EDUCATION REPORT - Learning Disabilities, Part 4: Dyspraxia

EDUCATION REPORT - Learning¹ Disabilities, Part 4: Dyspraxia
By Nancy Steinbach

Broadcast: Thursday, February 26, 2004

This is Steve Ember with the VOA Special English Education Report.

People who have unusual difficulty with reading, writing or other skills may have a learning disability. Today we continue our series about learning disabilities with a report about a movement disorder². This condition is called dyspraxia.

With dyspraxia, the brain does not send messages clearly to other parts of the body. People with dyspraxia have a poor understanding of the messages sent by their senses. They have difficulty linking these messages to actions. As a result, people with dyspraxia have trouble planning and organizing thoughts. Physical activities are also difficult to learn and perform.

Experts say the kinds of difficulties experienced³ by a person with dyspraxia can change from day to day or at different times in life. Babies with dyspraxia do not try to crawl⁴ or roll over. Later, they may have difficulty with eye movements. They may move their head instead of just their eyes. Children with dyspraxia may have trouble walking or holding a cup, riding a bicycle or throwing a ball.

Social skills may be difficult for people with dyspraxia to learn. So they might have trouble making friends. People with dyspraxia can find sports activities extremely difficult. They may even have trouble speaking. Some cannot make the physical movements necessary to speak clearly. Adults with dyspraxia can have problems driving a car or cleaning the house. They can have problems cooking, writing, typing, even washing and dressing⁵ themselves.

Experts say dyspraxia cannot be cured. They say people with this disorder must understand that it takes them longer to learn to do things than other people. It will also take them longer to remember how to do what they have already learned⁶.

Early intervention⁷ can help. Professional therapists say there are ways to help make life easier for those with dyspraxia. They say parents and teachers must understand that people with dyspraxia need help learning simple movements. Experts say children should be urged to take part in easy physical activities that can increase their trust in their abilities.

We continue our series about learning disabilities next week. All of our programs are on the Internet at www.unsv.com. Links to more information about dyspraxia are also included.

This VOA Special English Education Report was written by Nancy Steinbach. This is Steve Ember.

1 learning   

n.学问，学识，学习；动词learn的现在分词

参考例句：

• When you are learning to ride a bicycle,you often fall off.初学骑自行车时，常会从车上掉下来。
• Learning languages isn't just a matter of remembering words.学习语言不仅仅是记些单词的事。

2 disorder   

n.紊乱，混乱；骚动，骚乱；疾病，失调

参考例句：

• When returning back,he discovered the room to be in disorder.回家后，他发现屋子里乱七八糟。
• It contained a vast number of letters in great disorder.里面七零八落地装着许多信件。

3 experienced   

adj.有经验的；经验丰富的，熟练的

参考例句：

• Experienced seamen will advise you about sailing in this weather.有经验的海员会告诉你在这种天气下的航行情况。
• Perhaps you and I had better change over;you are more experienced.也许我们的工作还是对换一下好，你比我更有经验。

4 crawl   

vi.／n.爬行，匍匐行进；缓慢(费力)地行进

参考例句：

• We learn to crawl before we learn to walk.我们学会走路之前先要学会爬。
• She slowed the car to a crawl.她把车开得很慢。

5 dressing   

n.(食物)调料；包扎伤口的用品，敷料

参考例句：

• Don't spend such a lot of time in dressing yourself.别花那么多时间来打扮自己。
• The children enjoy dressing up in mother's old clothes.孩子们喜欢穿上妈妈旧时的衣服玩。

6 learned   

adj.有学问的，博学的；learn的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He went into a rage when he learned about it.他听到这事后勃然大怒。
• In this little village,he passed for a learned man.在这个小村子里，他被视为有学问的人。

7 intervention   

n.介入，干涉，干预

参考例句：

• The government's intervention in this dispute will not help.政府对这场争论的干预不会起作用。
• Many people felt he would be hostile to the idea of foreign intervention.许多人觉得他会反对外来干预。