LEARNING DISABILITIES

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LEARNING DISABILITIES

• FRIEND CH 5,
• SPED 281
• Dr. Schneider

2
LEARNING OBJECTIVES

• Definition of Learning Disabilities (LD)
• History of the LD field
• Prevalence of LD
• Characteristics of LD
• Identification procedure of LD
• Types of services for students w/ LD
• Best Teaching strategies
• Perspectives of family members
• Issues affecting the field of LD

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Quotes from the field

• We are not dumb and we do not see print upside
  down!
• Do you know what it feels like when you study 4
  times as much as your peers only to get an F?
• I want to learn but I need teachers who
  understand how my mind works so that I can
  succeed.
• Why do teachers always think that when a student
  gets a bad grade he has not studied enough?
• Mommy, can I take out my brain and get a new one
  so that I can learn like all my other friends?

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Definition of Learning Disabilities

• FEDERAL included in IDEA
• A disorder in 1 or more of the following
  psychological processes involved in understanding
  using language
• listen, speak, read, write, spell, do math
• learning problems based on dyslexia, minimal
  brain dysfunction, brain injury, perceptual
  disabilities
• Not included learning problems based on visual,
  hearing, motor disabilities, mental retardation,
  emotional disabilities or environmental,
  cultural, econ. disadvantages

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Definition of Learning Disabilities

• NAT. JOINT COMM. on LD
• Addresses problems that
• LD occurs with many other dis. concomitantly
• Students w/ LD are heterogeneous
• DEFINITION includes those with
• Significant difficulties in use acquisition of
  listening, reading, writing, reasoning
  mathematical abilities
• Nervous system dysfunction lasting a lifetime
• The following often co-ocurs but does not cause
  LD
• Problems in self-regulatory behaviors
  (organization), social perception, social
  interactions, cultural-ling. differences,
  inappropriate instruction, MR, emotional disab.,
  sensory impairment

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Definition of LD summary

• IDEA 2004 federal definition stricter than nat.
  definition of LD committee
• significant difficulties with reading, writing,
  spelling, listening, reasoning, mathematical
  problem-solving tasks
• Psycholog. processing disorder
• due to central nervous system dysfunction
• life-long
• may occur concomitantly with other disabilities
  (e.g., MR, sensory impairments)
• may occur in connection with cultural, linguistic
  differences or inappropriate teaching
• social or behavioral problems occur often as a
  result of the LD
• dyslexia is most common example

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History of the LD field

• Research began w/ brain research on adults w/
  aphasia in Europe (Broca, Wernicke) in late 1800s
• Cont. WWI brain injured soldiers (Goldstein) gt
• 1930s Initial term minimal brain dysfunction
  by 1 group around Strauss Weiner
• 1930s another group around Orton, also
  neurologist, language processing issue gt
  strephosymalia
• 1940-50 shift to designing interventions for
  those individuals

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History of the LD field

• 1960 learning disability public term by Samual
  Kirk based on parent lobbying group pressure
• Early 1970 first LEARNING DISABLITIES ACT (PL
  91-230)
• Funding for special teacher training
• Funding for special schools and materials
• One teaching trend visual-perceptual problems gt
  specific large small motor practice w/ pencil
  did not teach reading or math
• Other teaching trend language processing
  problems gt specific Multisensory, structured
  language instruction taught reading
• TODAY language processing-based interventions

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Prevalence of LD

• Largest group served under IDEA
• 50 of all served under IDEA
• 5 of all school children in US
• Highest for older students 61.5 of all 12-16
  yr-olds who receive SPED services
• Fastest growing category under IDEA (28 since
  1975) almost tripled
• GENDER
• Generally equally boys girls but some studies
  31 or 41 boys girls reasons (1) boys show
  difficulties girls hide more (2) more
  succeptible to prenatal and post natal brain
  damage (3) higher different academ.
  Expectations e.g. problem-solve, leader

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Prevalence of LD

• REASONS for fast increase of this population
• Better testing equipment
• More specified knowledge about its varied
  symptoms
• Increase in English Language students lead to
  false over-identification

