system, prevents dyslexic readers from decoding words effectively, thus causing confusion with similar sounding words, or swapping letters inside a word to form a new word (42). In her same book, Shaywitz mentions that reading is more difficult than speaking for dyslexics —and anyone in general— because speaking is natural and reading is not – it is man made (52). An important issue that English language gives rise to are words that do not have a visual meaning which cause a blank image in a dyslexics mind. According to Ronald D. Davis, author of The Gift of Dyslexia, words that represent the relationships among concepts and ideas in text are some of the most difficult for dyslexics to decode (Davis, 12). Words like “that” “the”, and “at” do not invoke images in our minds. Dyslexics have trouble reading due to the fact that the words that communicate relationships among concepts are difficult to visualize (Davis, 12). visual abilities in dyslexics It is important to note that even though dyslexics have a phonologic weakness for decoding, their higher abilities of comprehension, reasoning and syntax are intact and are not affected. In fact, many dyslexics are found to have visual-spatial abilities and talents that help them compensate for their reading disability. A study titled, “Dyslexia linked to talent: Global Visual-Spatial ability” supports this claim: “In two investigations, [an association was found] between dyslexia and speed of recognition of impossible figures, a global visual-spatial task. This finding suggests that dyslexia is associated with a particular type of visual-spatial talent—enhanced ability to process visual-spatial information globally (holistically) rather than locally (part by part) (von Karolyi,
Winner et al.). In another article titled “An eye for the unusual: creative thinking in dyslexics” results from an investigation between developmental dyslexia and creative talents showed that “dyslexic adults presented consistent evidence of greater creativity in tasks requiring novelty or insight and more innovative styles of thinking; in contrast, dyslexic primary and secondary school children performed on a level with their non-dyslexic peers on a test which involved making drawings from a number of different shapes” (Everatt, J., Steffert, B. and Smythe, I.). Many dyslexics find using methods that combine words and images. In the book titled Dyslexia and Learning Style: Practitioner’s Handbook, Tilly Mortimore describes the use of concept maps as one of the teaching tools for dyslexics, with this method, the ideas are not spelled out verbally rather, the emphasis is placed on the ability of the brain to make connections. This method shows the whole of a topic and is not necessarily orderly or sequential which is helpful for dyslexics that have trouble with sequencing (23). case studies: designing for dyslexia For designers, bringing together words and images is not new with the topic of information visualization. How can designers use cues from this method to create a similar approach for an audience with dyslexia? Oliver West, a visual thinking specialist offers insight into visual thinking techniques that can be used for people who cannot process words and the act of reading. His Footnotes Technique uses drawn images to communicate thoughts on a grid. Pictures can be drawn in any sequence and the idea is to create a map of information with-
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