Observation And Conversations Of Learners With Dyslexia

3.1 Why I’ve chosen this topic

Observations and discussions with learners from the time I began teaching has helped to identify and recognise a pattern of letter recognition difficulty amongst learners. Learners with Dyslexia in particular have great difficulty in recognising letters on keyboards as they are presented in their uppercase form. From my observations and discussions with learners, analogous descriptions of concerns and anxieties have been broached, namely difficulties in recognising uppercase letters on white boards and on paper based activities or written feedback. Notably, “Dyslexia is a neurological problem that affects language. It can take many forms, of which the most commonly know is difficulty with reading and writing”

Authors Kelly, Phipps and Swift (2004) proposed the ‘The Holistic Model for E-Learning Accessibility’ the chart was resultant from a need to address the usability of e-learning resources, and their pedagogic aims, such as the individual needs of the learner. My proposed project has the same values; learner needs are central, and assessments need to be usable and not just accessible. Dyslexia is a lifelong learning difficulty where phonological difficulties persist into adulthood and although many dyslexics learn to read accurately they do not do so automatically and may continue to read slowly (NHS UK, 2015).

Furthermore, where web-based learning tools are accessible, they also need to be useable. If learners have unknown letter difficulties where they cannot recognise a letter in its upper case form and the software has a lot of uppercase text in it, the user could become disengaged and start to actively avoid using technology. Software where you can move the cursor over a letter and it will show it in its lower case form, or better still, the letter is spoken so the user can hear it will not only make the application more user friendly, but also an inclusive

Therefore, a case study methodology (Kratochwill and Levin, 2015) will be assumed as one possible choice to help create a narrative framework as focus will be on the specific intervention practices used, and their outcomes. Moreover, Dyslexia and its affects are different for each individual, therefore compiling a case study will generate a more comprehensive account of the findings and highlight differences in user