We have to think differently about those who think differently.

In the wake of Neurodiversity Celebration Week 2024 last week, in a change to usual programming, I bring you a highly personal post.

This is Quincy, my nearly 9 year old son. Quincy has recently been diagnosed with dyslexia.

According to Made By Dyslexia (a trailblazing charity with global reach which, inter alia, provides free training to schools and to workplaces) there are 7.753 billion people on earth and 1 in 5 of them are dyslexic. Let that sink in for a moment. The enormity and the scale of those with dyslexia.

I am ashamed to admit that, until recently, I conflated literacy with intelligence. As Dr Sally Shaywitz, a Yale neuroscientist puts it: "reading ability is taken as a proxy for intelligence". ?I suspect that many in the teaching profession and indeed the academic world and the professions continue to do so. It is not necessarily their fault. This is the way in which traditional education is set up and, ergo, the way in which exams capture, apparent intelligence (through speed writing, speed reading and super quick recall). Put like that, the very challenges which those with dyslexia have are entirely at odds with the skills tested by traditional exams.

Dyslexia is, put simply, a different wiring of the brain. It is not, as I now know, a measure of intelligence. Dyslexic brains find it difficult to recognise how sounds, words and letters match up phonetically, full stop.

They say that our children are our greatest teachers and that is certainly true of Quincy. The speed of his wit, his insightful observations, discerning judgment and extensive vocabulary, exceptional emotional intelligence, razor sharp intuition and lateral thought inspire and amaze me every day. Quite literally, he thinks differently. He is built differently. He is also hugely resilient, tenacious, with abundant creativity. And it seems he is in good company. ?Each of these brilliant minds, pioneers and leaders in their respective fields also thought (or think) differently: Einstein, Da Vinci, Picasso, various US presidents (including George Washington and JF Kennedy), Winston Churchill, Stephen Hawking, Roald Dahl, Agatha Christie, John Lennon, Richard Branson, Steve Jobs, Steven Spielberg and Spike Lee.

There has been much said in the media about late diagnosis of ADHD, particularly in women. There has been far less noise around dyslexia – but there ought to be.?With fewer than 20% of children with dyslexia identified at school, we have a huge problem educationally. Steven Spielberg was not diagnosed until he was 61.?It took Matt Hancock – who has championed early detection of dyslexia through a private member’s bill and extensive work – to get to Oxford before he was diagnosed.

I think back to those who struggled at school for whom there was neither awareness nor support and it saddens me deeply. What we must strive for (and fight for) is early detection, support and advocacy to ensure that those with dyslexia are provided with the right tools to enable them to circumnavigate an education system which is set up for them to fail.?

To ignore the needs of our dyslexic learners (and indeed workforce) is, quite frankly, outrageous and cannot be tolerated. We risk missing out on untapped potential. ?As Made by Dyslexia says - adjustments for those with dyslexia benefit everyone – there is no downside. By way of analogy, making buildings wheelchair accessible does not impede those who are able-bodied. We have to think differently about those who think differently.?

To look at another perspective, more than half of prisoners are thought to have dyslexia and more than half of successful entrepreneurs.? Literally, life can go one of two ways.?Pardon the pun but it is criminal to think that we could have taken steps to prevent the former by early intervention in schools.

Our world needs cognitive diversity and disruptors – those who can and will challenge the status quo - those who see things differently and can change the world. As Richard Branson said at the World Dyslexia Assembly in New York City in April 2023 (which was one of the best events I have ever had the good fortune to attend), those with dyslexia have brains fit for the future. At the recent Neurodiversity Show , Natalie Brooks spoke so eloquently about the tasks that dyslexic people find so difficult being taken away by technology. For dyslexic people, there has never been a better time to showcase their strengths – with the right support in place.

We have to think differently about those who think differently. The time is now!

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