| Summary: | Many people with dyslexia find second language learning difficult (Gallardo, et al., 2015; Csizér, et al., 2010; DiFino & Lombardino, 2004; Simon, 2000). A language with a deep orthography has little correspondence between the spelling of a word and its pronunciation, and is said to cause a higher degree of faulty decoding by people with dyslexia (Lindgren & Laine, 2011; Rontou, 2012). English is one of the languages with the deepest orthography (Seymour, Aro & Erskine, 2003). In contrast, one study has found that some exceptional dyslectics read with greater ease and correctness in English compared to their mother tongue Swedish (Miller Guron & Lundberg, 2000). The aim of this study is to contribute to knowledge about how young adults with dyslexia have experienced learning English in primary and secondary school. It is a retrospective study with two participants, whose life histories are in focus. The research questions for this study are: - What themes arise in the participants’ life histories, concerning the connection between dyslexia and second language learning in English? - What perspectives of special education have pervaded the English teaching that the participants took part in? - In which ways were the participants included in the English teaching that they took part in, seen from three aspects of inclusion: spatial-, social- and didactic inclusion? Firstly, the results show that despite having very different experiences of dyslexia and learning English in primary and secondary school, certain common themes arise when cross-analysing the participants’ life histories: - Support at home and in school affects the motivation for learning English - English is more difficult to learn compared to other school subjects - Lower self-esteem/self-worth - The need for repetition and time for learning English Secondly, the results show that it was mainly the compensatory- and critical perspectives that pervaded the teaching of English that the participants took part in. Only to a minor extent was the dilemma perspective noticeable. Finally, the results show that one of the participants mainly experienced two aspects of inclusion, spatial- and social inclusion, throughout primary and secondary school. Although, one specific teacher managed to include the participant according to all three aspects of inclusion. The other participant, on the other hand, did not experience being included according to any of the aspects. The participants of this study have shown that learning English is definitely a possibility for a person with dyslexia. However, it has not been a walk in the park for either of them but has required a lot of hard work and feelings of distress along the way.
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