people think they know what dyslexia and Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are, yet common misconceptions still surround both. Girls with dyslexia and ADHD are among many students at Xavier College Prep working to succeed while managing these learning differences.
Dyslexia and ADHD are both learning differences that affect how students think, focus and learn. People with dyslexia may receive information differently and might read at a slower pace, see words in 3D or struggle with spelling words correctly (this varies with different types of dyslexia).
Shannon Donaldson, moderator of Xavier’s Academic Resource Center (ARC) and a mother and aunt to two Xavier graduates with dyslexia, said, “I think that the greatest misconception about people with ADHD and dyslexia is the IQ part. I think people are afraid of the label but I think for a student who has either it’s important to know why you might be a little bit different. I think with those labels sometimes other people think some of those things, that the student is in some way defective and you know that’s not true at all.”
She also mentioned that some of the smartest people of all time have and had dyslexia, including Albert Einstein.
Some misconceptions about dyslexia, especially, are that everyone with dyslexia sees words backwards. Alex Katsenes ‘28 and Madison Minnitti ‘28 both confirmed that this is not true.
ADHD can influence attention and energy levels in academic settings, affecting how students participate and focus in class. As with dyslexia, these differences are not tied to intelligence but rather to how a student’s brain processes information.
Katsenes, who has both ADHD and dyslexia, said, “Being a student at Xavier is definitely very hard. I have to work a lot harder every day but I find ways to make it easier.”
Some of the things she does to make school easier are using audio books, breaking up homework into smaller parts and taking her time with tasks.
Even with her struggles, Katsenes has discovered strengths that she has gained because of ADHD and dyslexia.
She is good at deciphering patterns and notices small things that most people wouldn’t notice. Minnitti, who also has dyslexia, said. “Dyslexia has pushed me to become a harder worker, teaching me to improve my work ethic because of it.”
Minnitti says that she sees words in 3D while reading and has a more visual type of dyslexia, while Katsenes says that what makes dyslexia more challenging for her is reading aloud and distinguishing different words, making her dyslexia more auditory.
Both of these students, despite their learning differences, take honors classes at Xavier and perform exceptionally. They aren’t the only students with learning differences who do very well at Xavier.
Xavier’s new Strategies class supports students with learning differences by helping strengthen reading and study skills. It provides tools that allow students to succeed alongside their peers. At this time, there are 45 students in the class.
ADHD and dyslexia are not the same, and both include different types. Not everyone who has dyslexia is automatically a poor speller, and not everyone who has ADHD has poor focus or can’t sit still.
Having learning differences does not make anyone less intelligent. Dyslexia or ADHD does not mean that there is anything wrong with the way someone learns. Everyone learns differently and those differences should be understood and respected.
