Bestowed with Dyslexia – College Admissions Essay

By Sean, Massachusetts, USA

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The most pivotal moment of my life happened while I was doing a maze at the age of 10. My mother paused from reading and said to me, “This book says the thing that makes reading so hard for you could be the same thing that makes solving puzzles so effortless.” Then my mom further explained that the cause of my reading problem could be my greatest strength. The book she was referring to was “The Gift of Dyslexia” by Ronald Davis, and it changed my life.

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I was diagnosed with dyslexia by a neuropsychologist and had been given Title 1 literacy services for years, but nothing seemed to help. In school, I often felt like a failure, especially when we were asked to read aloud. I would go really slow, skip over some words, and say words that weren’t there. Also, when the class read silently, I was never finished when the class started to discuss the passage. This made me embarrassed and frustrated too, because sometimes it made me feel stupid, although I knew I wasn’t. Then, the summer before fifth grade, I enrolled in the Davis Dyslexia Correction program inspired by Ronald Davis’ book, and everything changed.

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My instructor, Karen, introduced me to my mind’s eye, which is similar to someone’s imagination. The mind’s eye of a dyslexic person tends to wander, which is helpful when being creative, but makes reading a challenge. Karen taught me how to orient and control my mind’s eye when I needed to focus on words.

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This was the start of my success story. The year after I enrolled in this program, I was in the top 95th percentile for growth on the Massachusetts standardized test (MCAS), and I no longer received Title 1 support. Throughout middle school, I strengthened my skills gifted to me by dyslexia. Now in high school, I think with images using my mind’s eye, and this makes things such as studying for tests easier for me. I see the terms I need to know not as definitions, but as short films in my head. For example, to answer the question, “What happened at Pearl Harbor?” I don’t simply remember it was attacked by Japan. Instead, I see Japanese flags on the side of planes dropping bombs. Then, for another question, I might see the image of my teacher writing the term on the board. When I think with my mind’s eye, I am not just thinking. I am teleported to a multidimensional place where I am free to investigate.

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My mind’s eye also helps me outside of school. Since I think in 3-D images, I can visualize things from all angles. In sports, it enables me to be hyper aware of all the players’ locations. I can visualize the field from above and see gaps in defense, so I can attack the net. Dyslexia helps me with practical things as well, such as packing the car before a trip, because I can see how everything fits together in the most efficient way.

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In addition to helping me in and out of school, dyslexia has taught me important life lessons. Mathematical things tend to come easily to me, but when I see others struggling with simple math problems, I understand, because I am challenged by reading passages others find simple. I learned the valuable lesson that everyone has their own strengths, and often they are different than your own. Dyslexia has taught me to be compassionate to others.
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I am extremely fortunate to have dyslexia. It bestowed me with extraordinary skills. My mind’s eye never stays inside the box and always looks for new ways to see the world. In my younger years, dyslexia was a difficult thing to cope with, but it didn’t take long to harness it and see it for what it was—a gift I hold great pride in.