Quick jump navigation

Skip to left menu
Skip navigation and go to main content
Skip to different country versions of ETTAD
Skip to footer notes

Sections

Difficulties with Language/Comprehension

Processing the speed, detail or organisation of written or spoken information.

Difficulties with Language/Comprehension - adjustments to practice

Issues with Language and Comprehension can include a broad range of difficulties associated with processing the speed, detail or organisation of written or spoken information. Learners with Language and Comprehension difficulties may include those with:

Dyslexia;
Hearing Impairments who use British Sign Language (BSL) as their first language;
English as their second language;
Autistic Spectrum Disorders who use language literally and have difficulties with abstraction and ambiguous instruction.

As such there is likely to be a broad range of difficulties experienced and useful strategies to overcome them, but the following strategies offer examples of good practice for teaching that can be of benefit to all students.

People with basic language comprehension (receptive) needs can exhibit a variety of observable behaviours:

Difficulty understanding and following directions or instructions;
Becoming overwhelmed when given 2 or multi step directions;
Difficulties understanding longer more complex sentences, becoming easily confused;
Struggling with figurative versus literal language and needing further explanation;
Regularly requiring clarification and/or asking for instructions/directions repeated.

Difficulties with Language/Comprehension - adjustments to practice

These strategies are suggestions for inclusive teaching and training. This list should not be considered exhaustive and it is important to remember that all learners are individuals, and good practice for one person may not necessarily be good practice for another. If you have any good practice that you would like to add to this list, please email your suggestions to ettad@worc.ac.uk.

Environmental Factors

Eliminate background noise or aim to keep it to a minimum.

Learning Resources

It is often helpful to provide a session summary in advance online, or at the start of the session, so learners can concentrate on listening and understanding, rather than taking notes, and can familiarise themselves with new vocabulary as it is easier for people with hearing impairments to lip-read if the context is known in advance.
If a teaching or training session introduces a large amount of new terminology, provision of a glossary of key terms can be very useful.
When preparing handouts, pay attention to how easy they are to read and consider using more accessible sans-serif fonts.
Use multiple ways of presenting information: videos, slides, practical demonstrations, as well as talking through the text.
Offer a range of lined coloured paper for learners to write on. If learners have a colour preference, ensure all handouts are printed on it for them.

Course Delivery

Use literal language and very precise meanings.
Clearly 'chunk' processes and information: 'signpost' important facts.
It may be useful to provide a general overview of a topic prior to going into more detail.
Use as many concrete examples as possible when explaining ideas.
Use carefully worded, unambiguous questions to elicit and test learning, and limit oral questions to a manageable number.
Don’t assume learners have understood instructions simply because they can restate the information.
Provide information sequentially.
Recording tutorials can be very helpful for those who need to re-listen to what has been said in order to make accurate notes and to discuss the content with others at a later date.
Provide extra time after group sessions to check content has been understood, and encourage people to ask for instructions to be repeated, simplified or written down if it was not clear.
Experiment with different ways of presenting information and organising activities to maximise understanding in negotiation with the learner.

For a user friendly self-assessment questionnaire that can highligh indicators of dyslexia, please refer to the Vinegrad Checklist

Learning categories