1. FEU CAVITE
Department of Education
Teaching Students with Dyslexia
In partial fulfillment of the requirements in
ENG3N: Foundations of Language Study
Submitted by:
Panganiban, Erika A.
Loyola, Maristhel P.
Belga, Carl Dervin P.

2. TABLE OF CONTENTS
Preface 1
Part I:
A. Language and its components 2
B. Students with Dyslexia 3
C. Importance of knowing the learners
D. Factors to be consider in teaching language 4
(before, during, after teaching)
E. How students with dyslexia learned a language
Part II:
A. Underlying theories
B. Strategies and techniques in teaching English in students with dyslexia
C. Activities in teaching English
D. Activities that supports this teaching framework

3. Preface
Teaching framework and philosophy are really important background to our
future profession as the next forerunners of the program. This framework provides
general suggestions for teaching English language, technique and approaches
supported by the underlying theories to our target learners in facilitating activities. It
put us into practice in choosing and making activities that are appropriate in providing
the needs of our target learners as well as the factors to be considered in teaching
language and learning language. It explained the language and its components as the
main medium of learning. It discussed the learners which are students with learning
disability dyslexia, as well as the causes, characteristics and prevalence of this
condition. The importance of knowing the learners and it answered the question, how
does one learn a language. The underlying theories such as behaviorist theory, critical
period hypothesis and socio-cultural theory are presented in this framework that
supported the suggestions and the things that we believe in. It explained further the
techniques and activities to be used in classroom scenario. It answered also the
question, how will we teach English?. The activities that would be possibly be included
in teaching English also provided and how would these activities reflect in or teaching
framework and philosophy. In the last part of this framework we created and
conceptualized base on the theories we believe in. teaching framework in line to our
target learners, factors to be considered, underlying theories, strategies and activities

4. that will support the new teaching framework that we made on how we will teach
language to the students with learning disability specifically dyslexia.
Teachers may think of language, reading and writing as being separate skills and
may believe that the purpose of formal education is to teach reading and writing but
not oral language. Listening, speaking, reading and writing are all language skills, and
success at school requires proficient oral language skills as well as written language
skills. Children have to process teachers’ instructional talk, which is delivered via oral
language, as well as their peer’s oral language used in class and on the playground.
Language encompasses the elements of listening, speaking, reading and writing, all of
which have an underlying language core. Oral language is the primary language system
and consists of listening and speaking. Written language is the secondary language
system and consists of reading and writing.
Language is recognized as one of the greatest of human achievements – more
important than all the physical tools invented in the past 2,000 years. It provides a
means of communicating and socializing with other human beings, it enables the
culture to be transmitted from generation to generation, and it is a vehicle of thought.
The communication process between two people consists of sending a message
(expressive language) and receiving a message (receptive language).
Language is an integrated system, and many areas of learning depend upon
mastery of language. As the child matures, language plays an increasingly important
part in the development of the thinking processes and in the ability to grasp abstract

5. concepts. Words become symbols for objects, groups of objects, and ideas. Language
permits human beings to speak of things unseen, of the past, and of the future.
To assess and plan instruction for language problems, the teacher needs to be
familiar with the components of language. A common classification system organizes
the components of language according to form (phonology, morphology and syntax),
content (semantics), and use (pragmatics).
The importance of language has been getting broader and bigger as it passed
through generation to generation. It simply because language can conquers the world.
Language can make rules, can express ideas, and can unite people as one. It is the basis
of understanding between the people and the world through the process of
communication. In short, language can define culture and culture will define history.
Some of the students encounter difficulties in learning a language especially
those students with learning disabilities. The target learners of this framework focus on
the students with reading problems which is commonly known as dyslexia. Dyslexia
comes from the Greek word Dys which means “impaired” and Lexia is derived from
the word “lexicon” (the mental dictionary of word meanings, spellings and
pronunciation) and means “word”. Dyslexia has been around for a long time and has
been defined in different ways. According to the U.S. National Institutes of Health,
dyslexia is a learning disability that can hinder a person's ability to read, write, spell,
and sometimes speak. It is the most common learning disability in children and persists
through life. The severity of dyslexia can vary from mild to severe. The sooner the
dyslexia is treated, the more favorable the outcome; however, is it never too late for

