Chapter 7: Learning Disabilities

-Marked difficulty in learning to read, write, spell, or perform mathematics -Marked deficits in academic achievement -Influenced by genetic factors -Not caused by low intelligence or intellectual disability -Not caused by emotional or behavioral problems

-Approximately 4.

9% of children in the U.S. receive special education services for learning disabilities -Reading Disability is most commonly diagnosed -Many children with learning disabilities experience problems in two or more academic domains -No overall difference in gender -Low SES is unique risk factor -Those who live in poverty, whose mother did not graduate HS, and who are on Medicaid are at increased risk

1.) Difficulties learning and using academic skills (inaccurate or slow word reading, difficulties with word meanings, mathematical reasoning, and spelling) 2.) Academic skills are substantially below those expected 3.) Learning difficulties begin in school-age years

-Word reading accuracy -Reading rate of fluency -Reading Comprehension

-Spelling accuracy -Grammar and punctuation accuracy -Clarity or organization of written expression

-Number sense -Memorization of arithmetic facts -Accuracy of fluency calculation -Accurate math reasoning

-Mild: may be able to function within regular education classroom with teacher's additional support; compensate when provided with appropriate accommodations or support services -Moderate: leave the classroom for some period of the day with more specialized intervention; unlikely to become proficient without some intervals of intensive and specialized teaching -Severe: majority of day in learning disability classroom for intensive support; unlikely to learn specific academic skills without ongoing intensive individualized and specialized teaching

-Anxiety (about going to school, completing tasks b/c difficult) -Mood symptoms (depression) -Behavior problems or disruptive behavior disorders (related to frustration in not doing as good as peers/not being able to do work) -Social skills problems (stand out when pulled out of class)

-35-40% of children with reading or writing disabilities have an immediate family member with at least one learning disability -Twin studies also support high concordance rates (.85) for monozygotic twins -About 50% of children with mathematics disorder have a sibling with mathematics disorder -Passive-Gene Environment Correlation could be a strong factor; parent w/ learning disability may pass on the genetic makeup to child but may also to be less likely to read w/ child, help w/ homework

1.) Oral expression 2.) Listening comprehension 3.) Basic reading skills 4.) Reading fluency skills 5.) Mathematic calculation 6.) Mathematical problem solving 7.) Written expression *allow children with variety of LD to receive special ed*

-Present level of academic achievement and functional performance -Measurable annual goals -Description of progress -Description of special education, related services, and supplementary aids and services -Description of program modifications or supports for school personnel -Discussion of the extent to which the child will not participate with nondisabled children -Description of individual accommodations -Projected date of services -Transition planning (if student is over the age of 14)

-The Discrepancy Model -Response to Intervention Model -Comprehensive Assessment

-Based on standardized scores -Compare children's IQ and achievement using standardized tests: "unexpected underachievement" -Different states have different standards for "underachievement" - usually 1 to 2 standard deviations below the IQ score -Weaknesses: 1.) Children who demonstrate learning problems but do not meet the cutoff were denied services 2.) Neuroimaging studies do not support the cutoff as an accurate predictor of learning problems 3.) Similar outcomes are observed for children who meet the cutoff and for those who don't but still demonstrate reading problems

-Tier 1 (bottom)- Primary Prevention: children receive regular classroom instruction; all children screened to assess academic progress -Tier 2- Secondary Prevention: children with delays receive group intervention for 10-20 weeks -Decision Making: continue group intervention? -Tier 3 (top)- Individual Intervention

-Identifies learning disabilities based on educational progress and outcomes -Failure to respond to "scientific, research-based" teaching methods -Children progress up the tiers and may eventually be classified with a LD

-Identification of learning disabilities by integrating classroom observations of academic performance with norm-referenced testing

-Inaccurate or slow and effortful reading -Difficulty with reading comprehension -Slow reading fluency

-Letter recognition -Phoneme awareness -Phonics -Decoding -Brain areas involved: inferior frontal, temporoparietal, occipitotemporal

-Phoneme awareness and phonics deficits -Often struggle to sound out novel words -Lack basic phonics skills -Leads to poor fluency -Cognitive processing problems -Processing speed -Working memory

-Explicit instruction in phoneme awareness -Repetition, repetition, repetition! -Guided oral reading -Reading to Read

-Systematically teach children to recognize and retain information -Teacher emphasizes certain aspects of the story as they occur -Text enhancements -Graphic organizers: help kids understand content of the story in a visual way; diagram, figure, chart -Cognitive maps -Semantic mapping: hierarchy of how lower ranked constructs relate to other constructs -Visual displays -Mnemonics -Computer-assisted instruction