Fall 2021 The Beacon
Research Roundup
The Role of Implicit Bias: Dyslexia Diagnosis and Race By Resha Conroy, Dyslexia Alliance for Black Children Founder
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cross school districts in the United States, parents of According to The Nation’s Report Card, an alarming 82% of children with dyslexia share an eerily similar narrative of Black fourth graders were not reading at proficient levels compared the barriers faced when seeking a diagnosis. The stories to 65% of all fourth graders (NAEP, 2019). A study conducted in echo language, often voiced by public school administrators and 2016 sought to determine how the public perceived differences in educators, that takes a “wait to fail” approach or that blames test scores by race. When asked, “How much of the difference in students and families for academic difficulties. Likewise, families of test scores between White students and Black students can be Black children with dyslexia echo the same story, with the added explained by discrimination against Black individuals or injustices layer of language rooted in historical and systemic racism: the in society?” Nearly half (44%) of respondents chose “None.” Only language of low expectations, misinterpretation of developmentally 10% chose “A great deal” (Valant & Newark, 2016). The results appropriate behaviors, and the exclusion of families as partners in reflect a lack of understanding of historical factors and the effects of educational decisions. The consistent nature of these narratives, systemic racism and fuel implicit bias. supported by quantitative data demonstrating disproportionate Dyslexia is the most common learning disability (Peterson & adverse outcomes, highlights the impact of systemic racism for Pennington, 2015) and is reported to affect 5-17% of the Black children with dyslexia. population (Butterworth & Kovas, 2013; Shaywitz, 1998). With the prohibitively expensive nature of private evaluations, According to the National Center for Education Statistics, only the public education system’s 4.5% of students in public schools ability to identify students remains are diagnosed with "specific The examination of implicit bias the most likely access to diagnosis. language disorders," which include However, the public education dyslexia, dysgraphia, and dyscalculia must not be confused with a system's failure to identify dyslexia (Hanford, 2017). The diagnosis is game of blame, but rather a move even less for Black children, who are disproportionately impacts students of color (Hettleman, underdiagnosed and misdiagnosed. towards professional excellence 2003). Unfortunately, It circles back to the question, unremediated dyslexia leads to honoring and serving all students. "Why?" Why are Black children less decreased self-esteem, increased likely to be identified with dyslexia? frustration, and stress for students. Although many causal factors must Perhaps even without knowing the statistics, many families be considered, implicit bias appears to contribute to the intuitively realize the protective factors of literacy. Protective factors underdiagnosis of dyslexia in Black individuals. are typically defined as characteristics of an individual or What is Implicit Bias? environment that reduce the negative effect of adversities (Mastern The examination of implicit bias must not be confused with a game & Reed, 2002). Families with resources resort to private and costly of blame, but rather a move towards professional excellence evaluations, making dyslexia seemingly a diagnosis of privilege. Yet, honoring and serving all students. Implicit bias is a term coined by literacy is not a privilege; it is a human right. The United Nations psychologists Mahzarin Banaji and Anthony Greenwald, where they includes education, including literacy, as a human right, acknowledging that lack of literacy negatively impacts life outcomes suggested that social behavior is influenced by unconscious associations and judgments (Greenwald & Banaji, 1995). Since (UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 1948). McKinsey & Company’s The Economic Impact of the Achievement Gap in America’s 1995, psychologists have extensively researched implicit biases and found that we all possess implicit biases (Ruhl, 2020). Implicit bias Schools states, “The perpetuation of illiteracy leads to ‘heavy and related to race and ethnicity is the psychological residue of persistent often tragic consequences, via lower earnings, poorer health and structural racism (Dhaliwal, et.al., 2020). higher rates of incarceration’” (Auguste et al., 2009).
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