6. people with dyslexia to learn to improve their language skills. It can be related to brain
injury, hereditary, or hormonal influences. Dyslexia is a language-based disability in
which a person has trouble understanding words, sentences, or paragraphs. This is
caused by a disruption in the neural circuits in the brain and it is said to be persisted
into adolescence and adulthood. This problem may leads to difficulties in many areas of
life as the individual matures. It is not only dealing with reading problems but students
with dyslexia also problems spelling. Students with this kind of disability can be easily
identify if he/she is having a delayed speech, problems with pronunciation, grammar,
reading a single word, learning a foreign language, difficulty with retelling a story in
the right order of events, and reads below their expected level. It is really important to
know the target learners because it provides us information and ideas in considering
the right and appropriate strategies in teaching English. The significant work of
education also involves connection between the students and teachers. This connection
helps learning to take place effectively. The background of the students is valuable and
the parents, professionals, paraprofessionals, principal and guidance councilor should
be accessible in student condition. Collaborative effort should be done. A call to
awareness involves in intellectual understanding of student’s needs as well as the
emotional sensitivity to realize their ongoing knowledge. If that’s the case, it would be
easy to the part of the teacher to stimulate learning inputs and strategies to tap up their
skills. Moving beyond foundation skills, the teacher learns about a child’s work pace,
organizational skills so that skills, memory, verbal expression, ability to sustain

7. attention and creativity. A teacher must be an evaluator who can evaluate and identify
our learner’s strengths and needs.
There are things and factors that a language teacher must consider before, during
and after teaching. One of this is age based from the theory of Eric Lenneberg which is
the Critical Period Hypothesis wherein age really matters in acquiring a language. As a
teacher, it is important to know the age of the students whether if they are at-risk or
delayed in learning a language so that the teacher could adjust to the learning style,
instructions and address the special needs of each student. Collaboration with parents
we’re highly needed in developing a language. Both of them contribute to the academic
and non-academic performance of students in school. A language teacher also needs to
consider the doctor’s diagnosis because it is the doctor that knows more the condition of
the child and also the paraprofessionals and professionals. Diagnosis of dyslexia
involves reviewing the child’s processing of information from seeing, hearing and
participating activities. Instructional support team is really important in developing
pre-referral activities for a student who is encountering difficulties especially in
teaching students with learning disability specifically the reading difficulty before
referring the students for a special education evaluation; teachers use these
interventions with the child. The Present Level of Education Performance or PLEP must
be considered as well as making an initial assessment to the students. Peer group is also
considered as one of the main factors that aim to help the classroom teacher analyze the
students’ academic level and behavioral problems that recommend interventions and

8. accommodation to the students. Then, the classroom teacher will initiate the suggested
methods.
There are different ways on how we learn a language. Environment has a huge
role in providing a lot of learning stimulus. It really provides shapes and changes in the
behavior that result to learning.
( how does one…)
It was based on many theories in suggesting the appropriate strategies and
approach in teaching language to the students with dyslexia. One of these theories is the
Behaviorist Theory wherein learning can be defined as the process of leading to relative
permanent change or potential behavioral change. Considering the target learners,
students with dyslexia, operant conditioning of Skinner which refers to an active
behavior that operates upon the environment to generate consequences through
reinforcement and other behavior modification like positive and negative punishment.
In this technique, the teaching style will not be more rigid and much stimulation will be
provided by the teacher. Another theory is the Critical Period Hypothesis wherein age
really affects in learning a language. In this case, the approach and activities should be
appropriate to the level of the learners. Learners should learn the language inside the
puberty age because it is said to be that it is the best age to acquire language. The age
should be considered in providing activities that assure the students attention and
participation in class discussion. The last is the Socio-cultural Theory where in it

9. emphasizes the importance of the society especially the adult in the cognitive
development. The zone of proximal development- a distance between an individual’s
ability working independently and working in collaboration with a more
knowledgeable others that should be visible in support to the Behaviorist Theory. It
explains as a whole that the environment really provides the stimulations and other
knowledge and it depends on the age if the students have a large capability of learning
the language with the help of the teachers, instructional team, parents and peers as
more knowledgeable others. These three theories will support the strategies and
techniques in teaching a language.
Pictures are not only practical and simple to use, they also provide a sense of
consistency because the same set of pictures used at school can also be used at home.
The most widely recognized formal system of communication is the Picture Exchange
System, developed by Andy Bondy and Lori Frost. In the PECS system, a child present
pictures to a partner or select pictures from a board or portable notebook. The pictures
are inexpensive and portable, allowing the child to use them in a variety of different
situations. While pictures are excellent teaching tool for children with special needs, the
PECS system offers more options because there is a specific method involved in
presenting each sequence of pictures with the use of official PECS system and special
training is required. Another strategy to use is by applying the RTI method. Response-
to-intervention or RTI is a procedure that is intended to identify students who are
having academic difficulties when the problems first become apparent by using
evidenced-based intervention with students. If students respond well to evidenced-

