Dyslexia
Progress:
Practical tips for teachers in enhancing learning experiences
There is no cure for dyslexia since it is a learning style not a disease; however Dyslexics can correct their reading problem when aided with visual or experiential methods of learning.
Be encouraging and reassuring.
Students with dyslexia often have self-esteem problems and are more self-conscious then others. This is due to having constantly made ‘silly’ mistakes growing up for example ‘silly’ spelling mistakes or other small errors with pronunciation that has made them feel inferior to others.
Most undergraduate students with dyslexia might have ‘typical’ questions and doubts that other non-dyslexia students have but might fail to articulate since they feel that their queries are ‘dumber’ or that everyone else has the material figured out but they do not due to dyslexia, which might not be the case.
Speaking to students with dyslexia before a course has commenced might be an effective way reassure them that you will not think they are stupid or dumb if they have questions.
Encourage articulating of ideas aloud.
Students with dyslexia usually have a better ability to articulate their thoughts in speech rather than on paper (although expressing their ideas in words in general can be more difficult than a non-dyslexic person). Therefore, a style of teaching which is more interactive and which encourages students to think or reason aloud might help dyslexic students find a solution or formulate an idea quicker or in a more organised fashion.
For example, during tutoring sessions, asking dyslexic students why they decided to use a method to solve a problem or why they derived that idea or thought, and then discussing it with them and showing where the error lies in their train of thinking would be more effective than just going through / explaining the right solutions
Give ample notice of public speaking or being called out in class which requires thinking on their feet.
Due to a lack of confidence and heighten manifestation of symptoms under time pressure (see ‘Symptoms’), dyslexia students can perform poorly when asked to speak in public or think on their feet. It might well be that a very intellectual dyslexic has a high ability to think on their feet, but when confronted with public speaking might lose that ability completely.
However, this should not deter a teacher from encouraging them to articulate their ideas and in fact, encouraging public participation in class can help to give them more confidence and help them to articulate and form ideas and thoughts better.
Use visual learning tools.
Students with dyslexia have arguably better peripheral vision and are more visual in learning. Therefore, tools like mind mapping, using a larger area on the board or power point to organise information, will help them learn better. For example, big picture representation of information and the course on a single page.
Dyslexic students are usually poor at remembering lots of information or facts, and therefore the visual learning method essentially helps them to link information in a way that they can picture as making sense. Therefore, if not given information in a visual form (eg a teacher hands out lecture notes in dot point form or the subject material is found in a textbook), dyslexic students should be encouraged to reorganise it in a visual way so as to organise the information in a way they understand. Teachers can also encourage dyslexic students to use dual monitors to learn as it spreads information across a larger area which helps with pictorial learning.
Be creative in teaching; make it an experience and use analogies to explain concepts.
Students with dyslexia have excellent memory for experiences (rather than factual memory as mentioned above). Therefore linking concepts with analogies or experiences are often highly effective with dyslexic students.
Similarly, accompanying a tutorial question with a lecture would be more effective in helping dyslexic students remember what has been taught in class. Using music, objects and gestures to explain concepts, ideas and the linking of facts can also be adopted.