Overview

Welcome to lesson 1 of 13 in the Accessible Reading for Educators Course. In this lesson you will learn about the number and range of young people in schools, colleges, and universities who may face barriers to reading when curriculum material is provided in a printed format.

This lesson will also draw on research that focuses on accessible reading and highlights the benefits accessible reading offers young people.

Lesson Objectives

After studying this lesson, you will be able to:

• Identify the types of disabilities and learning differences that may prevent students from accessing standard printed text.
• Explain how accessible reading supports academic achievement and student well-being for learners with special educational needs.
• Interpret statistical data related to the global and national prevalence of students who benefit from accessible reading.
• Compare the outcomes of traditional printed text versus accessible formats in relation to reading speed and comprehension.
• Justify the implementation of accessible reading as a necessary component of inclusive education.

This lesson should take no more than 15 minutes to complete.

Who can benefit from accessible reading?

Every student has the right to read their curriculum material in a way they find accessible. This is particularly important for students who face barriers to reading standard printed text.

This includes students with a range of special educational needs, including:

• Learning differences, such as dyslexia, autism, or ADHD.
• Vision impairments.
• Physical disabilities.

The number of young people who can benefit from accessible reading represents a significant population of students in schools, colleges, and universities around the world:

• In the US, over 15% (7.5 million) of students are receiving support under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (1).
• In England, 18% (1.7 million) students are identified as having special educational needs (2).
  • The British Dyslexia Association (BDA) state that 10% of the UK population are dyslexic. That is an estimated 1.2 million children across the UK, an average of two to three children in EVERY classroom.
  • The Royal National Institute for Blind People (RNIB) estimate that 41,000 children and young people in the UK have a vision impairment.
• Around 240 million children worldwide have a special educational need (3).

With so many young people facing barriers to reading, the need to make curriculum material accessible is greater than ever. Accessible Reading provides a cost-effective way of supporting a range of young people with special educational needs.

The benefits of accessible reading

Research studies have found that providing students with reading material in an accessible format has a profound impact on their reading speed, comprehension, and overall well-being. This section provides insights from several studies and the impact accessible reading has for a range of young people with SEND.

Watch - The Accessible Resources Pilot Project (2010)

The following short video provides insights from a pilot project commissioned by the UK government in 2010. The project highlighted the impact of providing young people with dyslexia or a vision impairment with accessible curriculum materials, assistive technology, and training.

 You can read the full report for the Accessible Resources Pilot Project on the Dolphin website.

Reading speed and comprehension

In a 2021 reading study by Dr. Susanne Nobles and presented at the Adobe for Education Summit, 250 K-8th grade students using text formats featuring varied character spacing and/or width were evaluated. This study found on average students gained 20% in speed and accuracy of comprehension when their reading material was in a format that better met their personal requirements (4).

Benefits for dyslexia

Studies have found that students with dyslexia:

• Improved their reading speed when using a larger text size.
• Found reading comprehension easier when using audio.
• Using colours such as yellow or blue to highlight each sentence and word increased reading speed.

Academic achievement

Studies have also shown that students who have access to accessible online resources and tools experience improved academic performance. This is due to their enhanced ability to engage with educational materials effectively (5) (6).

Accessible reading tools empower students with special educational needs to take control of their learning, leading to increased confidence and independence. This enhanced independence is crucial for students' overall development and helps them participate fully in their education.

This was also supported by a 2016 paper examining the role of Assistive Technology (AT) as a reading aid for children with reading disabilities. It showed that using AT can enable young readers to develop at the same rate as non-impaired readers.

The paper goes on to recognise the need to challenge the concept of reading to change to fit modern means of gaining information, proposing that AT could facilitate the information gaining process and subsequently increase motivation to learn and increase interest in reading activities.

It also found that AT had wider effects on its users: stigmatizing situations when leaving the classroom for special education were avoided and positive effects on family life were noted.

Furthermore, a survey of educational professionals using RNIB Bookshare (an UK service providing education titles in accessible formats) revealed that 62% agreed it enabled children to reach their academic potential.

Summary

In this lesson you looked at the benefits of accessible reading. By promoting equal access to education, addressing budget constraints, improving educational attainment, supporting teachers, and enhancing student independence, accessible reading can make a profound difference in the lives of students with SEND.

Quiz

Below are three sample quiz questions based on this lesson. Please spend no more than five minutes considering the answers to these questions.

1. What do research statistics show about the impact of adopting accessible reading solutions for students with special educational needs?
   1. They have no impact on educational outcomes.
   2. They may cause confusion and dependency.
   3. They improve educational outcomes.
   4. They only assist visually impaired students.
2. Accessible reading gives students with SEND increased (blank and blank).
   1. distraction and dependency.
   2. confidence and independence.
   3. anxiety and isolation.
   4. silence and supervision.
3. Accessible reading helps students with SEND to participate more fully in their education. Is this statement true?
   
   1. Yes.
   2. No

End of lesson

Thank you for completing this lesson. Please select 'Next Lesson' below to continue to the next part of this course.

To revisit a previous lesson, please scroll to the top of this page and choose the lesson from the Course Outline menu.

But before you move on, here are the answers to the quiz questions:

1. They improve educational outcomes.
2. Confidence and independence.
3. Yes.

References:

(1) National Center for Education Statistics. (2024). Students With Disabilities. Condition of Education. U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences.

(2) Special Educational Needs: support in England Research Briefing (Published Friday, 17 January, 2025).

(3) The world’s nearly 240 million children living with disabilities are being denied basic rights – UNICEF

(4) Research Results: Improved Student Reading Speed and Comprehension study by Dr. Susanne Nobles of ReadWorks.

(5) The Importance of Accessibility in Education by Michael Halpin

(6) Assistive technology as reading interventions for children with reading impairments with a one-year follow-up