About the Conference
Putting teens and young adults at the center of conversations about dyslexia.
Dyslexia is both a critical challenge and incredible opportunity...
Depending on the study, researchers have found that dyslexia impacts 5-20% of the global population, yet 50-95% of dyslexics go undiagnosed. The majority of research being done on the disability focuses on school-aged children and generally around reading skills. While that work is important, it ignores the possibly 1 billion people on the planet who did not receive a diagnosis in early childhood. There is shockingly limited research focusing on the experiences of and policies for undiagnosed teens and adults.
Many of them spend their lives wrongly believing they are unintelligent and unfit for education. Studies have found that large proportions of prison inmates and homeless youth in the US are dyslexic, yet they are also widely represented among successful entrepreneurs and innovators. Some of history's most creative thinkers, like Steve Jobs and Albert Einstein, were dyslexic. Other research also suggests that dyslexics possess unique empathy, imagination, risk-taking, and abstract-thinking skills that are essential to innovation.
That's what we're here to discuss.
Some Topics You'll Hear About:
- Connections between dyslexia and innovation
- Middle school, high school, and skill building
- Transitions to college, careers, and adulthood
- Identity, mental health, and confidence
- Intersectionality and diverse experiences
- Cutting edge tools and tech
Organized by the HGSE Dyslexia Club
This conference is organized by students and fellows at Harvard who are passionate about making the world more dyslexia-friendly. We're learners, educators, researchers, advocates, and some of us are dyslexic ourselves.
Meet the Team