Julian Elliott

Professor Julian 'Joe' Elliott, FAcSS is an academic and educational psychologist. He is the current Principal of Collingwood College and Professor of Education at Durham University.[1] He has caused controversy by describing dyslexia as a 'useless term' and a 'meaningless label'.

Career

Elliot qualified as a teacher and taught in mainstream and special schools. He then practised as an LEA educational psychologist.[2]

In 1990, he became an academic, and joined the University of Sunderland as a lecturer.[3] He was promoted to professor in 1998 with the award of a personal chair within the School of Education.[4] He rose to be Acting Dean of the university's School of Education and Lifelong Learning.[5] In 2004, he joined Durham University as Professor of Education and the Principal of Collingwood College.[5]

In addition to his university work, he sits on a number of editorial boards. He is the Associate Editor of the British Journal of Educational Psychology and he is a member of the board for the British Educational Research Journal, Learning and Individual Differences, and Comparative Education.[2]

Dyslexia debate

Elliot co-authored a book with Elena L. Grigorenko titled The Dyslexia Debate which was published in early 2014.[6] The book, and his previous work, has argued that there is no difference between poor readers and dyslexic people; dyslexia is a 'useless term' and a 'meaningless label' that should be discontinued.[7][8][9] It also suggested that the diagnosis was being misused by middle-class parents to get additional support for their children,[10] and that state schools are much less inclined to make a diagnosis because the pressures it would put on their limited budgets. He supports better funding of literacy education would help to overcome this unbalanced system as the same techniques help both poor readers and dyslexic people, rather than a continuation of the present system.[11][8]

His research has been controversial.[7][11] His publications were used by Graham Stringer, a British Member of Parliament, to support his view that dyslexia was 'a cruel fiction'.[12] He suggested that funding should be redirected from targeted support to better teaching of literacy; 'A whole industry has sprung up around creating a medical condition when what is needed is better methods to teach children to read.'.[13]

Professor John Stein of the University of Oxford has disagreed with his conclusion saying that there dyslexia is separate to reading difficulties caused by low intelligence because dyslexia has genetic, immunological and nutritional causes.[11] A joint statement from Sir Jim Rose, a former director of OFSTED, and Dr John Rack, a director of Dyslexia Action, spoke against Elliot's conclusion and supported the current definition of dyslexia.[14]

Honours

Elliott is an elected Academician of the Academy of Social Sciences (AcSS).[15]

References

  1. ↑ "James vs Collingwood Annual Sports tournament 2011". University of York. 1 December 2011. Retrieved 15 October 2013.
  2. 1 2 "Prof Julian Elliott". Dialogue Society. 2011. Retrieved 15 October 2013.
  3. ↑ "Keynote Speakers". ERAS 2006 Conference. Educational Research Association of Singapore. 2005. Retrieved 15 October 2013.
  4. ↑ "Chairs". Times Higher Education. 19 January 1998. Retrieved 15 October 2013.
  5. 1 2 "Prof Joe Elliott". Staff. Durham University. Retrieved 15 October 2013.
  6. ↑ Julian G. Elliott; Elena L. Grigorenko (2014). The dyslexia debate. ISBN 9780521119863.
  7. 1 2 "Is dyslexia just a myth?". The Guardian. 7 September 2005. Retrieved 25 May 2014.
  8. 1 2 "Dyslexia is a 'meaningless label used by middle-class parents who fear their children are being branded stupid', professor claims". Daily Mail. 26 February 2014. Retrieved 25 May 2014.
  9. ↑ "The Dyslexia Debate – Prof Julian Elliott, Durham University". Driver Youth Trust. Retrieved 25 May 2014.
  10. ↑ "Dyslexia ‘is used by parents as excuse for slow children’". The Times. 28 May 2007. Retrieved 25 May 2014.
  11. 1 2 3 "Why Dyslexia Does Exist". dysTalk. Retrieved 25 May 2014.
  12. ↑ "MP brands dyslexia a 'fiction'". BBC News. 14 January 2009. Retrieved 25 May 2014.
  13. ↑ "Dyslexia is 'a cruel fiction', says Manchester Blackley MP". The Guardian. 13 January 2009. Retrieved 25 May 2014.
  14. ↑ "Dyslexia Lobby unites behind dyslexia diagnosis" (pdf). Retrieved 25 May 2014.
  15. ↑ "Member Academicians". Academy of Social Sciences. Retrieved 15 October 2013.
Academic offices
Preceded by
Ed Corrigan		 Principal of Collingwood College, Durham
2011-present 		Incumbent


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