Hi Marcus,
Your question brings to light a common myth that many parents and educators alike have about dyslexia. The myth is that dyslexia stems from a vision issue. But dyslexia is not a visual impairment. Students with dyslexia do not see double vision, backwards letters, or moving letters because of their dyslexia. Instead, we talk about dyslexia as a language-based learning disorder. This means that a blind learner who reads using braille can also be dyslexic.
But more to your point, when you ask about whether we can use vision as a way to diagnose dyslexia, the short answer is no. Anecdotally, students with reading difficulties do sometimes report symptoms of eye strain. There’s a lot of speculation as to why this happens for students without visual impairments, and we don’t have one exact reason, but the phenomenon is not uncommon. Still, the best way to diagnose dyslexia is by using a literacy diagnostic assessment that is well-supported by evidence. Schools can also use screeners or early warning indicators to help identify students who may be at risk for reading difficulties, such as dyslexia, and allow us to provide early support to these students.
As I said, though, the myth about dyslexia being a visual problem is pervasive. This misconception has led to all sorts of dyslexia “treatments” (e.g., vision therapy, training glasses, tinted filters, special fonts) that, frankly, don’t work. It’s such a problem in the field that many joint medical associations have put together statements (such as this statement from the American Academy of Ophthalmology) condemning these “treatments” for dyslexia that lack scientific evidence. At the same time, this myth is admittedly a little difficult to wrap our heads around. It’s not intuitive that dyslexia isn’t related to vision because most of us perceive the words we read using our eyes. So it seems like a difficulty with reading must have something to do with how we see the words (seem being the operative word). Although that’s not true, by this same logic, it does actually make sense to screen for vision problems because an issue would make reading harder. That’s one reason why a vision screening is part of our children’s pediatric care. In fact, the process to look for vision issues should be similar to the process to look for dyslexia. Pediatricians start by screening all children for vision difficulties at established intervals. If there are signs of difficulties, an ophthalmologist or optometrist completes a comprehensive medical exam (which can be likened to a diagnostic reading assessment) to diagnose any defects and then provide evidence-based treatment.
The part of your question that is unanswered is why your specific student is reporting these atypical visual distortions. The only way to truly know if they are related to a vision problem is to see a medical professional. Certainly, if they are having a difficult time seeing, this is going to make reading more difficult. And while it’s entirely possible the child has a visual impairment, it’s also possible they don’t. The only way to really know is to have an eye exam. The same could be said for their reading difficulties. The only way to really know if the child has dyslexia is to test for it. The child may have dyslexia, and, again, it’s possible they do not.
Regardless, any labels that come out of testing are only the start of fixing the identified problems. The real work is in providing evidence-based interventions that target the needs of the student. On that note, keep up the hard work, attuning to the needs of your student, and remember, reading takes place in the brain, not the eyes!
