Phonological Core Dyslexia in Secondary School Students

This book, the result of intensive studies at the University of Queensland in Australia, is the first to deliver definitive and specific information regarding the presentation, identification, remediation and outcomes (in social, educational and vocational terms) of phonological core deficit (PCD)- based literacy difficulties in adolescents and secondary school students. Here, the author shares her experience working with these groups, which reveals that literacy difficulties present with characteristics different from those of many primary schools students are, perhaps, due to experiential knowledge, learned skills (e.g., sight word learning), and self-developed compensatory strategies. At some point in their secondary school experience, many students find these devices become insufficient and ineffective, and suddenly an 'A' grade student is failing. Marinac shows how psychological, social, and educational effects of such an occurrence can have devastating outcomes, yet the presence of PCD as a causal factor is only rarely suspected and even more rarely investigated in these cases.The assumption is that such deficits would have been evident and thus identified/remediated in primary school - this is not the case for many students. The book discusses in general terms the definitions and underlying deficits that may lead to literacy difficulties in secondary-school students going on to describe the characteristics, identification, remediation, and outcomes in terms of PCD.

Julie Marinac, Ph.D. Dr. Julie Marinac is a lecturer in Speech Pathology at the University of Queensland who has, as her primary research interest, phonological processing based literacy difficulties (e.g., Phonological Core Dyslexia) in secondary school students. Over the past five years, Marinac has been working with the staff of two major secondary schools to explore the prevalence, assessment, and remediation of these difficulties at both the clinical and classroom levels. This has led to the publication of a screening instrument, reference book for students, clinical/support program, and classroom-based intervention programs written specifically for students in years 7-12 - a fascinating and rewarding population.