Page 41 - Part-A

Understanding Specific Learning Difficulties

R Further Research: ADHD

Use the following link to read a newspaper article entitled ADHD,
my marriage and me. The article tells Lucy Nichol’s story about
her husband’s ADHD, which was diagnosed later in life, and how
this affects them both in their day-to-day lives.
https://inews.co.uk/essentials/lifestyle/wellbeing/i-didnt-know-
husband-adhd-i-met-neither/

How attitudes and lack of understanding can impact
individuals with Specific Learning Difficulties

Behaviours of people with SpLDs can be misinterpreted or mistaken for other
attributes. For example, a person who demonstrates poor social skills, is abrupt
and has excessively loud speech may be labelled as aggressive, and someone who
appears clumsy or whose speech is unclear may be suspected of being drunk or
a drug user. A lack of eye contact can be misinterpreted as being shifty, and a bad
reaction to stress can be misinterpreted as aggression.
In a court of law, a person with an SpLD giving evidence can lead to misinterpretations
and have a negative impact on the court’s decisions.

Case Study: Experiences in court

I lost a child care battle this week due to my severe dyslexia. I
experienced total disorientation, visual and audio isolation. I could
hear things going on but nothing seemed to register or make sense.
Important questions were garbled and distorted and in some cases
the questions didn’t even register. I had an overwhelming sensation
of being in a tunnel.

I was asked (unexpectedly) to recall events of several years ago in
detail. The order of how I recalled the events was vital to my case.
However, I was unable to access my memories of the events clearly
and what I did manage to remember I was unable to express in a
chronological order or with any clarity.
This was interpreted as evasiveness and I was criticised heavily for
not being able to ‘keep to my story’.

Source: http://www.bdadyslexia.org.uk/common/ckeditor/
filemanager/userfiles/Justice_guide_to_SpLDs.pdf

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