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Davis® Dyslexia Correction- Research Overview
The Davis Dyslexia Correction program was developed by Ronald Dell Davis from independent experimentation and research, beginning in the early 1980's. Davis, who was himself severely dyslexic, had discovered a simple mental technique that radically improved his ability to focus on print. Through clinical experience working with dyslexic adults and children, Davis and his colleagues improved and refined the methods over time. In 1994, after working with more than 1,000 clients, Davis published the first edition of The Gift of Dyslexia, detailing his methods and the theory behind them. Since that time, hundreds of professionals have received advanced training in Davis methods, and licensed Davis Facilitators have collectively worked with more than 20,000 clients.
Randomized Controlled Studies - Iran, 2012: Researchers from the University of Isfahan randomly selected and assigned 20 dyslexic third-grade boys to an experimental group or control group. The experimental group received 16 half-hour sessions of Davis-based tutoring. Students were tested prior to intervention, at the conclusion of the intervention sessions, and again at 1 year, 3 months.
Case Study - Malaysia, 2011: Researchers worked with three 13-year-old nonreading dyslexic girls, using a program of clay modeling and reading exercises adapted from Davis Symbol Mastery and the Davis reading exercises. Post-test results showed that all three students were able to fluently read a passage containing words studied with clay modeling, as well as correctly identify and spell all words; however they were not able to learn a different passage studied without use of clay.
Empirical (quasi-experimental) - Iran, 2010: Researchers investigated the efficiency of Davis Dyslexia Correction Method on adult dyslexics' reading skills. Sixteen adult dyslexics (17-40 years of age) were selected randomly through multi-stage sampling. Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS-R) and informal reading inventory were administered as preliminary diagnostic tests. Then Davis Dyslexia Correction method (Orientation Counseling and Symbol Mastery) was conducted on the clients individually for 30 sessions (each session 90 minutes). Post-tests were conducted upon completion of program (treatment). The results of T-test analysis showed that the intervention program significantly and substantially increased reading proficiency and comprehension in the study subjects.
Case Study - Malaysia, 2010: Lee Lay Wah of the University of Malaysia reported the progress of a 9-year-old dyslexic student with the Davis Dyslexia Correction program. The child was able to successfully use Davis Orientation to control her mind function; Davis Symbol Mastery helped resolve letter reversals; and the Davis Reading Exercises helped the child to change her habit of skipping words when she reads.
Control Group Study - South Africa, 2009: Researchers at the University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, South Africa, implemented a program based on Davis methods at a school for intermediate level dyslexic students (ages 10-14) for a period of nine months, with a group of 18 students. They compared reading outcomes with a matched control group of students from the same school who were not exposed to the intervention program, but received phonological-based tutoring instead. The researchers reported that the Davis group showed significant improvement in word recognition and spelling; such improvement was not seen in the control group.
Small Control Group Study - Iran, 2005: Researchers at Alzahra University compared the progress of two randomly selected fourth grade students from a learning disabilities center with two matched controls, who continued to receive the standard instruction at the center. The students received instruction for three months, using Davis Orientation Counseling and Davis Symbol Mastery as described in The Gift of Dyslexia. Testing showed significant improvement in reading skills of students receiving the Davis-based instruction. The original article was published in Persian; an abstract in English is available here:
Comparative Study - Italy, 2003: Researchers evaluated reading speed and accuracy of dyslexic students receiving eight different treatments. The study included a counseling approach which used Davis Orientation Counseling but not the Davis tools for reading practice or word mastery. The group receiving the Davis orientation instruction included 16 students, grades 3-8; the numbers of students in the other treatment groups ranged from 9 to 21, grades 2-8. The Davis group showed the greatest increase in reading speed, with passage reading at a rate that was double or triple the speed of students in other groups. The researchers concluded that the Davis-based model was the most efficient of all methods studied based on reading speed alone. However, the Davis group had a higher error rate for passage reading, although the ratio of errors to reading speed appeared equivalent or better than other groups.
Control Group, Longitudinal Study - U.S., 2001: Working under the guidance of T.F. McLaughlin, Ph.D. (Gonzaga University), teachers implemented strategies adapted from the Davis Dyslexia Correction program among 86 primary students in three San Francisco area public school classrooms. First grade students scored significantly higher than a matched control group for the mastery of 100 basic sight words. Follow up data showed that no children who received the Davis intervention needed subsequent special education services, and a higher than expected number of students later qualified for gifted education placement.
Comparative Study, 52 Children: Researchers administered tests of creativity and memory to a group of 26 dyslexic children and a matched group of nondyslexic children. The dyslexic group scored significantly higher on tests of originality and synthesis (Torrance Creativity Test, Picture Subtest). Additionally, dyslexic children performed better for memory tasks involving words referring to concrete objects and on pictorial-spatial memory tasks, than for memory of words with abstract meaning. The implications of the findings in confirming the Davis theory of perceptual talents and picture-based thinking associated with dyslexia were discussed.
South African educator René Engelbrecht worked with a group of 20 Afrikaans-speaking pupils in grade 5-7 from a school for learners with special needs, to study the impact of the Davis program in a controlled setting.
Jennifer Poole, Ph.D, conducted a comprehensive study of 14 different methods for dyslexia, including Davis methods, and published her results in the book, "Decoding Dyslexia" ( Matador, 2008; ISBN 978-1906510510). She concluded that the key element for a successful approach to dyslexia was to resolve disorientation. She noted that the Davis method was the only approach that used the "orientation" terminology and was expressly based on recognizing and addressing disorientation.
Maria Serrano, Ph.D, determined that a clay modeling approach adapted from Davis Symbol Mastery was more effective than other study methods among college students for learning words representing new concepts in a foreign language. The study, completed in 2003, was entitled 3-D Clay Modeling Instruction: A Pathway to Spatial Concept Formation in Second Language Learners. This work is also discussed in the chapter, "Materializing linguistic concepts through 3-D clay modeling" in the book Sociocultural Theory and the Teaching of Second Languages, by James P. Lantolf and Matthew E. Poehner. [Equinox 2008; ISBN 978-1845532505]
There are several case studies about Davis methods, conducted under the auspices of the UK Department of Education and Skills, along with a descriptive overview:
The New Zealand Ministry of Education conducted a review of all available literature and issued a report that includes a good chart comparing various methods, including Davis Dyslexia Correction. (The chart can be found at pages 41-51 of the report):
Lawrence and Stacey Smith, Davis Dyslexia Correction providers in Calgary, Canada, have recorded statistical information on the progress of 450 consecutive clients, ages 6-60, and presented it in graphical format. Their charts show that 57% of the clients increased word recognition skills by at least 4 grade levels during the one-week program. Another 36% experienced a 2 or 3 grade level increase.
Wes Sole, a Davis provider from London, Ontario (now retired), prepared a detailed report of program outcomes taken from 21 Davis clients, broken down by gender, age, and type of reading skill. He found the greatest degree of improvement in oral reading skills, with 71% of clients improving one or more grade levels during the one-week program.
Many anecdotal reports concerning Davis Methods have been published in the media, often based on journalist's interviews with adults or children who have completed the Davis program.
Many individuals have reported their success with Davis methods. Some examples may be viewed on YouTube:
Numerous personal accounts of experiences with Davis methods can be found on the internet. There are far too many reports to list. However, some sources of of reports are listed below:
