Myomancy

Dore Achievement Centres

Depending on your point of view, Wynford Dore, founder of the Dore Achievement Centres, is either an opportunist charlatan or the man whose helped thousands to overcome dyslexia and ADHD. His treatment and the way he promotes has alienated academics but gained the praise and money of parents.

DDAT and the History of Dore

Wynford Dore was a multi-millionaire from the sale of his industrial paint business and living happily on his boat in spain until his daughter Susie tried to commit suicide. Susie was severally dyslexic with limited social and academic skills. Her difficult school years left deep emotional scars and led her on to her suicide attempt. To help Susie, Wynford started on a hunt to find a truly effective treatment for Susie's dyslexia and DDAT (later renamed the Dore Achievement Centres) was created. Based in the small town of Kenilworth, near Birmingham in the UK, Wynford built a team of experts who sifted through the research on dyslexia. They spotted the link between the cerebellum and the cause of dyslexia.

The Cerebellum and Dyslexia

The Cerebellum is the part of the brain that controls movement. This has long been known in recent years researchers have discovered that the cerebellum plays a much larger part in our thinking. It has a role in memory as well as coordinating sensory information from the eyes, ears and touch. These are the very areas that dyslexics have problems with. Poor memory, poor concentration, clumsiness, sensitivity to noise or light are all symptoms seen along side the academic problems of reading and writing. It was spotting this connection between the cerebellum and dyslexia that gave birth to the Dore treatment programme.

The Dore Treatment

Dore's theory was that in dyslexics the cerebellum wasn't damage, it was just underdeveloped or immature. By stimulating and training the cerebellum, the Dore Achievement Centre's programme aims to mature it to match the dyslexic's child or adults brain to the appropriate level. The training consists of what starts off as very simple exercises, such as standing on one leg or throwing a small bean bag from hand to hand. As the cerebellum develops, these exercises become more complex, such as standing on leg whilst throwing a bean bag from hand to hand. Over the year or so of the treatment, the exercise constantly push and test the child but never too far. A vital part of the Dore Achievement Centers approach is that every six weeks the child returns to the center and is reassessed using various equipment include a posturegraph. After every assessment, a new set of exercises is generated that matches the current level of ability.

Does Dore Work?

Wynford Dore and the Dore Achievement Centers have taken a lot of criticism for selling the treatment before it has been proven to work. This criticism has not reduced over the years, despite the efforts of Dore, because there is still not a lot of scientific evidence that shows the effectiveness of the treatment. Much of the work that has been done, has not been published in peer reviewed journals or has not been done independently of the company. What has happened over the last few years is that neurological research has increase our understanding of the importance of the cerebellum and thousands of adults and children have tried the treatment. Dore claims a success rate of over 90% but that is only for those who complete the treatment. Many people drop out because of the hard work and slow progress the treatment requires. However those who stick with the Dore treatment do report massive changes in their academic and social skills. Some going as far to describe Dore as a cure for dyslexia.