Do Dyslexia-friendly Fonts Actually Work? Plus: Executive Functions and Reading Comprehension, And: Are There Enough Diverse Books in Classroom Libraries?
Do Dyslexia-friendly Fonts Actually Improve Reading?
“Dyslexia-friendly” fonts have become quite popular but this study found that changing the graphic form of letters (to highlight different features of similarly-shaped letters) did not increase reading accuracy or speed for 2 groups (with and without dyslexia) of 64 children. Increasing the inter-letter spacing (without also increasing inter-word spacing) actually led to impaired reading. That said, if a parent feels like dyslexia fonts are working for their child, I don’t see the need (my opinion here- not the authors of the study) to point out that “research shows they don’t work” as long as their child is also receiving intensive code-based instruction. I think it becomes more problematic when teachers or parents believe that children with dyslexia only need a “quick-fix” like a font change to “cure” their dyslexia. Citation: Galliussi, J., Perondi, L., Chia, G. et al. Inter-letter spacing, inter-word spacing, and font with dyslexia-friendly features: testing text readability in people with and without dyslexia. Annals of Dyslexia, 70, 141–152 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11881-020-00194-x (Open Access!)
So this next “recap” is longer than a sentence or two because I had a lot to say about it…oh, and it is from my former colleagues/labmates & PhD advisor at Vanderbilt! :)
Executive Functions Play A Role in Reading Comprehension
Scarborough’s “Rope Model” of reading development is a popular representation of reading development. However, many researchers feel that it is incomplete and have offered up a different model that includes executive function as a third rope/strand binding together word recognition and language comprehension skills (see graphic below). Spencer et al. used a statistical technique known as structural equation modeling to examine how executive functions (working memory & cognitive flexibility) correlated with decoding, oral language, and reading comprehension in 270 9-14 year-olds. They found that oral language and decoding skill “fully mediated” the relationship between executive functions and reading comprehension. This suggests that interventions targeting reading comprehension should have embedded (rather than isolated) executive function components. The findings also suggest that adding tests of certain executive functions might be helpful when determining if a child has reading comprehension difficulties. Citation: Mercedes Spencer, Miranda C. Richmond & Laurie E. Cutting (2020) Considering the Role of Executive Function in Reading Comprehension: A Structural Equation Modeling Approach, Scientific Studies of Reading, 24:3, 179-199, DOI: 10.1080/10888438.2019.1643868
An example of an updated “Rope Model” (that takes into account executive function) taken from my poster presentation at the Society for the Scientific Study of Reading’s Annual Conference in Halifax in 2017. (Image originally from Cutting, Bailey, Barquero, & Aboud, 2015 first adapted from original ‘rope model’ image in Scarborough, 2001).
Classroom Libraries Lack Diverse Books
An assessment of 3 elementary classroom libraries found a lack of diverse books even though the teachers were “aware and working against this reality.” The authors of this study suggest a few key actions practitioners can take, including, but not limited to: reading the author & illustrator bios and making sure they are a member of the culture that the book is about. Citation: Henderson, J.W., Warren, K., Whitmore, K.F., Flint, A. S., Laman, T.T., & Jaggers, W. ( 2020). Take a Close Look: Inventorying Your Classroom Library for Diverse Books. The Reading Teacher, 73( 6), 747– 755. https://doi.org/10.1002/trtr.1886