Materials Help Dyslexic and Blind

Roz Rowley works with Stephen, one of her students

When Perkins Secondary School reading teacher Roz Rowley realized one of her brightest students was having difficulty learning braille, she wanted to understand why. The reason: dyslexia. She turned to the most widely used learning tool for dyslexic students, The Wilson Reading System. With the blessing of the system’s creator, Ed Wilson, Jr., Roz and a team of fellow teachers adapted the teaching and workbook materials for use in teaching students who are blind and dyslexic to read braille. The result is an entire program of Wilson Reading System materials published in braille by The American Printing House for the Blind (Louisville, KY).

The story captured the attention of Education Week, the newspaper of record for American educators. Special education writer Christina Samuels interviewed Roz and Ed Wilson, Jr., for a story that appears in the December 3, 2008, issue of Education Week. Preview the story here: “Materials Help Dyslexic and Blind.”

Read more about Roz's innovative teaching method on our website.