Students with dyslexia who find it hard to give presentations may soon get help to overcome their nerves.
A new virtual reality program will allow them to hone their speaking skills in front of a virtual audience and even give them cues to make eye contact and hand gestures.
The presentation-skills tool is a joint effort by the Dyslexia Association of Singapore (DAS) and a group of students from Nanyang Technological University.
It will be introduced in September across 14 DAS centres to 50 students with dyslexia on the cusp of entering tertiary institutions.
Students with dyslexia usually have difficulty reading, writing and spelling, and may have lower confidence levels, behavioural problems and hyperactivity.
The presentation-skills tool comes under the iStudySmart programme, which uses technology to boost the learning of students with learning disabilities.
A tech tool that the DAS is using is the Raz-Kids application, which has been introduced to children in its pre-school programme.
With the app, children with reading difficulties can have e-books read aloud to them both in the classroom and at home.
The app also offers teachers a way to keep track of the children’s reading progress.
DAS educational technology coordinator Soofrina Mubarak, 31, said tech tools such as interactive whiteboards have made students more focused in class.
“When you have interactive and fun features, even students who have trouble paying attention during class are more engaged and productive,” she said.
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Source: The Straits Times, 22 June 2018