Does font improve reading in dyslexic children?: meta-analysis of dyslexia-friendly fonts and dyslexic children's...

This meta-analysis investigates the effectiveness of dyslexia-friendly fonts, such as OpenDyslexic and Dyslexie, on improving reading performance among dyslexic students. Dyslexic students face considerable challenges in digital reading, which impacts their academic performance, particularly in subjects with high reading demands. While specialized fonts have been proposed as potential solutions, research findings are inconsistent. This meta-analysis synthesizes data from 15 empirical studies (91 effect sizes; N = 688) examining whether these specialized fonts offer significant improvements in reading performance in dyslexic readers compared to standard fonts like Times New Roman and Arial. Using a random-effects model, the results indicate that dyslexia-friendly fonts have no consistent or reliable effect on reading performance in terms of speed or accuracy. The overall effect size was negligible, g = -0.04, 95% CI [-0.15, 0.07], z = - 0.67, p = 0.5. The findings suggest that while certain typographical features may aid legibility, dyslexia-friendly fonts do not offer substantial benefits over traditional fonts for dyslexic readers. This meta-analysis provides critical insights for educators and developers of assistive technologies, emphasizing the need for further research to explore alternative strategies for supporting individuals with dyslexia in their academic pursuits.