The DORE Program is a structured, proprietary intervention designed to address a range of learning difficulties, most commonly dyslexia, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), and dyspraxia. The program is promoted as a drug-free, physical stimulation approach. It operates on the core claim that these complex conditions stem from a single, underlying neurological issue. The intervention focuses on remediating what its proponents term “cerebellar developmental delay,” which is posited as the root cause of poor automaticity in cognitive and motor tasks.
Theoretical Basis: Cerebellar Function and Learning
The DORE Program is built upon the hypothesis that learning difficulties arise from an underdeveloped or functionally inefficient cerebellum. The cerebellum plays a significant role in “skill automatization,” which is the process where repeated practice allows a task to be performed fluently without conscious thought or effort. This automatization is necessary for complex skills like reading, where the mechanics of decoding words must become automatic to free up cognitive resources for comprehension.
The theory suggests that if the cerebellum does not develop properly, the brain struggles to automate both physical and cognitive skills. This failure to achieve automaticity forces the conscious brain to dedicate too much working memory to basic functions, such as tracking words on a page or maintaining attention. This over-reliance on conscious effort leads to the characteristic struggles seen in reading, writing, and focus. The DORE approach maintains that by training the cerebellum through targeted physical exercises, it is possible to stimulate its development and strengthen the necessary neural pathways for skill automatization.
Program Components and Intervention Structure
The practical application of the DORE Program centers on a regimen of daily physical exercises designed to stimulate the cerebellum. Participants first undergo an individualized assessment of their balance, coordination, eye tracking, and literacy skills. Based on this initial evaluation, a tailored series of activities is prescribed.
The structure requires consistent, short-burst effort, with participants committing to perform two 10-minute sessions of exercises each day, separated by a minimum four-hour break. The exercises are based on motor and coordination tasks, often involving simple equipment like a balance board, bean bags for hand-eye coordination, and eye charts for specific tracking drills. The full program typically lasts between nine and eighteen months. The aim of these repetitive, specific drills is to improve motor skill and timing, with the expectation that these gains will generalize to higher-level cognitive functions.
Scientific Evaluation and Expert Consensus
The DORE Program has been the subject of significant controversy within the scientific and medical community regarding its efficacy. Proponents of the program have pointed to studies that show improvements in literacy skills, such as reading age and comprehension, following the intervention. However, independent experts have raised substantial concerns about the methodological rigor of the research supporting these claims.
The initial published studies in a peer-reviewed journal were met with widespread criticism from the research community. Critics have noted that the studies often contained methodological flaws, including the lack of proper randomized control groups or pre-existing differences in literacy scores between the treatment and control groups.
Major medical and neurological organizations have not endorsed the DORE Program as a standard or recognized treatment for learning difficulties like dyslexia or ADHD. The program’s commercial nature and its strong claims, such as offering a “cure” or an 80% success rate, contrast with the general lack of conclusive, independent evidence from large-scale, randomized controlled trials. The prevailing view among many researchers is that while physical exercise can improve the trained motor skills, there is insufficient evidence to confirm that these targeted motor activities broadly enhance complex, non-motor cognitive skills.