1. Learning Disabilities Lindsay Blume, M.S. Hope International University

2. Specific Learning Disability (SLD) Defined IDEA 2004 (Special Education legislation) defines Specific Learning Disability as: • A disorder in one or more of the basic psychological processes involved in understanding or in using language, spoken or written, which disorder may manifest itself in an imperfect ability to listen, think, speak, read, write, spell, or to do mathematical calculations. • DISORDERS INCLUDED: perceptual disabilities, brain injury, minimal brain dysfunction, dyslexia, developmental aphasia • DISORDERS NOT INCLUDED: a learning problem that is a primarily the result of visual, hearing, or motor disabilities, of mental retardation, of emotional disturbance, or of environmental, cultural, or economic disadvantage (IDEA 2004)

3. SLD Defined • Students identified with a SLD will often excel or demonstrate proficient academic and social skills in some areas, but their rate of learning is extremely slower in other academic areas • Learning disabilities are biological, and neurological in nature. There is a genetic component, and they often run in families. • Learning disabilities are lifelong disabilities. • Students with SLD will often demonstrate average IQ, yet low academic performance, thus producing a discrepancy between their aptitude and achievement.

4. Causes Of Specific Learning Disabilities • Genetic Factors • Learning disabilities run in families, but they may express themselves differently between parent and child. The actual disability is not inherited, but the subtle brain dysfunction is inherited. • IN-Utero Factors • Brain injury and damage to the central nervous system may occur as a result of mother’s abuse of alcohol, nicotine, or other drugs during pregnancy • Birthing Process Factors • A significant number of children diagnosed with SLD have a history of a traumatic birth. Trauma during birth may include, prolonged labor, prematurity, lack of oxygen, and injury from medical instruments used to assist with the birthing process • Medical/Environmental Factors • Serious childhood illnesses such as encephalitis, meningitis, stroke, diabetes, and pediatric AIDS may result in neurological dysfunction

5. Prevalence of SLD • Approximately 5% of school aged children are diagnosed with a Specific Learning Disability • Researchers note that the 5% figure varies widely demographically due to the vague eligibility criteria and identification procedures across the states • SLD is the largest category of special education • The CDC reports that males have twice the prevalence of SLD and ADHD than females

6. Characteristics of Students with LD It is important to note that learning disabilities may manifest differently from individual to individual. • Deficits in academic areas • Children identified with SLD may have significant problems in the following areas: • Social interactions • Emotional maturity • Attention and hyperactivity • Memory • Cognition / metacognition • Motor skills • Perceptual abilities

7. Academic Deficits • Reading – the most prevalent area of deficit in children identified with SLD (a disability in reading may be identified as dyslexia) • Oral Reading • Read with a strained voice, poor phrasing, ignore punctuation, grope for words • Comprehension • Difficulty identifying the main idea, difficulty recalling facts and sequence of events, difficulty making inferences , predicating or evaluating the text • Math ( a disability in math may be called dyscalculia) • Students may demonstrate difficulty in math reasoning or basic calculations (concepts include: the concept of zero, regrouping, place value, 1:1 correspondence) • Due to processing deficits, students are slow to respond to questions. Students understand the concept, but are unable to complete the amount of problems during the time allotted. Research shows that 43% of students identified with math disabilities also have reading difficulties. • Written Language (a disability in written language may be identified as dysgraphia) • Deficits include difficulty with writing, spelling, mechanics and creativity

8. Language Deficits • Deficits in Oral Expression (Expressive Language) • Difficulty with word retrieval • Students will often be slower to respond as they attempt to cognitively locate the answer. It is important for teachers to allow appropriate wait time in order for the student to demonstrate success and participate in class discussion • Deficits in Listening Comprehension (Receptive Language) • Difficulty understanding and misinterpretation of directions • It is important to note that these students are not unmotivated or being oppositional. They have difficulty processing multiple-step directions and will often lose the sequence presented to them. Teachers may present directions one at a time, and provide visual reminders for students • Deficits in Pragmatic Language (Social Language) • Difficulty staying on topic • Social awkwardness in conversational settings • Misunderstanding of jokes • Unable to pick upon social cues from the peer group

