On the 12th March Dr Neil Alexander-Passe came to speak at the Adult Dyslexia Support Group. The discussion began with Dr Alexander-Passe telling us a little about his background, the books he’s written and some facts and figures revolving around dyslexia.
The Discussion Around Dyslexia
We discussed how dyslexia is perceived and many of the answers were negative. There was a correlation between being dyslexic and the following:
- Organisation and processing difficulties
- Learning and comprehension difficulties
- Self-esteem and confidence
- Mental health
- Neurodiversity
- Problems with reading, writing, spelling and grammar
- Short term memory
Books by Dr. Neil Alexander-Passe a.k.a. Alex Nile:
Neil discussed how the issues of dyslexia aren’t openly spoken in classrooms in order to avoid children feeling humiliation or to reduce truancy rates. However, this has also meant that the problem wasn’t getting addressed, nor was their potential being discovered. Learning difficulties rise from 10.8% in primary to 23.3% because problems go undetected at a young age. Parents of dyslexic children will often try to make their children’s homework look “perfect” by correcting the homework themselves before it is handed to the
In the discussion, Neil also mentioned a few statistics. For example, 45.5% of dyslexics were not diagnosed at school and 48% are NOT diagnosed until they reach adulthood
Neil’s Background
Neil went to an art college after school with 5 O levels. Neil went to Art College (university) to gain a BA Hons in Graphic Design and was the start of a 19-year career as a graphic designer in banks, advertising companies, magazine and travel companies. He studied an MPhil, a part-time research masters in dyslexia and emotional coping (1999-2004). This was the start of a transition into SEN (special educational needs). First as a disability employment adviser for Remploy (2010) and secondly training to be a teacher (2010-11). SEN in schools has reduced from 21.1% to 14.4% in UK schools over the last 6 years. (UK National Statistic, 2016) They have changed the way that they record it. Before it was recorded by need and now it’s the provision served. 5 0r 6 % have a need but no help. He mentioned about the postcode lottery as to whether you can get SEND in UK schools. Despite being Dyslexic, Neil managed to overcome challenges. In 2005, he gained an MPhil on researching how dyslexic teenagers cope using measures of self-esteem, coping and depression, leading to a spell as a postgraduate researcher. In 2010 he published his first book ‘Dyslexia and Depression: The Hidden Sorrow’.
He is passionate about understanding the difficulties and trauma many dyslexics face whilst at school. In fact, even when we discussed the meaning of dyslexia. The consensus was that it was a difficulty associated with
Neil’s Publications
Neil’s academic books include two edited volumes investigating ‘Dyslexia and Creativity’ (2010) and ‘Dyslexia and Mental Health’ (2012) and a book investigating ‘Dyslexia, Dating, Marriage and Parenthood’ (2012). Nine peer-review papers have been published to date and his latest book ‘Dyslexia and Mental Health: Helping people identify destructive
He has also written fiction books:
- The Deceitful Dyslexic
- The Ultimate Dyslexic Battleground
- The Dyslexic Virus
Books by Dr. Neil Alexander-Passe a.k.a. Alex Nile:
Under the Pen Name of Alex Nile
Dyslexia and Mental Health explore how dyslexia is not just a learning difficulty. In fact, it can result in social stigma in people who lack
The SEN Differentiations is a guide aimed at teachers who are overwhelmed by the negative