Q. I need your advice for my son is having a dyslexic-like experience as below:
 
My 10-year-old son is now in Primary 5. He seems like he does not like to pay attention in school and as a result he did very badly in all of his exam subjects. He also forgets what he's learnt easily. No matter how hard we’ve tried to make him memorise it. To me as a mother, I feel like giving up on him in terms of education. He gives me the impression that he always cannot understand all the questions in the worksheet/exam and ended left it blank by giving excuses that he has no time to finish.
 
To be frank, I am very tired and also worried for his future if he keeps going on like that. All the school teachers and tutors always tell me that he is a smart boy ONLY he’s lazy and unattentive. And I found that this is the WORST thing for a kid like him because he is not keen in anything even writing. Is he dyslexic? How can we best manage the situation?
S. Loh, via e-mail

A. To the concerned parent,
Don't give up!  Although it can be tiring to support a struggling child in our highly competitive education system, it is important that we persist in our efforts as our children look up to us as the adult for support.  If we are to give up now, our children will become even more demoralised.  So hang in there and tackle the problems bit by bit. 

Based on what you have described, there could be many reasons why your son is not achieving in school. It is possible that he is dyslexic as he easily forgets what he learns, is disinterested in writing and is doing badly in school despite impressions that he is a rather bright boy. He could also be experiencing problems with attention, motivation, or other kinds of learning difficulties. It is hard to determine a child's learning difficulties based solely on observations or feedback. An assessment by a qualified psychologist would be needed to objectively define the specific difficulties of the child and to recommend remediation, where appropriate. 

You may wish to consider getting a psychological assessment at the Dyslexia Association of Singapore (DAS) by calling the assessment officer at 6444 5700 to set up an appointment. You can also refer to http://www.das.org.sg/aboutus/arrangeassessment.htm for more information.  Alternatively, you may wish to explore getting your child assessed by an Educational Psychologist through your child's MOE school, in a hospital or in private practice.

Meanwhile, it may be helpful to teach your child some memory strategies since he forgets what he has learnt quickly. You can refer to websites like http://www.ldonline.org or http://www.schwablearning.org for more useful information on how to better support and help him.
 
Low Yung Ling is a Specialist Psychologist at the Dyslexia Association of Singapore

If you'd like to ask an expert about any Special Needs questions, please drop us an e-mail at mpbwebmaster@mediacorp.com.sg and look out for your questions to be answered here.