Students with Reading Difficulties
Instruction for Children with Reading Difficulties
Italian law recognizes dyslexia, dysgraphia, and dyscalculia, jointly known as disturbi specifici dell’apprendimento (specific learning disabilities) or DSA, as specific learning disorders and has assigned the Ministry of Education the responsibility of setting evaluation and teaching methods that enable all students who have been diagnosed with DSA to achieve educational success. Schools are required to provide students with DSA with a personalized program designed by the class council to help them complete their first trimester before being re-evaluated, if necessary.24
Students with these difficulties are allowed and should be encouraged to use technological instruments that facilitate their performance on school tasks (e.g., a recorded voice, software that automatically corrects written assignments, concept maps). Dispensatory measurements also allow students to achieve performance levels that would otherwise be unattainable and hinder their learning progress. For example, students with dyslexia are not required to read lengthy stories because they will not learn but only become frustrated. Instead, a scheduled plan of oral test verification, the use of a vocabulary word bank, a test with shorter content, and/or extra time for testing will facilitate students’ ability to learn and improve their skills.