(Australia)"An alarming decrease in reading standards"-dyslexia often unrecognized

Aug 18, 2017, (Australia) ABC News: Australian schools failing to teach children to read, expert warns http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-08-18/how-our-schools-are-failing-kids-with-learning-difficulties/8817608 Australian schools are failing to teach enough children to read and an increasing reliance on digital screens is only worsening the problem, a US expert in reading and dyslexia is warning. Maryanne Wolf, director of the Centre for Reading and Language Research at Tufts University, said there had been an alarming decrease in reading standards in recent years, with up to a third of the population classified as functionally illiterate. Yet most teachers were ill-equipped to teach reading, especially to children from disadvantaged backgrounds or with learning difficulties, she said.... "We need better methods, we need better professional development, and we need to understand that dyslexia exists," Dr Wolf said. She said many Australian schools did not recognise dyslexia as a condition requiring educational support, and children with the condition often suffered from low self-esteem, leading to lifelong problems. … Dr Wolf said screens were having an adverse impact on the way children learnt to read, and led to children learning at a more superficial level.