Dyslexia

European Commission Funds Intelligent Reading System

Madrid (ES), November 2009 - The AGENT-DYSL project is developing an Intelligent Assistive Reading System that can help school-aged readers who have dyslexia to improve their reading. Children using the reading system receive personalized attention by the system, with customized presentation of reading material based on individual profiles built up through "observation" of each child reading the text on the system's viewing area and by recognizing their reading errors.




These individual profiles are used in deciding how to optimize the text presentation for each child and situation.

In addition to being able to "listen to children reading", the AGENT-DYSL system can also "see" the children while they read. By employing image analysis techniques, the system can assess the child's emotional and physical state and dynamically adapt the document presentation accordingly (a tired child or a child under emotional stress is more likely to have reduced reading performance).

To improve its usability and acceptance by dyslexic children, the AGENT-DYSL system employs age-appropriate and dyslexia-sensitive user interfaces.

Dyslexia is a common learning disorder that affects at least five percent of Europe's school children. The range and severity of the problem varies widely, but the main areas of difficulty are reading, writing, spelling, numeracy, personal organization, and time keeping. The degree to which individuals may be affected ranges from mild spelling difficulties to severe organizational problems or complete illiteracy.