Educational Assessment Center

The largest genetic study of dyslexia ever conducted just published its findings…and they're significant.

Researchers at the University of Edinburgh and the Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics analyzed genetic data from over 1.2 million people and identified 80 DNA regions associated with dyslexia. Thirteen of those regions had never been linked to dyslexia before.

What does this mean for families? A few things:

Dyslexia is not caused by poor teaching, lack of effort, or "not trying hard enough." It has deep genetic roots.

If dyslexia runs in your family, there's a biological reason and early screening for younger siblings makes a lot of sense.

The more we understand the genetics of dyslexia, the better targeted and effective interventions can become.

The science keeps confirming what structured literacy programs like the Barton Reading & Spelling System have been built on all along: dyslexic learners need a different approach not a harder one.

Source: Mountford et al., Translational Psychiatry, 2025 - nature.com/articles/s41398-025-03514-0

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