Throughout his childhood, Ronald Davis struggled with reading and writing. His condition -- dyslexia -- was undiagnosed. Teachers considered him a slow learner and he remained functionally illiterate until well into adulthood.

Through sheer determination, Mr. Davis worked around his reading difficulties and eventually became an engineer and businessman.

In 1979, at age 38, he discovered a way to "switch off" the mental processes that caused him to see printed words in a distorted way. For the first time, he read a book from cover to cover without struggling.

His success in correcting the perceptual difficulties that were at the root of his own dyslexia inspired him to do further research, to write a book about his experience, and to found a training program so others could use the method.

Mr. Davis will present a lecture about his dyslexia correction method from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Wednesday at Westmoreland County Community College, Hempfield, just outside of Youngwood. The event is sponsored by the Laurel Highlands Dyslexia Correction Center.

Dyslexia is a learning disability characterized by difficulty with reading. It is generally believed that the condition results from a difference in how the brain processes written language.

An estimated 10 to 15 percent of the population has dyslexia.

Most people with dyslexia are intelligent but struggle with printed words and symbols. Among those who are believed to have had dyslexia are Albert Einstein, Leonardo Da Vinci and Thomas Edison.

Mr. Davis, founder of the California-based Davis Dyslexia Association International, emphasizes that his method is a "correction" for dyslexia, not a "cure."

He says that most people with dyslexia have a visual, multi-dimensional, picture-thinking style and are less predisposed to word-based thinking. Symbols and abstract words cause confusion, which results in transpositions, mistakes, fatigue and frustration when reading and writing.

His program includes perceptual and kinesthetic exercises designed to tap into the unique learning style of people with dyslexia and to help them control the confusion that occurs when they see words. The program claims a 97 percent success rate in correcting dyslexia and related conditions, such as dysgraphia and dyscalculia.

Marcia Maust, of Berlin, Somerset County, remembers discovering Mr. Davis' book, "The Gift of Dyslexia," in a Greensburg bookstore when her 7-year-old daughter was having reading difficulties in second grade.

"I felt that the author knew my daughter," said Ms. Maust. "She had the classic symptoms of dyslexia. She could read big words that she could associate with a picture, like 'hippopotamus' and 'umbrella,' but she couldn't read smaller words like 'of' and 'for.'?"

In addition, her daughter told her that printed words jumped around on the page, disappeared, or became bigger or smaller when she tried to read.

Ms. Maust took her daughter to a Davis method practitioner in New Jersey for a five-day session, followed by home exercises. By third grade, the girl had no further problem with reading.

Now 18, she is enrolled in the business college at Shenandoah University in Virginia.

In 2000, Ms. Maust became a certified Davis trainer and works with clients age 8 and older at the Laurel Highlands Dyslexia Correction Center. She has worked with nearly 200 clients and is one of 450 licensed Davis trainers in the United States.

Ms. Maust notes that the Davis method is different from to other approaches to dyslexia, such as those that use phonics and repetition. It may, however, prepare children to take better advantage of those types of programs, she said.

"It's not a quick fix, it's a quick start," said Ms. Maust. "It allows students to turn off the confusion and discover the source of the confusion."

Wednesday's lecture will cover Mr. Davis' personal history, how people with dyslexia learn, and the rationale behind his correction method.

The lecture will be in Commissioners Hall, Room 2112.

Admission, in advance, is $5 for individuals and $10 for families ($8 and $15 at the door.) Pre-registration is recommended.

For tickets, call 814-267-5765 or e-mail info@dyslexiapa.com. Online registration can be made at www.rondavislectures.com/May09/pa.html.