27th April 2026
What works for one learner may not work for another. And this is especially evident when it comes to how we teach neurodivergent students.
Traditional approaches to literacy education often focus on visual cues. Recent research out of the University of Canterbury suggests that this approach may not always support autistic students.
The findings could assist teachers in better adapting reading strategies for autistic learners in the classroom and provide useful guidance for caregivers supporting autistic children with reading at home.
UC researcher Dr Sarah Hinchey has found that widely used classroom reading strategies may not enhance autistic children’s comprehension in the same way they do for other learners.
Dr Hinchey’s research was inspired by her autistic daughter’s reading behaviours. “She struggled to understand what she was reading when reading silently, but didn’t seem to have the same difficulty when reading aloud,” she says.
She says the observation sparked her interest in understanding how autistic students make sense of what they read. “In classrooms, multisensory strategies like picture books or visual supports are often used to help children understand what they read. But we don’t yet fully understand whether these approaches support or hinder comprehension for autistic children.”
Hinchey says that for some autistic children, comprehension difficulties may not become obvious until around the age of eight or nine, when students begin reading to learn rather than learning to read. Some autistic children may seem to read fluently, yet still find it hard to understand the meaning of what they are reading.
Dr Hinchey’s PhD research looked into reading comprehension in autistic children aged eight to 12, using electroencephalography (EEG) to monitor brain activity during reading tasks. The study compared three common classroom approaches: silent reading, reading aloud, and silent reading supported by pictures.
Alongside this, children completed standardised assessments of reading ability, language, IQ, and working memory. While autistic and non-autistic participants achieved similar results in most of these measures, the EEG data revealed clear differences in how each group processed comprehension across the different conditions.
Dr Hinchey noted that autistic and non-autistic groups displayed distinct patterns of brain activity depending on the reading approach used. In particular, autistic children showed significantly stronger neural signals associated with comprehension when reading aloud compared with reading supported by pictures.
Reading strategies for autistic learners
The research’s big takeaway is to tailor reading strategies to suit individual learners rather than relying on a single classroom method really matters. Dr Hinchey is continuing her research by trialling reading supports for autistic children, including text-to-speech applications, and again using EEG to gain a deeper understanding of how these tools assist reading development.
“Reading aloud may benefit some autistic children, but what works for one child may not work for another,” Dr Hinchey says. “These can have important implications for teachers and speech-language therapists supporting autistic learners.”
For teachers, the key takeaway is that reading instruction should be flexible, individualised, and responsive to how each student processes language. There is no single method that will support all autistic learners, or all learners in fact, so a range of strategies may be needed within the same classroom.
Reading aloud can be a valuable approach for some students, as it allows them to hear rhythm, intonation, and structure in language, which may support comprehension. However, this is not universally effective, and some learners may find silent reading or assisted reading more comfortable depending on their sensory and processing preferences.
Text-to-speech tools are increasingly useful in supporting comprehension, particularly for students who benefit from auditory input alongside written text. These tools can help reduce cognitive load and allow learners to focus more on meaning rather than decoding alone.
Carefully selected visual supports may also be helpful when they are directly aligned with the text and do not overwhelm or distract from meaning. The emphasis should be on clarity rather than quantity—simplified diagrams or targeted images tend to be more effective than heavily illustrated pages.
Pre-teaching key vocabulary can significantly improve comprehension by reducing the language load during reading. Similarly, breaking texts into smaller sections and checking understanding regularly can help ensure students are keeping pace with meaning.
Finally, connecting reading material to a student’s interests can increase engagement and motivation, which often leads to stronger comprehension outcomes. For teachers, the most effective approach is one that is responsive, adaptable, and grounded in ongoing observation of what works best for each learner.
