Empowering Dyslexic: Assistive Technology Unlocks Potential

What is Dyslexia?

Dyslexia is a learning disability where an individual often has difficulty reading and interpreting what they read. Usually, people with dyslexia face hard times with reading, comprehension, writing, and spelling. Despite struggling with all those challenges, all affected are often highly intelligent. This is why Assistive Technology for Dyslexia is the answer!

It’s interesting to note that many accomplished individuals in various industries have dyslexia. This includes renowned writers and artists, exceptional scientists, doctors, lawyers, and influential figures in government and business.

Unfortunately, dyslexia can’t be cured, and it’s a lifelong disability that affects 20% of the world’s population and above 80% of those with learning disabilities. How can we assist individuals with dyslexia in overcoming these obstacles to integrate into society fully?

Discover the benefits of assistive technology and its role in helping individuals with dyslexia overcome various challenges they encounter in their daily activities. Keep reading to find out more.

How Assistive Technology Helps People with Dyslexia

Individuals with disabilities use assistive technology to perform otherwise hard or impossible functions. It can include mobility devices such as walkers and wheelchairs and hardware, software, and peripherals that assist people with disabilities in accessing computers or other information technologies.

Text-To-Speech-Software

Our primary area of focus is dyslexia, so we will discuss assistive technology options available for this particular learning disability. One such technology is TTS, which stands for text-to-speech software. While TTS helps people worldwide with different disabilities, dyslexia is the chief among them.

Text-to-speech is a specific technology incorporated into devices such as a computer, a smartphone, a tablet, and even a smartwatch. It doesn’t always go by the same name, depending on the operating system. For instance, MacOS has this technology called Voice Over.

TTS uses the latest AI technology, allowing the space to manipulate it and work on it to become even more perfect. One such example is Inclusive Docs’ screen reader. The reader reads plain text and HTML, text images, GIFS, links, and everything that appears on emails, docs, web pages, etc.

Dyslexia-Friendly Style Guide

The abovementioned platform (Inclusive Docs screen reader) has all the principles that are not difficult for a person with dyslexia to understand.

The first thing to know for a dyslexic person when using assistive technology is the usage of Readable fonts.

Usually, those are the sans serif fonts, such as Arial and Comic Sans, because the letters have more space in between. The following fonts are alternatives:

Verdana
Tahoma
Century Gothic
Trebuchet
Calibri
Open Sans

The font size should be 12-14, equivalent to 16-19px, although some dyslexic people may request a larger font. There also should be appropriate tracking which is usually 35%.

The following principle also involves avoiding italics and underlining the text, as it can cause crowding. The bold letters in assistive technology (i.e., the screen readers and flows) are used for emphasizing just as in a normal text. Dyslexic people can read small letters easily, so avoiding all caps and uppercase letters is recommended throughout the text.

There should always be a cream or soft pastel color background because the white can appear too bright and cause confusion.

Inclusive Docs offers customizable features based on the dyslexic-friendly style guide to meet each client’s unique needs.

These features include everything mentioned above, such as zooming, suitable coloring overlays, appropriate font sizes, and styles, making it an ideal solution for individuals with dyslexia.

Advanced AI and ChatGPT

If you have been following what’s happening around you, AI came into our lives, workplaces, and everywhere. Although it’s still in its infancy, the software transforms and advances daily. The biggest benefit currently of ChatGPT for dyslexic people is offering writing support. If you give the right directions and prompts, and with some manual work, this AI will give you almost correct text free from grammar and spelling errors.

Another crucial piece of information about AI is giving the right context to dyslexic people who often have a hard time understanding the text. Although AI is far from perfect, offering a poor choice of vocabulary and generic sentences, it’s a good tool for ideas and starting points. There is still much work to be done since it’s still giving false information about this.

Final Note

Do you know a person using an AT, and which type do they use? Have you heard about Inlcusive Docs before? We hope this post will inform you about all the benefits of Assistive technology for dyslexia. Thanks for reading, please visit our site for more information.

FAQ

Q: What assistive technology helps with dyslexia?

A: TTS or text-to-speech technology turns every text into speech which is extremely helpful for dyslexic persons as they can proofread and check their work.

These readers often come with additional features such as zooming, coloring overlays, specific fonts, tracking, and everything that will make dyslexic people feel better.

Q: What is the most effective intervention for dyslexia?

A: Following a structured approach that involves practising extensively with controlled decodable texts is recommended. Additionally, using multi-sensory methods to explicitly teach new content is helpful.

Q: Why is assistive technology important for students with dyslexia?

A: By using interventions, students can enhance their current reading and writing abilities. Additionally, assistive technology aids in providing access to more complex reading material and enables students to convey their thoughts through writing.