Assessment of Learners with Dyslexic-Type Difficulties

About Kathleen KellySylvia Phillips

Sylvia Phillips BA DASE MEd (SEN) AMBDA Cert. TESL is an Education Consultant (for SEND) and a part-time tutor to the AMBDA course at Stanmillis University College Belfast. She began her career as a teacher of English in secondary schools where she became interested in why some learners had severe literacy difficulties. She later joined Manchester Metropolitan University where she was a Principal Lecturer Head of SEN and then Head of Continuing Professional Development. At MMU she developed the first courses for specialist dyslexia teachers at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels. During that time she worked in primary secondary and special schools both with teachers and directly with pupils. She taught on several SEND courses for teachers (particularly training SENDCos) and was the UK partner (with Italy Belgium and Spain) developing and teaching courses on Inclusion and SEN for European educationalists. She served on the Accreditation Board of the British Dyslexia Association but left when she became a specialist member of the SEND Tribunal service.  She has been involved in several research projects developing teaching materials. In recent years she led the AMBDA courses for Wrexham Glyndwr University and together with Kathleen Kelly she co-authored Assessment of Learners with Dyslexic Type Difficulties 2nd Edition (2018 Sage). Dr Kathleen Kelly PhD MA (SEN) Dip TESL AMBDA is an independent consultant and trainer in the field of specific learning difficulties. For many years she was a Senior Lecturer at Manchester Metropolitan University in the Centre for Inclusion and Disability Studies where she was Programme Leader for the MA in Specific Learning Difficulties and the Post Graduate Certificate in Dyscalculia. For several years she has taught courses on specific learning difficulties as part of the initial teacher training programme in addition to postgraduate awards. She has presented papers in this area at a number of international conferences and was part of the MMU research team that evaluated the Department of Education funded project Teaching for neurodiversity led and co-ordinated by the British Dyslexia Association (2017). She has considerable experience in delivering courses to meet the criteria set out by the British Dyslexia Association for Approved Teacher Status (ATS) and Associate Member of the British Dyslexia Association (AMBDA). She was a member of the SASC/BDA working party (2019) which was set up to develop a new definition of dyscalculia and to produce guidance on identification and assessment. Kathleen has taught a wide range of learners with dyslexia from children as young as four years to sixteen years. She has worked in both mainstream and special schools for language support and learning support services as a SENCO in a primary school and as Head of Sixth Form in a special school. She has many years of experience in supporting multilingual children with special educational needs (including specific learning difficulties). Multilingualism and dyslexia is a particular area of interest and her doctorate was also in this area. She is co-author of Phillips and Kelly (2022) Assessment of Learners with Dyslexic-type Difficulties 3rd edition.