Recognizes words but can't prounounce

by Sandy
(WA)

I mentor a 14 yr. old girl in high school with many problems with learning. She has a lot of trouble understanding & doing algebra but also can't read out loud. She can write Spanish words & sentences & spell the words correctly but can't pronounce the words properly. Same with English. She has test anxiety & is under so much pressure from teachers & is constantly criticized & humiliated by teachers who call on her to read out loud or answer questions in front of the class when she has told them she "doesn't get it" in the first place, & is unable to speak in class due to fear of ridicule over her inability to pronounce words properly.

She has no speech impediment, can speak & articulate well. Her parents can't help or can't afford to hire a tutor. She can write & does fairly well in English (except for reading out loud) but is really struggling in science & math. The teachers aren't helping her learn & the after school study lab isn't effective or helpful to her either. She says her teachers put such emphasis on the importance of passing tests that it causes her anxiety so that she doesn't do well. It's too bad when teachers put so much pressure on a child that they are too fearful & full of anxiety to concentrate or remember test material.

I'd like to help her but I don't know how or what her problem is. I have read some material & suspect maybe she has "visual processing disorder". Is there a free or inexpensive organization that diagnosis learning disorders? Any comments would be appreciated. Thank you, Sandy