About us
We wecolme you to the Canadian Dyslexia Centre INC. situated on the Traditional Algonquin Territory. CDC is a source of information, support and training for dyslexia. Based in Ottawa, our centre serves an international clientele. We are the creators of the SMT method, an easy to use method for childrens and adults to encourage the learning of the child with characteristics of dyslexia.
John Ward
PresidentPhD Candidate, specializing in Indigenous Education, Disabilities and ReconciliationChi-meegwetch
How it started?
Louise Brazeau-Ward knows first-hand the pain and frustration of dealing with dyslexia. She founded the Canadian Dyslexia Association when she was told that her son John Ward would never read or write. She was told that he would only be able to read the titles of his comic books. Now, he is completing a doctorate in Teaching and the Indigenous Community.
In 1989, Louise also went on to found a primary and secondary school in Ottawa for students dealing with dyslexia, Heritage Academy.
Louise has witnessed many transformations during her time at Heritage Academy. Some students that arrived with labels like "lazy", "unmotivated" and "slow learner" graduated with above average grades and achieved success at the Provincial Literacy Test. Most had the opportunity to attend university or college. These successes are not due to a student overcoming a learning disability, but a student overcoming a teaching disability. John Corcoran in his book “The teacher who couldn’t read, the true story of a high school instructor who triumphed over his illiteracy”, says; “I think the term learning disabled should be discarded. I see it as a teaching disability, and I prefer the term learning differences.”.
Canadian Dyslexia Centre is not a psychological center and we do not diagnose dyslexia, however we screen for characteristics of dyslexia in order to teach to read and write with an appropriate method if needed.