Rethinking reading disorders

3 February 2026 2pm

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Tags: Dyslexia, Language and speech… Show all

Topics: Dyslexia, Language and speech, Language disorders, Reading disorders, Risk factors, Speech and language disorders
Populations: Children and Young People, Clinicians, Educators / Teachers, Learning difficulties
Publication Types: In practice, Primer
Symptoms: difficulty with reading, dyslexia, impaired reading, impaired reading comprehension

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This session will explore the role of language in literacy development, and address the specific challenges faced by children with language disorder. It is well-established that phonological skills are critical for learning to read and that individuals with ‘dyslexia’ have phonological processing difficulties. However, there is growing evidence that poor reading is the outcome of multiple risk and promotive factors, producing individual differences in literacy skills.

Drawing on findings from a longitudinal study of children at high-risk of dyslexia, we will consider a range of risk factors that are associated with poor reading. Specifically I will suggest that there is more than one pathway to poor reading and children who enter school with poor language are likely to experience deficits in word reading and reading comprehension as well as mathematics disorder. Together these difficulties may accumulate to pose mental health challenges for many. Finally, we will consider the role of ‘protective’ factors including educational interventions.

Learning outcomes

To understand that oral language is a critical foundation for learning to read.
To understand the risk factors for reading disorders
To understand how to screen for language learning disorders
To appreciate the effectiveness of language interventions

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About the speaker

maggie snowling

Maggie Snowling is Emeritus Professor of Psychology, University of Oxford, Research Fellow, St. John’s College. A qualified clinical psychologist, she was appointed CBE for services to science and the understanding of dyslexia in 2016, holds Fellowships of the British Academy, Academy of Medical Sciences, Academy of Social Sciences and is Honorary Fellow of British Psychological Society. She served as President of St. John’s College, Oxford 2012-2022, recently advised on the DFE’s Reading Framework 2 (2023), is a member of the Speech, Language and Communication in the Early Years Expert Advisory Group and holds a professorial role at York St. John University.