Developing Dyslexic Thinking

The new type of intelligence the world needs now

Throughout history, each Industrial Revolution has shaped the skills humanity has needed to develop: from steam power to electricity, computers to digital connectivity. Now, as we stand on the cusp of the Fifth Industrial Revolution, powered by minds and machines, modern-day Artificial Intelligence (AI) is reframing the type of thinking critical for success.

As Made By Dyslexia’s Intelligence 5.0 report finds: creativity, problem-solving and communication skills are now the most sought-after skills in every job, in every sector, worldwide. These skills are inherent to one particular group of people: dyslexics. But these skills are not accounted for in traditional measures of intelligence. For decades, the standardised tests which are used to measure, grade and select learners have disadvantaged those who excel in these sought after soft skills. That’s why Made by Dyslexia is calling for a radical shift in how the world talks about, teaches and measures intelligence. Traditional metrics like exams and psychometric tests fail to capture the human-centric skills needed for our new Fifth Industrial world. Research conducted by YouGov for the Intelligence 5.0 report found that just 6% of our global respondents believe scoring highly in exams is the best indicator of intelligence, and only 5% believe scoring highly in psychometric tests is the best indicator of intelligence. What’s needed is a systemic shift in education and the workplace to recognise the new intelligence that our modern world needs. The report comes as the UK government launches an extensive Curriculum and Assessment Review aimed at modernising and enhancing the education system, from Key Stage 1 through to Key Stage 5. This review, chaired by Professor Becky Francis, seeks to address the challenges in the current curriculum and assessment framework, focusing on inclusivity, excellence and preparing students for life and work.

As our report points out, our current education system prioritises easily tested skills like rote memorisation and recall; spelling, punctuation and grammar; but these are the skills most likely to be taken over by AI. The skills which our fast-changing world needs are creativity, critical thinking and applying knowledge innovatively - all Dyslexic Thinking skills.

With over 1 billion jobs expected to transform due to technology by 2030, it’s clear that a new approach to workforce development is needed. Andreas Schleicher, Director of Education and Skills at the OECD, says the world must focus on developing the human skills that complement AI, creating “firstclass humans, not second-class robots.”

Following the release of the OECD’s 2024 report, Social and Emotional Skills for Better Lives, he emphasised the need for education systems to create environments that foster social and emotional skills, saying: “They are what makes us human in a world of Artificial Intelligence […] Our assessment systems must make the invisible visible – the creativity, the curiosity, the empathy, the trust, the persistence, visible and tangible for educators.” These are the skills the world needs and these are the skills that dyslexics are hard-wired with.

To teach the intelligence the world needs, Made By Dyslexia has launched the DyslexicU –the world’s first University of Dyslexic Thinking.

Welcome to DyslexicU, the University of Dyslexic Thinking Housed on Open University, this innovative, free learning platform is for anyone, at any stage of life, with a curiosity to learn more about the skills relevant to our new AI-powered world. DyslexicU courses will enable dyslexics to learn more about their Dyslexic Thinking skills and non-dyslexics to learn about Dyslexic Thinking.

How DyslexicU works

DyslexicU aims to provide a new school of thought to teach the world the unique abilities of Dyslexic Thinking. This will be done through inspirational short video courses, presented by myself, and will feature experts and successful dyslexic thinkers from a variety of fields. These notable ‘lecturers’ reveal the extraordinary power of Dyslexic Thinking, talking about how their Dyslexic Thinking has fuelled innovation and the lessons we can gain from their experiences.

Contributing dyslexics include: Virgin Group founder Sir Richard Branson, Dash Water founder Alex Wright, Activist Erin Brockovich, Activist Princess Sarah Zeid and many more.

For too long, traditional learning environments have ignored Dyslexia, a gamechanging and emotional creative intelligence which has solved many of mankind’s challenges and created leaps in innovation from the lightbulb to the iPhone.

Our new research has found that the intelligence the world now needs is changing, and the skills inherent to dyslexics are the most sought-after skills in every sector globally.

Supporting teachers and workplaces to recognise Dyslexic Thinking skills will empower everyone for success and drive innovation in a changing world.

KATE GRIGGS Founder of Made By Dyslexia and DyslexicU www.madebydyslexia.org www.dyslexicu.org