Effectiveness of Neurofeedback Training on Reading Performanceand Working Memory in Students with Dyslexia

Reading disorder is one of the neurocognitive problems that causes academic, psycho-cognitive problems for students suffering from this problem. Neurofeedback is one of the therapeutic techniques in the field of reading disorder for normalizing brain waves. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effectiveness of neurofeedback training on reading performance and working memory of the students with dyslexia.
The design used in the current study was quasi-experimental design including pretest-posttest and a control group. Using available sampling method, 36 students with reading disorders were selected from among all students with dyslexia in Torbat Heydarieh city in 1394-95 academic year, divided into two parallel ,age) gender, intelligence) groups of control and experimental with 18 students in each group. In the pretest and posttest, the Wechsler memory and Nema tests were used. Also, in addition to the academic teaching, as a part of routine practice of in the disability centers, the experimental group received 20 sessions of therapeutic; training neurofeedback for four sessions )each session lasted for 40 minutes(. In addition to receiving the academic training of dyslexia, the control group received 20 sessions of sham therapeutic training neurofeedback, four sessions a week, each session lasting for 40 minutes. To analyze the results, a variable analysis of covariance (working memory) and multivariable analysis of covariance (reading performance) were used.
The findings showed that neurofeedback training improved the working memory (p0.05) and naming images components (p>0.05) in students.
Based on the findings of the current study, it is suggested that this therapeutic method be used along with other therapeutic methods.