Teaching and Supporting Students with Dyslexia - Transcript

There are a number of simple but effective adjustments that can make teaching more accessible for dyslexic students, which also benefit all students, regardless of their learning styles or abilities.

Firstly, dyslexic students often need more processing time when responding to questions, solving problems or verbalising ideas, so be comfortable with ‘thinking time’ - don’t feel like this silence needs to be filled, for example by nominating other students, or talking whilst they are thinking.

Regular breaks are essential to help maintain concentration so try to follow the 50 min teaching to ten-minute break ratio. Polls, quizzes and small group discussions are also good for increasing engagement and concentration as this varies the pace and style of delivery.

Tutorials are another really valuable way to support dyslexic students– this can be a very fruitful time of discussing study skills and general organisational abilities. Often, simple techniques that come as second nature to many of us may not be so intuitive, and so suggesting strategies like creating a timeline for deadlines, or effective note-taking skills can really support a student to stay on top of their workload.

Finally, one of the key findings in the literature is that students with dyslexia who feel listened to and supported by their lecturers are those who tend to succeed in their studies and so it is vital to demonstrate a willingness to understand their specific challenges and support them in the ways that we are able.