Nonie Lesaux

2001 Research Trainee Award, PhD

The Early Identification and Intervention for Children At-risk for Developing Dyslexia

Dyslexia affects a person's ability to process language in order to learn to read. If undetected and untreated, the neurological disorder can lead to antisocial behaviour, depression, suicide and other consequences. Nonie Lesaux's initial research on dyslexia revealed the persistent nature of literacy problems in adults, convincing her of the critical need to identify children at-risk of developing the disorder and intervene at an early stage. Now Lesaux is researching the effectiveness of a kindergarten intervention program for at-risk students, with a particular interest in the social and environmental factors that compound this disorder. Because dyslexia often goes undetected among low-income groups and those who speak English as a second language (ESL), Lesaux is specifically focusing on the effectiveness of the intervention program for children from low-income and ESL families. She hopes that a key result of the research will be a kindergarten screening tool to easily and accurately identify dyslexia in children. Completed PhD, April 2003

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