Learners’ perceptions of interest, difficulty and attention in a digital task bank for dyslexic learners of English and German and their inclusive classes

Abstract

Foreign language learning poses special challenges for dyslexic learners as problems of phonological decoding present in the mother tongue are transferred to additional languages, too (Kormos & Smith, 2012). Recent Central European research also suggests that teachers tend to have difficulties in providing effective support for these learners (Kormos & Nijakowska, 2017;Martan, Skočić Mihić & Matošević, 2017;Nijakowska, 2020). The aim of the ENGaGE Erasmus+ project was to contribute to the solution of this problem by providing flexible, digital, English and German supplementary materials for dyslexic foreign language learners and their primary school classes, as well as offering a digital teacher training course to support teachers using the Task Bank. It was a key aspect of course development to elicit feedback from learners. The study explores their perceptions of interest, difficulty and carefulness invested into completing the tasks, and analyses the interplay between these factors.