MacCullagh, L., Bosanquet, A., & Badcock, N. A. (2017). University students with dyslexia: A qualitative exploratory study of learning practices, challenges and strategies . Dyslexia , 23 (1), 3–23. https://doi.org/10.1002/dys.1544

Academic needs and supports for postsecondary students with reading-related learning disabilities were explored. Course examination accommodations such as individual or small-group administration in a smaller exam room, extended time, and additional or more frequent breaks were emphasized in this summary.

Postsecondary students (n=33) attending a university in Sydney, Australia, participated. Thirteen (13) students with dyslexia included 11 who had self-reported having been diagnosed with dyslexia, and two students that researchers included based on their reading test scores and on data that were gathered. Six of the 11 students also were determined to have met diagnostic criteria based on the Castles and Coltheart 2 for Adults (Castles et al., 2009). Twenty (20) students without disabilities also participated. Demographic details were reported for both participant groups such as age and gender. The majority of the participants were in their first year, two were in their second year, and one was in their fifth year of part-time enrollment.

Semi-structured interviews were conducted with all participants and addressed postsecondary learning experiences, including attending face-to-face classroom lectures, accessing course reading materials such as print and online or digital media, completing assignments, developing class presentations, and completing course examinations. Interview questions were developed and asked by a researcher who had dyslexia. Aspects of each academic activity were explored in detail, with questions about features that are helpful and unhelpful, preferences toward them if any, and potential improvements that participants would suggest. Students with dyslexia were also asked about incidence of use of, and perceptions about, disability support services.

All participants, both with and without dyslexia, reported similar perspectives yet with some differences. The instructional setting, and attending and recording lectures, was addressed; however, exam accommodations were the primary focus in this summary. Students with and without dyslexia expressed disliking high stakes written exams, sharing perspectives that they did not necessarily confirm student learning. While many participants noted feeling stress during written exams, students with dyslexia differentially indicated difficulties with background noises distracting them. Participants with dyslexia reported that academic supports provided by disability services offices seemed to be designed for students with visual impairments, illiteracy, other learning disabilities, physical disabilities, yet not for students with dyslexia or reading-related learning disabilities. Fewer than 25% of participants with dyslexia accessed exam accommodations including individual or small-group administration in a smaller exam room, extended time, and additional or more frequent breaks. Of those who used accommodations, one indicated that extended time was not helpful because they became fatigued, another noted that taking an exam separately in a small room still had background noise of the proctor shuffling papers and there wasn't a clock for pacing the exam's completion. One participant with dyslexia had requested the written exam to be printed in a designated font on colored paper, and found these accommodations helpful. Additional non-exam accommodations were only somewhat helpful, and that the effort and time taken for requesting and awaiting all accommodations to be implemented was burdensome. Additional comments indicated that some participants might not have had full awareness of available accommodations. The researchers commented on their observation that some participants (n=5) had self-identified with dyslexia, yet did not demonstrate to be impaired with dyslexia as indicated by the Castles and Coltheart 2 for Adults reading test. They noted possible explanations, including "previous misdiagnosis, incorrect self-report, effective remediation, effective use of adaptive strategies" (p. 15) and also that the reading test might not have detected dyslexia based on its design.