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Causes of LD

• PHYSIOLOGICAL
• brain injury (before, during, after)
• Chemical imbalance, neurological dysfunction
  concentration issue due to hypgycemia, vitamin
  deficiency, allergies)
• Heredity dyslexia, dyscalculia run in families
  (twin studies)
• if 1 or both parents have dyslexia gt30-50 past
  on to children
• different parts of brain active when reading (see
  p. 171 in your book)
• Unusual brain half symmetry

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Causes of LD

• ENVIRONMENTAL
• Home environment Pollutants lead-based paint in
  homes gt lead poisoning
• Home environment lacks stimulation for learning
  and reading
• Home environment no emotional security (abuse,
  violence)
• Home environment no nutritional balance
• School environment inappropriate instruction to
  help address deficiencies from home environment

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Characteristics of LD Academic

• Poor Reading skills slow fluency many
  mistakes, much incorrect guessing ? ?
• main problem student cannot comprehend
  BECAUSE of DIFFICULTIES in the ability to process
  sounds in the order they are presented orally
  (internal listening problem) and how these sounds
  are represented individually in print from left
  to right (reading, handwriting, spelling, text
  writing problem) DECODING PROBLEMS (p. 174 in
  book)

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Characteristics of LD Academic

• Oral language often slips of the tongue some
  have problems remembering oral info, some are
  especially good at it
• gt pragmatics (to get what you want through
  effective dialogue) can be poor because some do
  not understand humor, jokes, idiomatic
  expressions)
• poor written language ? ? ? problems
  organizing thoughts on paper poor spelling, poor
  handwriting, poor note taking skills (see sample
  in book p. 175)
• Math (Dyscalculia) 155gt ? difficulties with
  number formation, logic of number sequence,
  sequence of problem-solving steps, abstract
  concepts

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Characteristics of LD Cognitive

• OVERALL EFFECT of MOLASSES PHENOMENON (feels
  like s.o. has emptied sticky molasses into the
  brain so that processes happen but are
  inefficiently slowed down and take more attention
  energy to lead to success)
• Attention SHORT, SELECTIVE
• Difficult to focus on one task easy to distract
• Perception
• Brain struggles keeping sounds in sequence as
  they come into brain likes to change it and make
  up words by dropping, adding sounds and/or
  changing sequence of sounds perceived
• Brain struggles keeping print sequence of letters
  in original sequence, likes to drop, add letters
  or change sequence -gt leads students to guessing

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Characteristics of LD Cognitive

• OVERALL EFFECT of MOLASSES PHENOMENON
• Memory POOR in one or both areas
• short term memory hard to get something in
• long term memory hard to remember fast
• Swiss Cheese phenomenon
• Information processing SLOW, UNUSUAL
• Ability to problem-solve METACOGNITION
• POOR
• students need explicit instruction to see
  patterns and rules in language and math systems
• then they need explicit instruction in how to
  identify errors and self-correct
• they need explicit instruction in how to study
  and take tests (mnemonic devices for poor short
  term memory)

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Characteristics LD Behavior

• Social Perception competence
• 75 of students with LD may have some deficit in
  this area
• Less accepted by peers
• More bullied than non-disabled peers
• Struggle making keeping friends
• Teachers give them lower social status in class
  than non-LD peers
• Students w/ LD may
• struggle perceiving their social status correctly
• Have low self-esteem
• Turn into class clown in attempt to cover up
  academic difficulties
• Be very well accepted if high performing in
  sports, art, music
• gt Focus on strengths and give student
  opportunity to shine in these publicly

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Characteristics LD Behavior

• Short attention span gt hyper active, class
  clown, fidgety
• Avoidance in being caught not knowing something
  basic gt act up so that you can distract from
  academic weakness
• Poor social reading of situations gt few
  friends

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Characteristics Social-emotional

• Social perception
• Social butterflies often over-estimate their
  social impact (those w/ good verbal skills)
• More withdrawn, outsiders often under-estimate
  their social abilities often bullied
• High teenage suicide correlation
• Often rejected by peers, difficulties
• making keeping friends
• Social competence
• Little practice in developing social skills
• Motivation
• For academics, poor due to failure rate,
  dependence on extrinsic motivators
• For areas of strength (sports, music, art,
  theater) great

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Characteristics Social-emotional

• non-verbal LD
• Problems adapting to new social settings
• inappropriate interpretation of
• gestures
• facial expressions
• voice inflections
• LOOK AT DRAWING OF A PERSON!
• -gt details in Source of Non-Verbal Disabilities
  by

