According to International Educational Statistics (2008), there are total of 654.9 million school-age children in the world. If dyslexia affects 10–15% of these youth (Fletcher et al. 2007), this translates to approximately 65–98 million students with difficulties in reading and writing. The EU strategic plan for education (2010) recognises the need for EU citizens to speak a foreign language. As such, foreign language courses are introduced on an obligatory basis at the primary level of education. Dyslexic students are not exempt from this regulation, and, thus, are confronted with different language systems that must be mastered. The difficulty here escalates if the systems differ significantly in their levels of orthographic transparency. Reading and writing are operationalised by the same biological functions that are defined by the universal perspective. However, language systems differ in terms of their transparency; for example, English and French are considered opaque scripts, whereas Spanish and Italian are described as transparent orthographies. These differences are discussed in this book as part of the language specific perspective, which can, in turn, raise questions such as: “Is a dyslexic student equally impaired in any language they study?” and “Is the type of difficulty primarily dependent on the language system or is it rather a dyslexia syndrome?” This volume provides answers through a synthesis of research on reading difficulties in first and foreign languages and existing taxonomies of dyslexia sub-types.

Offering strategies and techniques for teaching modern foreign languages - an often severely challenging subject for pupils with dyslexia - this book is specifically designed to meet the needs of the busy subject specialist teacher looking for guidance on supporting pupils.

In this age of globalisation, people who do not speak a foreign language are at a serious disadvantage in the job market. It is therefore of great relevance that learners with learning disabilities are also provided with equal and appropriate opportunities to acquire a second or foreign language. The aim of the book is to give readers an insight into the language learning process of learners with disabilities. The articles discuss the learning process and the teaching of dyslexic as well as hearing impaired learners in various parts of the world, from the USA and Canada to England, Norway, Poland and Hungary. The intended audience of the book is language teachers, MA and MEd students, and researchers in the field of SLA, applied linguistics, or special education.

This edited volume brings together perspectives that find mutual kinship in a view of language as an embodied, semiotic, symbolic tool used for communicative and interactional purposes and an understanding of language use as the preeminent condition for language learning – perspectives that we conjoin under the umbrella term of usage based perspectives.

This book is intended to help language teachers to work effectively and successfully with students who have Specific Learning Differences (SpLDs). It enables teachers to gain a thorough understanding of the nature of SpLDs and how these affect both general learning processes and the mechanisms of second language acquisition. In addition, the book explores the particular inclusive methods and techniques of teaching and assessment that foster success in language learning. Language teaching is embedded in a wider social and educational context, and therefore the book also provides an in-depth discussion of general educational issues related to identifying and disclosing disabilities and to making transitions from one institution to the other. The content has been thoroughly updated and revised for the second edition, particularly in the areas of inclusive pedagogies, new evidence-based methods and tools for identifying SpLDs, and new conceptualisations of neurodiversity. The book also includes the latest research on assessment, transition and progression, and the impact of SpLDs on additional language learning.

The Second Language Learning Processes of Students with Specific Learning Difficulties is the only recent book available to offer a detailed and in-depth discussion of the second language learning processes of students with specific learning difficulties (SpLDs). It summarizes research advances in the fields of cognitive and educational psychology and integrates them with recent studies in the area of second language acquisition (SLA). Thus the book is relevant not only to readers who are particularly interested in the role of specific learning difficulties in learning additional languages, but also to those who would like to understand how individual differences in cognitive functioning influence SLA. The book focuses on four important areas that are particularly relevant for language learners with SpLDs: the processes of SLA in general and the development of reading skills in particular, the effectiveness of pedagogical programs, the assessment of the language competence of students with SpLDs and identifying SpLDs in another language. The book also views learners with SpLDs in their social and educational contexts and elaborates how the barriers in these contexts can affect their language learning processes. This is an excellent resource for language teachers, students, and researchers in the areas of second language acquisition and applied linguistics.

This book addresses specific learning difficulties in reading and spelling – developmental dyslexia. Set in the cross-linguistic context, it presents issues surrounding dyslexia from the perspective of a foreign language teacher. It is intended to serve as a reference book for those involved in foreign language teaching, including experienced in-service teachers and novice teachers, as well as teacher trainers and trainees. It offers an up-to-date and reader-friendly study of the mechanisms of dyslexia and an overview of the current research on the disorder, in theoretical and practical terms. Its aim is to help teachers tackle one of the many challenges they face in the modern classroom: the organization of an effective foreign language teaching process for students with dyslexia.

This landmark volume provides a broad-based, comprehensive, state-of-the-art overview of current knowledge and research into second language teaching and learning. All authors are leading authorities in their areas of expertise. The chapters, all completely new for Volume 2, are organized in eight thematic sections: Social Contexts in Research on Second Language Teaching and Learning Second Language Research Methods Second Language Research and Applied Linguistics Research in Second Language Processes and Development Methods and Instruction in Second Language Teaching Second Language Assessment Ideology, Identity, Culture, and Critical Pedagogy in Second Language Teaching and Learning Language Planning and Policy. Changes in Volume 2: captures new and ongoing developments, research, and trends in the field surveys prominent areas of research that were not covered in Volume 1 includes new authors from Asia, Australia, Europe, and North America to broaden the Handbook’s international scope. Volume 2 is an essential resource for researchers, faculty, teachers, and students in MA-TESL and applied linguistics programs, as well as curriculum and material developers.