Design and development of a Malay word recognition intervention program for children with dyslexia

This paper synthesizes research on dyslexia remediation, word recognition development and the Malay language writing system to design and develop a Malay language word recognition intervention program (MyBaca) for children with dyslexia. Malay is alphabetic, is highly transparent, with salient syllabic units. The program is designed based on theories of the Simple View of Reading and Ehri's phase theory of word development. The objectives of the program are to teach the full alphabetic knowledge of Malay and the consolidated alphabetic knowledge of grapho-syllabic spelling-sound patterns of Malay. The instructional strategies are designed based on pedagogic principles of the Orton-Gillingham approach, the National Reading Panel review, and elements of Structured Literacy. The curriculum is sequenced according to evidence-based research on Malay GPC knowledge acquisition and the grapho-syllabic spelling-sound patterns. The design process which integrates both theory and empirical evidence may provide some insights toward overall dyslexia intervention.