The Effects of Altered Font for Students With and Without Decoding Difficulties

Abstract

Dyslexia fonts have existed for nearly 20 years. These fonts were designed for readers with dyslexia to make it easier for them to read. Some advocates claim that these specialized fonts mediate the effects of dyslexia, while critics point out the lack of research showing their effectiveness and the high costs of accessing the fonts. Current research on altered fonts shows mixed effects. This research aims to extend the existing research base on altered fonts for students with dyslexia. In a recent meta-analysis, Shewalter et al. (2023) found relatively few studies that have measured reading accuracy or rate in deep orthographic languages like English. Even fewer studies have measured reading comprehension using altered fonts. Therefore, this study measured the effects of altered fonts compared to standard fonts on reading accuracy, reading rate, and reading comprehension for students with and without decoding difficulties. The study implemented a within-subject quasi-experimental design with participants from grades 3, 4, and 5 from a public elementary school in Tennessee. Participants read word lists and passages printed in five different font types: Times New Roman (TNR), TNR with added spacing, Arial, Arial with added spacing, and OpenDyslexic font. By utilizing altered and unaltered fonts that vary in characteristics (e.g., serif/sans serif type style, added spacing), the study attempted to parse out the effects of the individual font characteristics.