Dragon and dyslexia

I’m often asked whether Dragon can help if you are dyslexic.

The answer is a definite yes!

Most of my training is currently with university students who may struggle to write if they are dyslexic. They often say that they know what they want to write and can talk it through, but sitting at a computer screen with a blank document in front of them is difficult.

It’s also common to miss words out or write them in the wrong order when typing. A combination of dictating text with Dragon and using the proofreading tools shown here will help to reduce this problem.

Not only does it save time, Dragon significantly reduces the errors that you might make when typing because it cannot make a spelling mistake! However, although very accurate, it may not understand what you said and will then write the wrong word, so proofreading is still important.

Most people don’t proofread properly, they skim read and hearing your text read aloud to you will help to improve the quality of the text.

Professional people who are dyslexic often tell me that they cannot get their words onto the page when typing, and when they do, they often use simpler words which make their work look less professional. Dragon will also help resolve this problem.

Dragon does provide a couple of proofreading tools on the DragonBar under audio.

Microsoft Office 365 also has a tool called Read Aloud (on the Review Ribbon), that allows you to visually track the spoken text as it is read aloud to you.

I’m often asked whether the question “can Dragon help if you are dyslexic?”. The answer is a definite yes!

I have been able to help many people with dyslexia who are now successfully using Dragon to help make their writing easier. Not only does it save time but it also significantly reduces the errors that they make when typing because Dragon cannot make a spelling mistake!

People who are dyslexic often tell me that they know what they want to write and can talk about it, but they cannot get those words onto the page, and when they do, they often use simpler words which make their work look less professional.

Dragon will help with these problems!

The following text comes from an article written by Maryellen Grady…

I’m an assistant principal, writer and former English teacher (and I happen to be dyslexic)

I have never been able to type because I have severe dyslexia. It was when I was appointed to assistant principal that my husband, an attorney, insisted on purchasing me a copy of this software he called the “Dragon Speaking program.” I haven’t looked back since.

By Maryellen Grady

Posted November 19, 2014

I’m an assistant principal at a middle school, a writer, and former English teacher. I have never been able to type because I have severe dyslexia. Simple emails, papers, lesson plans, teacher observations, newspaper articles, and stories I composed always took me much longer to type than actually create. It was a frustration that I felt I had to live with.

When I was appointed as the assistant principal, my husband, an attorney, insisted on purchasing the “Dragon Speaking program” for me. He had used it for years to dictate memos and prepare for trials. When I first got Dragon, I was a bit intimidated. I didn’t know how it would really work for my writing style. You see, I always write out in long hand all of my work before I would type it. However, adjusting to having this tool proved much easier than I thought. I use Dragon NaturallySpeaking for everything. I also have presented the Dragon program to the entire administrative staff of our school system. In addition, I have suggested that parents purchased this program for students who are struggling in their classes.

Dragon has truly changed my life. I will always be dyslexic, but this tool has allowed me to be more efficient, productive, and happy.

The full article can be found here…

http://whatsnext.nuance.com/office-productivity/dragon-naturallspeaking-helps-assistant-principal-with-dyslexia/

I’m often asked whether Dragon will also help people with dyslexia and the answer is a very definite yes, and I have helped many to improve the quality of their paperwork with voice recognition software!

When I visit, I ask what are the biggest problems with paperwork and very often the response is “I know what I want to write but I just cannot get it onto the paper, but I can talk about it!”

That response virtually justifies using Dragon with some qualifications…

Firstly, if you can talk about it, you can clearly write it, because this is what Dragon does!

Interestingly however, it does not make spelling mistakes because it has such a large vocabulary. So proof reading is still very important and Dragon provides two tools to help make this process easier. It is also possible to ensure that words such as ‘weather’ and ‘whether’ are used in the correct context.

I often carry out timing exercises near the end of a training session to see how long it takes someone with dyslexia to type a piece of text, and how long it takes to do the same piece of work with Dragon – the answer is generally that Dragon is generally three of four times faster than typing and the record is nine times faster!

An added bonus is that the quality of writing is also better as people with dyslexia often use shorter words that are simpler to spell, and say that this makes their work look unprofessional, but when using Dragon they can easily use better vocabulary and often to think about what they are doing to stop waffling!

I recently carried out training for a lady in Kent who had to submit a piece of work and when it was returned with no errors, she commented that she nearly had a heart attack because this never happened!