Bionic Reading Option For Canvas

[mtran466]

Is there any possibility of implementing bionic reading in Canvas? For anyone who is unfamiliar, bionic reading bolds certain parts of words in a way that assists with reading for those who tend to have difficulty focusing on text (ex. someone with ADHD). It works by leading the reader's eyes to each word and allowing their brain to fill in the rest, resulting in faster and more efficient reading. I myself have benefited from using a bionic reading app on my phone and think it would be useful to students and instructors.

This is an example of what the bionic reading font would look like.

[mstinchfield]

I would love this! I've also seen a request for the dyslexia font. Both of these options would make life so much easier for students and professors with neuro divergence, including myself. 

[IonePriest]

Bionic Reading is a system that would have to be integrated with Canvas for it to work, similar to the Immersive Reader. If it happens, it likely won't happen for a while.

It's also important to note that any sort of font or systems that alter fonts are entirely individual preference. Not everyone with a specific diagnosis will find such things helpful (and in some cases, will actually find them more problematic).

[NicoletteStaley]

@mtran466 I was intrigued by your suggestion for a bionic reading option in Canvas, and you may want to consider formally submitted the suggestion to the Ideas forum (seeWhat are the guidelines for submitting a new idea? ).

Since this feature would definitely be applied on an individual basis instead of across the board in a course or instance, it would probably be better to utilize an extension to format the text as bionic text.  I tested a few extensions that were listed in the Chrome Web Store, and was able to find a few that worked pretty well in a Canvas course.  None of them seemed to have much effect to the Modules page (since both the module and module item titles are already bold text), but they definitely worked on most of the text content within pages and assignments.  You might want to try testing some of them out.   

Below are a few extensions that worked to boldify/bionic the text in Canvas for me.  It this is by no means an official recommendation for these extensions, but they are options that you may want to consider investigating.

• Bionify | Read faster!
• Bold Reading
• Make text easier to read 🙂
• Bold First Half