Knowledge about Dyslexia in Arabic: A Cross-Disciplinary Factor Analytic Study

Dyslexia is the most common learning disability. Knowledge about dyslexia is thus essential for its prevention and early identification. Despite recent advances in dyslexia grounded in the science of reading and the science of teaching reading, it remains unclear the extent to which different professionals who work with children diagnosed with dyslexia actually know about the disorder. This study examines the knowledge of professionals working with children with dyslexia in Lebanon. We administered a 29-item online Qualtrics survey to 175 professionals including speech-language pathologists, special educators, and psychologists. Using exploratory factor analysis in the exploratory structural equation modeling framework, we compared one-, two-, and three-factor models and selected the one factor solution as optimal. Results indicate that the instrument is valid as a measure of dyslexia knowledge in this population. Furthermore, participants held both correct knowledge and misconceptions about dyslexia. We conclude with limitations, recommendations for future research and practice. [Note: The page range (39-74) shown on the PDF is incorrect. The correct page range is 38-74.]