Date of Award

Fall 2024

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Education (EdD)

College

College of Education

Department

Department of Education

Primary Advisor

Dr. Joyce T. Harth

Second Advisor

Dr. Thomas J. Gollery

Third Advisor

Dr. Lisa A. Coscia

Abstract

Dyslexia is the most common learning disability, impacting approximately 20% of school-age children. Students with dyslexia need specialized instruction from an educator who can confidently differentiate literacy instruction to accommodate the learning needs of the dyslexic student. The purpose of this study is to measure general education teachers' self-efficacy in differentiating literacy instruction for students with dyslexia in public elementary schools in Florida. Moreover, the study evaluates whether educators are confident in using explicit, systematic, and multisensory methods based on the science of reading to differentiate for students with dyslexia. A survey was completed anonymously by 111 teachers, of which 84 were elementary kindergarten through fifth-grade general education teachers providing literacy instruction in Florida. The results indicated a statistically significant number of educators have a high self-efficacy in differentiating literacy instruction, specifically for students with dyslexia, and a statistically significant number of educators have a high self-efficacy using explicit, systematic, and multisensory differentiation strategies based on the science of reading to differentiate for students with dyslexia. Despite a reported high self-efficacy in differentiating instruction for students with dyslexia among all teachers, the data offered interesting differences in reported self-efficacy between teachers based on years of experience.

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