Journals Proceedings

Abstract

The first journey to knowledge is reading, a musthave capability or skill to discover life’s full potential. Dyslexia is a problem related to reading difficulties and inability to comprehend textual or phonological materials that is easy for non-dyslexic person. The situation will lead to anxiety and frustration when a person with dyslexia finds reading as one of the most hated activities especially for children. This paper presented few findings from a study involving twelve (12) dyslexic children in a primary school in Malaysia. An educational multimedia courseware is used in the experiment to test set of research questions related to reaction towards text instruction, icons, colors and other elements of interface. Findings from the experiment were discussed to understand reasons behind learning difficulties by dyslexic children. We also put emphasize on the engagement activities with the courseware to understand any design issues which may cause the low success rate of normal multimedia courseware. One notable finding in the experiment is that, some students possessed good listening skill to compensate the reading difficulties when trying to read the text-based instruction of the courseware. The results and findings will help multimedia courseware designer to focus on developing a more engaging courseware or online materials that will increase level of comprehension and ability of dyslexic children to apply the knowledge they have learned.