A young entrepreneur who “hated” school because of an undiagnosed learning disability has opened up about his experience in a bid to raise awareness among parents and teachers.

“I hated school. I thought I was just thick,” said Jamie Wace, from Devon. “I had siblings who were academic, but for me; reading, spelling, and working memory – I struggled with all of it.”

When Jamie was 13, a teacher noticed something “wasn’t quite right” with his school learning. Shortly after, his parents took him for a private assessment and he was diagnosed with dyslexia, a neurological difference which primarily affects reading and writing skills.

After the diagnosis, Jamie was able to adjust his way of learning at school. “My working memory is terrible, and I used to think that was just because I was stupid,” he recalled.

“Now I know that it’s a proper issue, and as a result, I was an avid notetaker at school after I knew this and I think that changed massively for me. I also just like was a bit less harsh on myself when I didn’t get something the first time.

“I was given extra time in exams, which was really helpful, but the main thing was discovering the things I could do well myself, as it is different for everyone.”

Prior to his diagnosis, Jamie said he had been in the bottom sets in classes at school, with predicted grades of Ds and Cs.

But after his diagnosis, his grades soared, with Jamie joining the top sets in all his classes within a year, and going on to achieve As and A*s in his exams.

“I was super lucky that my parents were able to take me for a private assessment,” Jamie recalled.

“I have no idea how long I could have been waiting to be tested via the local authority, and because I was 13, the waits could have meant some big impacts for my GCSEs.”

Jamie, who is 30, is on a mission to screen one million children across the UK for dyslexia.

He co-founded Talamo, alongside Leo Thornton and Sophie Dick, in 2022. The online screening tool offers schools a way to screen classes quickly and affordably, costing roughly £12 per child.

The tool asks children aged 7-16 years old a number of questions and then offers a report providing a scale of how likely they are to have dyslexia, their strengths, as well as areas where they might need more support – and how teachers and parents can offer that support.

It is 95% accurate, according to the Talamo website – last September, just 10 schools were using it. Fast forward to today and 300 are. Parents can also pay for a online screening test for £69 which culminates in an action plan of next steps for their child at home and school.

It’s worth noting this isn’t a formal dyslexia assessment, nor can it provide a diagnosis. Private dyslexia assessments can typically cost £350 and over depending on the provider. The British Dyslexia Association says the cost of an assessment with a specialist teacher is £690 and an assessment with a psychologist is £882, for example.

But the online screening tool could help parents decide whether they should seek (and pay for) a full diagnosis – especially as waiting times can vary, depending on where you’re based and whether you opt for face-to-face or a remote assessment. Even the NHS’s website acknowledges diagnosis to be a “time consuming and frustrating process”.

“I don’t want other children to feel this way,” said Jamie, discussing how growing up he struggled with “mental fatigue and self-doubt” because of his undiagnosed learning difficulty.

“Understanding how my brain worked gave me the confidence to study in a way that suited me, and that changed everything. I knew I wasn’t stupid, I just learn things differently,” he added. “It set me on a path to earning two degrees and even learning Mandarin.”

Research has found as many as 80% of dyslexics leave school undiagnosed. As Kate Griggs, founder of Made By Dyslexia, previously wrote in an op-ed on HuffPost UK: “It means many children and their parents are left to muddle through, not knowing why their children are struggling and without their amazing potential being recognised.”

In young children, it can manifest as slow speech development, muddling words up, showing no interest in letters or words, and difficulty learning to sing or recite the alphabet, according to the British Dyslexia Association.

In primary school, it can look like slow spoken or written language, difficulty concentrating and forgetting words. They might spell a word several different ways in a piece of writing, or use unusual sequencing of letters or words. And at secondary school level, pupils with dyslexia might have difficulty with punctuation and grammar, confuse upper and lower case letters, and have difficulty note-taking in class.

“There isn’t one simple checklist to notice the signs, and it can be subtle or less obvious in younger children, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t there,” said Jamie.

“Dyslexia doesn’t mean you’re less intelligent, it just means your brain works differently. But too many kids are told they’re lazy or slow, when really they just need the right support.”