Open AccessMothers of Children with Dyslexia Share the Protection, “In-Betweenness,” and the Battle of Living with a Reading Disability: A Feminist Autoethnography
Author(s) -
Christine Woodcock
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
the qualitative report
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 2160-3715
DOI - 10.46743/2160-3715/2020.4162
Subject(s) - autoethnography , dyslexia , psychology , disability studies , reading (process) , developmental psychology , learning disability , resistance (ecology) , gender studies , sociology , linguistics , ecology , philosophy , biology
In order to shed personalized light upon some of the confusions surrounding dyslexia, this study draws upon critical disability studies to share the stories of mothers of children with dyslexia. This feminist autoethnography shares the voice of the researcher alongside interviews with 5 participants, all mothers of children with dyslexia, who were in their 40s, and ethnically and socioeconomically diverse. Using interpretative phenomenological analysis, results illustrated that the children inhabited an “in-betweenness” in their disability, in the ways dyslexia was less visual and therefore misunderstood. Likewise, the children presented a great deal of resistance in their learning, which was later understood as a way of protecting themselves. Parents faced several emotional and financial battles. Educational implications include suggestions for negotiating the “in-betweenness” of reading disability, as well as strategies for navigating resistance in learning. This study emphasizes the need for more participatory research that involves students with dyslexia, and their parents.