10. based interventions, they are thought not to have a disability. Students who do not
respond positively to this instruction or who do not learn adequately are given more
intensive instructions using evidenced-based teaching method. If the child still does not
respond or learn after several levels of intervention, the child may then be considered
for an evaluation for special education and to determine the child’s category of
disability. Although there are several different versions of RTI, many use three tiers or
levels of intervention. Each tier provides increasingly individualized and intensified
instruction along with continuous monitoring of progress to calculate gains. The Tier 1
is a high- quality instruction in general education and monitoring of student progress.
Students who do not respond adequately to Tier 1 go on to Tier 2. Tier 2 is more
intensive evidenced-based interventions taught in small groups, while progress
monitoring continues. Often supports teachers, such as reading specialists, instruct
students at Tier 2. Students who do not respond adequately to Tier 2 go on to the last
Tier. The Tier 3 is highly intense evidenced-based interventions aught in small groups
while progress monitoring continues. Students who do not respond adequately to Tier 3
may be considered for a special education evaluation. (Bradley, Danielson, & Doolittle,
2005; Denton, 2006). RTI targets all students considered to be at-risk for learning failure,
including students with learning disabilities and students who are English- language
learners. Students who respond well to the instruction in the RTI procedure at Tiers 1, 2
or 3 are not considered eligible for special education services. Students who are not
learning with the RTI interventions are considered to be “non-responders” and may be
referred for a special education evaluation. Another strategy is the use of Successive

11. approximation or shaping. Successive approximation or shaping is one way or
technique that supports a child as she attempts a task. When a child is trying to learn a
new activity or work on solving a problem that may be difficult for her, it helps to
reinforce her efforts with praise for close approximations. This praise or “reward”,
encourages her to continue trying to achieve a new goal. The Cueing is also a technique
that you can use to give the child clues about what he/she is expected to do. For
example, if Princess always runs ahead into a learning center instead of waiting her
turn, place your hand on Princess’s shoulder to cue her to wait until it is her turn. The
Universal Design for Learning is an educational framework based on research in the
learning sciences, including cognitive neuroscience, that guides the development of
flexible learning environments that can accommodate individual learning differences
that provides multiple means of representation to give learners various ways of
acquiring information and knowledge, multiple means of expression to provide
learners alternatives for demonstrating what they know, and multiple means of
engagement to tap into learners' interests, challenge them appropriately, and motivate
them to learn. It is also the key in helping all students achieve is identifying and
removing barriers from our teaching methods and curriculum materials.
Learning English can be done effectively through the use of different activities.
Examples for this are the audio books. A teacher can provide books that make noise
when they are opened. This will help to develop their reading skills as well as they can
enjoy reading while listening. She can also use board books that have bright pictures so
that they can easily distinguish the message of the story. They say that dyslexic kids are

12. visual learners and they need images to connect to the words they are reading. Using
modeling clay to form letters, words, correct reversal in numbers and in letters can
provide the visual tactile connection they need. This is called as the Clay Models for
non-picture word. Another activity can be done is writing note cards which provide the
students to look at while and give them something to hold. Making and reading note
cards aloud helps cement the learning while engaging employs their motor and
auditory skills. Making sand trays is also an effective activity. Sand trays are simply
tray-like containers that contain sand, beans or shaving cream. It allows children to
spell words or draw pictures in the sand, engaging their tactile or visual skills. Teacher
can also expose his/her students in authentic use of language like visiting in a museum.
Through that, the literacy skills will develop strongly and the interaction between the
teacher and the learners.
(activities that supports teaching framework)

14. REFERENCES
Martin, Lucy C. (2009) Strategies for Teaching Students with Learning Disabilities.
California: Corwin Press
Grassi, Elizabeth A; Barker, Heidi B. (2010) Culturally and Linguistically Diverse
Exceptional Students: Strategies for Teaching and Assessment. London: SAGE
Publications Incorporation
Berninger, Virginia W.; Wolf, Beverly J. (2009) Teaching Students with Dyslexia and
Dysgraphia: Lessons from Teaching and Science. USA: Paul H. Brookes Publishing
Corporation
Lerner Janet; Johns Beverly (2009) Learning Disabilities and Related Mind Disabilities:
Characteristics, Teaching Strategies and New Directions. USA: WADSWORTH
CENGAGE Learning
Mercer, Cecil D.; Pullen, Paige C. (2009) Students with Learning Disabilities. USA:
Pearson Education Incorporation
www.clker.com
www.texthelp.com/media/39354/USAdultLiteracy.pdf