This master’s thesis examines the teaching of English as a foreign language to students with
dyslexia. The theoretical section discusses the cognitive factors that influence learning English
as a foreign language among students with dyslexia, the impact of the native language on
English acquisition, and evidence-based teaching approaches, with particular emphasis on the
multisensory structured approach. It is especially important to examine how such an approach
functionsin the context of learning English as a foreign language among students with dyslexia
in the Slovenian school environment, where differences between the Slovenian and English
orthographic systems present additional challenges in linking sounds and letters, decoding,
and spelling.
The purpose of this master’s thesis is to examine changes in phonological awareness,
decoding, and orthographic skills in a student with dyslexia following multisensory structured
special education training.
The empirical part consisted of a case study of a 7th grade student with dyslexia, in which a
20-hour special education training programme was implemented, based on the principles of
a multisensory structured approach. The intervention focused on developing phonological
awareness, linking phonemes and graphemes, decoding, and orthographic skills in reading
and writing English words. We assessed the student’s performance before and after the
intervention using standardised and informal tests, supplemented by qualitative analysis of
errors and observations made during the training.
The results of the study show that, following the intervention, the most pronounced positive
changes were observed in the decoding and spelling of English words, particularly in tasks
related to the phoneme–grapheme correspondence and orthographic patterns addressed.
Progress in phonological awareness was less consistent, and improvements were not
observed in all the orthographic skills tests used. The findings thus suggest that systematic,
explicit, multisensory instruction can contribute to developing specific foundational skills in
reading and writing English words in a student with dyslexia, although longer-term,
continuous support is necessary for these skills to become automatic
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