Stakeholders have called for greater deployment of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and assistive technologies to improve reading and writing outcomes for children with dyslexia in Nigeria.
They made the call in separate interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Wednesday in Lagos, stressing that technology could provide personalized learning support for children struggling with reading, spelling and written communication.
Dyslexia is a learning difficulty that can affect a child’s ability to read and process written language despite having normal intelligence and learning potential.
Health writer, Miss Praise Okafor, said children with dyslexia were often misunderstood in conventional classrooms and could be wrongly labeled as lazy or academically weak when their learning difficulties were not identified early.
She said AI-powered learning platforms could provide alternative ways for affected children to access educational content.
“Text-to-speech applications, digital audiobooks and personalized exercises can make learning more accessible,” she said.
Okafor, however, urged schools to combine technology with professional assessment and individualized teaching strategies.
A special needs education consultant, Mr Chinedu Eze, said teacher training was essential to the effective use of assistive technologies.
Eze said teachers needed to recognize possible signs of dyslexia and understand how to select appropriate digital tools for individual learners.
“Technology should complement the teacher, not replace the teacher.
“The effectiveness of these tools depends largely on how well educators understand and apply them,” he said.
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A primary school teacher in Lekki, Mrs Amina Bello, said speech-to-text and text-to-speech technologies could reduce the learning pressure experienced by children with dyslexia.
She explained that pupils who struggled to read written instructions could listen to them, while speech-to-text tools could help them express their ideas.
Bello, however, cautioned against excessive reliance on digital tools, saying teachers and parents must continue to provide encouragement, guidance and direct learning support.
Educational technology developer, Mr David Ibrahim, called for the development of affordable Nigerian AI-powered learning platforms to make assistive technologies accessible to more families.
Ibrahim said many households could not afford expensive subscriptions or reliable high-speed internet, urging developers to incorporate offline features, low-data options and locally relevant educational content.
A parent, Mrs Ngozi Nwosu, identified affordability as another major barrier to access, calling on the government, schools and technology companies to make assistive learning tools available to children from low-income families.
Education researcher, Prof. Samuel Adeyemi, said digital inclusion must remain central to Nigeria’s adoption of AI in education.
Adeyemi warned that children in rural communities could be left behind if schools lacked electricity, internet connectivity, computers and trained personnel.
He called for stronger partnerships among government agencies, technology companies, schools, parents and non-governmental organizations to promote inclusive digital learning.
The stakeholders also advocated greater public awareness and early identification of dyslexia, urging parents to seek professional assessment rather than relying solely on AI applications to identify learning difficulties.
They said the effectiveness of AI-assisted learning would depend on accessibility, affordability, teacher preparedness and responsible use.
According to them, properly deployed AI and assistive technologies could help children with dyslexia overcome learning barriers, build confidence and participate more effectively in the classroom.
SOURCE: NAN
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