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Identification procedure of LD

• FORMAL Assessment
• IQ test (licensed Psych) Wchsler Intelligence
  test
• behavior rating scale (rule out emot.
  disturbance)
• ecological assessment (rule out environment)
• Norm-referenced reading, writing, spelling, math
  tests) general LD test company made compares
  all students of same age rage, grade with test
  taker
• Criterion reference tests drivers license test

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Identification procedure of LD

• INFORMAL Assessment (classroom)
• Pre-referral (RTI)
• Tier 1 whole class intervention
• Tier 2 small group intervention
• Tier 3 one-on-one SPED
• Pre-referral, during, after referral
• Portfolio Assessment (student work samples)
• Curriculum-based performance tests (reading,
  writing, spelling, math), teacher made, compares
  class mates to each other
• anecdotal records (teachers, parents, assistants)
• direct observation notes

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Identification procedure of LD

• ELEGIBILITY CRITERIA
• 3 criteria
• (1) significant discrepancy between IQ and
• performance measure ( inclusionary
  criteria)
• (2) LD is NOT caused by external issues such
  as
• ? or ? impairment, MR, cultural
  
• differences, or poor instruction
• ( exclusionary criteria)
• (3) student demonstrates
• identifiable and identified need for special
  services ( needs criteria) gt psychological
  processing problems
• Has 3 Tier intervention documentation (Response
  To Intervention (ITR)

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Types of services

• Inclusion setting
• (45 of all students with LD in US today vs. 20
  10 yrs ago)
• Requires use of appropriate technolog. Tools, see
  p. 185
• In SC we are still behind in this national
  average
• Partial Pull-out most common student is with
  SPED teacher for 1 hr or 2 only for specific
  subject area
• Resource Room student is w/ SPED teacher in
  separate room (up to 8 kids) for several hours a
  day or all day

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Best teaching practices

• GENERALLY USE STRENGTHS and help find COPING
  strategies for weaknesses
• Do not assume anything TEACH EXPLICITLY
• Break teaching material down into many small
  manageable units accommodate but do not modify
  ( watering down curriculum) -gt ? -gt ?
• Model explicitly how to use all learning channels
  to maximize learning
• Provide over-learning opportunity due to Swiss
  cheese phenomenon

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Best teaching practices

• Make abstract concepts in language and math
  concrete through multisensory structured learning
  that shows explicitly how tasks are mastered.
• Teach mnemonic devices and other study and test
  taking strategies explicitly.
• We know a girl named ADA who has many IDEAs.
  She lives on SECTION 504 on REHBILITATION Hill
  73 and likes to ACT with TECHNOLOGY. She was
  born in 2004.
• Provide accommodations during tests (more time
  distraction free environment, oral instead of
  written knowledge proof)

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Best teaching practices

• Build error-friendly environment as errors are a
  healthy and necessary part of learning
• Integrate LD supportive technologies ?
• phonics-based computer programs
• Kurzweil 3000 (reads, underlines words as text is
  being read for student, makes graphic outlines
  for narrative expository texts translates from
  and into several languages) can be used with
  scanner includes text writing program)
• Montessori materials
• Multisensory structured learning materials (e.g.,
  Orton-Gillingham, Project Read, Step up to
  Writing)

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Perspectives of family members

• IN GENERAL initial denial, fears, blame, not
  knowing where and how to best get informed
  www.interdys.org
• First signs during elementary years frustrating
  because often put off by delay
• in middle- high school student unmotivated,
  scared, content area teachers do not feel
  responsible to address needs parent must be
  strong advocate, teach self-advocacy
• LD going to college which schools have best
  services for LD?
• LD in workforce when to disclose and when not?

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Issues affecting the field of LD

• Definition of LD IDEA vs. Nat. Comm. LD
• gt follow the one from IDEA, counts for schools
• Discrepancy definition of ability to perform in a
  task vs. performance analysis
• gt IQ tests are still given but they are not
  only determinator anymore emphasis on
  performance now through ITR
• Help for those that struggle as much as those
  with diagnosis but who miss it by a few points gt
  now ITR, the 3 tier intervention model, also
  Section 504 of Rehabilitation Act 1973
• How to face LD in adulthood?