I've just been to a webinar by Boelo van der Pool, who was invited by International House World Organisation to talk about dyslexia and ADHD.
Here are some key ideas I was able to take away:
- Although there is no international agreement on certifying dyslexia, it is believed that around 10-15% of the population have varying extents of this 'learning difference'.
- Language learners with dyslexia may process information more slowly; they tend to be creative as they think outside the box rather than follow the conventional way of interpreting ideas.
- To target the way in which dyslexic learners process information, teachers can adapt written texts by:
1. aligning the text left, not justify
2. using a less fancy font, such as Arial, Tahoma or Verdana
3. increasing the font size slightly
4. increasing the line spacing, e.g. 1.5 instead of 1.15
5. further dividing a text into shorter paragraphs by topic or idea
6. using a plain, non-white background colour (or recycled paper for the whole school!)
In short, textual information should be presented in a way that is easier for both dyslexic and non-dyslexic learners to locate. (No cramming!) - Other techniques that aid dyslexic learners include using visuals to aid learners' understanding of a text and using colour coding consistently.