Teaching reading in English to students with dyslexia : a case study of a Malaysian mainstream classroom teacher and a special needs classroom teacher

Abstract

This study aimed to explore the experience of Malaysian ESL mainstream classroom teacher and a special needs teacher in teaching English to students with Dyslexia, to provide an insight into how two teachers from different pedagogical backgrounds help dyslexic students overcome their challenges in learning the language. Specifically, it was aimed to investigate the teachers’ understanding of dyslexia and their challenges in teaching reading in English to Dyslexic students. This qualitative study employed a multiple case studies approach. Data were collected through face-to-face and semi-structured interviews. Malaysian teachers from different pedagogical backgrounds were purposively selected as participants for this study. The findings indicate that there some obvious gaps between the teachers’ understanding of dyslexia. Moreover, this study also identified that the teachers faced many challenges in teaching English to students with dyslexia in mainstream settings.