(Ebook) Dyslexia, Learning, and the Brain by Roderick I. Nicolson, Angela Fawcett ISBN 9780262140997, 9781435655010, 0262140993, 143565501X

(Ebook) Dyslexia, Learning, and the Brain by Roderick I. Nicolson, Angela Fawcett ISBN 9780262140997, 9781435655010, 0262140993, 143565501X

The authors of this slim, highly-readable, and informative volume are themselves researchers in this field. The major point of the book is to present their own comprehensive model of the cognitive underpinnings of reading disorders. In the process, they also cover previous theories and give a broad summary of the research to date. They should be commended for the structure of their book, which not only includes numbered section headings and summaries, but also forward references at the ends of chapters to connect the material just covered to material in later chapters. Their theoretical model and extensive research on that model appeared to me to be useful for both researchers and clinicians. For those in the field, they attempt to go beyond the phonological-processing model and the dual-deficit model (phonological processing plus speed of processing), to present an integrated model of how problems with automatizing many tasks, including motor skills, may lead to most of the problems observed in reading disability. Those who work with learning disabled children and adults will find this a lucid, comprehensive, and current update on the state of research in this complex area. Some family members or other interested non-professionals may also find it interesting or enlightening (although it is primarily aimed at professional psychologists and specialists in learning disabilities), because it is so well written.