Students with dyslexia the focus of new documentary

With an estimated one in 10 students in Australia living with dyslexia, a new documentary film is being produced to raise awareness and support students with this learning difficulty.

The idea for the documentary was born out of the dyslexia policy roundtable hosted by Minister for Education and Training, the Hon Christopher Pyne MP in June last year.

Minister Pyne said that many of the participants who attended the roundtable, teachers, academics, parents and students have joined forces to produce the cutting-edge documentary Outside the Square.

“Outside the Square will highlight the learning needs of children with dyslexia and include information on evidence based learning strategies currently in use in some schools which are assisting children with dyslexia and other learning difficulties plus feature leading Australian advocates focused on improving outcomes for students,” Mr Pyne said.

“I am delighted that the Australian Government is providing $10,000 towards this community supported documentary, and I look forward to seeing the finished product.”

“It’s vital that we identify evidence-based practice and make sure students and teachers have access to appropriate resources. I believe Outside the Square will be a valuable resource for Australian schools,” Mr Pyne said.

Founder of the Gold Coast Dyslexia Support Group Tanya Forbes initiated the idea for the documentary and said she hopes that Outside the Square will be screened in every school in Australia, to improve awareness of dyslexia and other related learning difficulties.

Ms Forbes said that the dyslexia policy roundtable was a wonderful platform to highlight the current plight of students with dyslexia in our schools, as well as a perfect opportunity to network with Australia’s leaders in dyslexia education.

For more information on the dyslexia policy roundtable, please visit: http://www.studentsfirst.gov.au/policy-roundtables.

For more information on the project, please visit: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1130224036/outside-the-square.