Dyslexia, Reading Difficulty as Correlates of Psychological Problems among Junior Secondary School Students

The main interest of the study was correlate dyslexia, reading difficulty and psychological problems among junior secondary school students Imo State. The study was guided by five specific objectives, five research questions and four hypotheses. The design of the study was correlational research design. The sample size was 442 (262 males and 180 females) students with dyslexia identified using two stage sampling technique drawn from a population of 2211 JS 11 students. Two research instruments were validated and employed for data collection. The stability of the instruments were determined using Pearson’s Product Moment Correlation Coefficient which gave reliability indices of 0.73 and 0.82 for Dyslexia Identification Scale for Students (DISS and Psychosocial Problem of Dyslexia Questionnaire (PPDQ).  The internal consistency of the items was determined using Cronbach Alpha method which yielded reliability indices of 0.77 and 0.85 for the DISS and PPDQ. The researchers and four well briefed research assistants administered the instruments. The data were analyzed using Pearson Product Moment Correlation to answer research questions, while Linear and Multiple Regressions were used to test the hypotheses at .05 level of significance. It was found that there is a moderate manifestation of Dyslexia among the junior secondary students in Imo State and Dyslexia to a significant extent correlates to psychosocial problems of junior secondary school students. The study also found that Gender to a significant low extent correlates to psychosocial problems among junior secondary schools students. Among the Educational Implications of the finding was that it would help teachers identify problems associated with dyslexia. When teachers identify the problems associated with dyslexia, they would be able to understand and effectively manage and accommodate the changing mood of students caused by stereotypes associated with dyslexia. It would help to know why some students feel inferior and shy at times before their mates. Based on the findings, it was recommended that teachers observe their students properly in order to identify the dyslexics and other learning disabled. This is to enable them know which measure, teaching methods and teaching styles to utilize for them as well as to carry everyone along in the classroom.