9. Social Emotional Deficits • Some students with SLD demonstrate a real strength in the areas of social emotional development and are well liked amongst peers and teachers • Social deficits may include: • Difficulty resolving conflict • Difficulty managing frustration, difficulty initiating or joining a group (play/conversation) • Difficulty listening • Difficulty demonstrating empathy • Difficulty maintaining friendships • Difficulty working in groups • Research shows that social deficits as a result of learning disabilities often leads to learned helplessness and psychological problems such as anxiety, depression inadequacy, frustration, and anger • Teachers need to create supportive situations and apply SPECIFIC verbal praise to students acknowledging successes in the classroom in order to foster a healthy learning environment

10. Attention Deficits and Hyperactivity • Deficits in initiating attention, directing attention to the appropriate source, sustaining attention to task demands, shifting attention when appropriate • Approximately 51% of students identified with SLD also demonstrate attention problems • Approximately 3.1% of school aged children are diagnosed with LD and ADHD

11. Memory Deficits • Short-term memory • Difficulty repeating information heard less than 1-2 minutes earlier • Working memory • Difficulty combining new knowledge to fit with previous knowledge stored in long-term memory • Long-term memory • Difficulty developing long-term memory skills • Research shows that students diagnosed with SLD make significant gains in memory development when taught memory strategies

12. Cognition/Metacognition Deficits • Students have difficulty applying prior knowledge to new information • Difficulty initiating a task • Make frequent errors • Problem solving deficits • Deficits in executive functioning skills (organization, prioritizing, multi-tasking)

13. Perceptual Differences • Perceptual delays impact an individual's ability to perceive the world through their sense of sight, sound, smell and touch. • Students diagnosed with SLD may often have difficulty discriminating between these sensations

14. Motor Skills Deficits • Delays in gross motor skill development are common • Difficulty throwing / catching a ball • Clumsy gait (awkward when walking) • Delays in fine motor skill development are common • Difficulty with scissors • Difficulty with handwriting • Difficulty with occupational skills such as buttoning and zipping clothes

15. Identification, Assessment and Eligibility • In order for a student to be identified with a SLD, a multidisciplinary team must take ample time to observe, assess, and develop a written report • The student must present with a severe discrepancy between achievement and intellectual ability (as determined by IQ testing) • The deficit may not be a result of visual, hearing, motor delays, mental retardation, emotional disturbance or economic disadvantage

16. Criticism of the Identification Process • The discrepancy model of identification was unchanged between 1977-2004 • With the reauthorization of IDEA 2004, the government replaced the discrepancy model with Response to Intervention (RTI) model, that incorporates research-based methodologies • RTI involves a 3-tier approach to identifying learning difficulties in children • First, all students receive research-supported instructional and behavior supports in the classroom • Second, if a student does not progress at a typical rate, the student will receive more individualized and intensive instruction. Parents are notified at this stage of the process and a student study team may be introduced in order to develop necessary modifications • Third, if the student still does not demonstrate ample progress at this time, a referral for assessment is made, and the IEP process begins in order to complete standardized assessment to determine if there is a SLD

17. Cultural and Linguistic Diversity • School personnel must accurately assess and determine that the discrepancies in achievement are not related to differences in language, or culture. Thus, when assessing children with a suspected learning disability, the child must demonstrate significantly lower achievement than other children of their same culture, age, and grade • Students who are culturally and linguistically diverse are over-represented in the SLD community. The discrepancy model overemphasizes the use of standardized tests, which are often culturally biased • Often the teacher is ineffective with teaching students from a different culture. Thus, the child is identified with a disability, when really it is the failure of the educational system to support the student’s cultural differences

18. Nine Types of Modifications (Smith et. al, 2008, p. 168)

19. Nine Types of Modifications cont. (Smith et. al, 2008, p. 168)

20. Helpful Websites • National Center for Learning Disabilities • www.ncld.org • LD Online • www.ldonline.org • Learning Disabilities Association of America • www.ldanatl.org • Study Guides and Strategies • www.studygs.net • FunBrain – Educational Games • www.funbrain.com • FunSchoolKaboose – Educational Games • http://funschool.kaboose.com • Cool math – Math games, Math Lessons, Math Apps • www.coolmath.com

21. References • Meece, J.L., & Daniels, D.H. (2008). Child and adolescent development for educators. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill. • Smith, T. E., Pollaway, E. A., Patton, J. R., & Dowdy, C. A. (2008). Teaching students with special needs in inclusive settings. Boston, MA: Pearson.