Audiobooks

Audiobooks allow students with dyslexia gain access to written material above their current reading level through the use of text-to-speech technology. Audiobooks remove the barrier of decoding so students can focus on understanding, learning, and enjoying text. Even when dyslexic students can decode grade-level text, their reading rate may be significantly slower than their peers. This can make it difficult for students with dyslexia to keep pace with the rest of the class. Audiobooks may help to level the playing field for students with dyslexia. Audiobooks use text-to-speech technolgoy. In their literature review, Raffoul and Jaber (2023) found that text-to-speech software had a positive impact on students' fluency and content retention and promoted independent learning. Wood, Moxley, Tighe and Wagner (2018) found that text-to-speech technology can assist students with reading comprehension. Listening to audiobooks may also increase vocabulary and background knowledge for all students. There are many websites and apps that offer audiobooks.

Bookshare is an online library of ebooks that offers more than 1.3 million titles — including textbooks, school-assigned reading, fiction, nonfiction, children’s, and teen books. It is free for students with a documented disability. Some features include:

• students can adjust font size, spacing, background color/contrast, and even dyslexic-friendly fonts

• can be used with VoiceDream, Read and Write and other assistive technology programs

• Text can be read aloud (text-to-speech), or presented with highlighted text synchronized to the audio

• Students can read on computers, tablets, or smartphones

  On the downside, many of Bookshare’s titles use synthesized speech rather than human voices which some find difficult to listen to.

Learning Ally Learning Ally provides a large audiobook library, over 50,000 titles including curriculum and school-required texts. Membership cost for those with a documented disability is about $135 a year. Schools and districts may get access to Learning Ally for free if they qualify for funding.

Some features include:

• a large library of human-read audiobooks (not just text-to-speech) — which many listeners prefer over synthetic voices

• text is often highlighted while narrated (VOICEtext)

• students can adjust reading speed, font size, background/contrast, and display settings

• an internet connection is required

References

Raffoul, S., & Jaber, L. (2023). Text-to-Speech Software and Reading Comprehension: The Impact for Students with Learning Disabilities. Canadian Journal of Learning and Technology, 49(2), 1–18. https://doi.org/10.21432/cjlt28296

Wood, S. G., Moxley, J. H., Tighe, E. L., & Wagner, R. K. (2018). Does Use of Text-to-Speech and Related Read-Aloud Tools Improve Reading Comprehension for Students with Reading Disabilities? a Meta-Analysis. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 51(1), 73–84. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022219416688170