1. Learning Disabilities
Lindsay Archambault

2. Introduction to Learning Disabilities

3. Definition of Learning Disabilities
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), defines LD 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 the imperfect ability to listen, think, speak, read, write, spell, or do mathematical calculations.
The disability can manifest in input, organization, memory, or output.

4. What LD is not
LD’s do not include learning problems that are a result of visual, hearing, or motor disabilities, of mental retardation, of emotional disturbance, or of environmental, cultural, or economic disadvantage.
Blindness or deafness should not be confused with issues of auditory or visual perceptions.
Issues with out put are not the same as severe motor disabilities.

5. Types of Learning Disabilities
Dyslexia- language and reading based
Dyscalculia- math based
Dysgraphia- writing based
Auditory and Visual Processing Disorders-sensory confusion
Nonverbal Learning Disabilities- neurological disorder affecting the right side of the brain.
Dyspraxia- problem sending messages from the brain to the body
Dyslexia – a language-based disability in which a person has trouble understanding written words. It may also be referred to as reading disability or reading disorder.
Dyscalculia – a mathematical disability in which a person has a difficult time solving arithmetic problems and grasping math concepts.
Dysgraphia – a writing disability in which a person finds it hard to form letters or write within a defined space.
Auditory and Visual Processing Disorders – sensory disabilities in which a person has difficulty understanding language despite normal hearing and vision.
Nonverbal Learning Disabilities – a neurological disorder which originates in the right hemisphere of the brain, causing problems with visual-spatial, intuitive, organizational, evaluative and holistic processing functions.

6. Educational Implications
Learning disabilities can affect one or more of the following learning activities:
Reading
Organization
Written Language
Visual/Spatial/Motor Skills
Oral Language
Social Skills
Mathematics
Educational Implications for Students with Specific Learning Disabilities: It is important to note that the effects of a specific learning disability on academic performance result from long-term retrieval, short-term memory, processing speed, auditory, visual, and/or other cognitive processing deficits. Students with these disabilities are not less intelligent than other students nor are they lazy. The student with a specific learning disability may exhibit problems in one or more of the following areas:
Reading: Slow reading rate and/or difficulty in modifying reading rate in accordance with difficulty of material; poor comprehension and retention of written material; difficulty in identifying important/relevant points or themes; inability to distinguish between sounds, creating poor mastery of phonics, confusion of similar words, and difficulty integrating new vocabulary; poor tracking skills resulting in skipped words, phrases or lines and losing place on the page.
Written Language: Difficulty with sentence structure resulting in incomplete sentences, poor use of grammar, and missing inflectional endings; frequent spelling errors, transpositions of letters, omissions or substitutions of sounds especially in unfamiliar vocabulary; inability to copy correctly from written information; poor penmanship, poorly formed letters, incorrect use of capitalization, trouble with spacing, and overly-large handwriting.
Oral Language: Inability to concentrate on and comprehend oral language; difficulty in orally expressing ideas and or in proper sequencing of events; difficulty in managing more than one task at a time or retaining a list of information; and inability to distinguish between sounds or combination of sounds.
Mathematics: Incomplete mastery of basic facts resulting in poor match comprehension and computation; number reversals, confusion of operational signals, and difficulty recalling the sequence of operational processes; difficulty understanding and retaining abstract concepts; poor comprehension of word problems and limited understanding of ration, proportions or relative size; and reasoning deficits and inability to eliminate irrelevant data in applied problems.
Organization: Inability to manage time effectively; difficulty staying on or completing tasks; tendency to work slowly, rush through work carelessly, or impulsively start before listening to or reading instructions; deficiency in listening to lectures and taking notes at the same time; inability to identify key points in a lecture or chapter; and short attention span.
Visual/Spatial/Motor Skills: Poor coordination, slow motor movements, and noticeable problems in using equipment/tools; and motor weakness in both upper and lower body posture.
Social: Avoids eye contact and speaks softly; inability to read and respond to verbal/non-verbal cues and voice inflections; and tendency to stand too close when talking to others or communicates too loudly; inappropriate comments or use of neologisms (making up words such as "flustrating").

7. Related Issues
ADHD
Brain Processing Disorders: Language Disability, Motor Coordination Disorder, organization and executive function.
Difficulty with Regulation of Emotions: Anxiety Disorders, Depression, Anger Control, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
Tic Disorders
Bipolar Disorder
Many people with LD will also have a Language Disability. He or she will have difficulty quickly processing what is heard, often not being able to keep up. Others may have no difficulty speaking when he or she initiates the conversation, but have significant difficulty finding the right words and organizing thoughts when asked to respond to a question or comment. Thus, language disabilities might include receptive and/or expressive language problems.
Another brain processing disorder relates to a Motor Coordination Disorder (Sensory Integration Disorder). Some might have difficulty coordinating teams of small muscles (fine motor skills), resulting in poor handwriting and possibly in difficult with buttoning, zipping, or tying. Others might have problems coordinating teams of large muscles (gross motor skills), resulting in being clumsy or running with poor coordination. Some might have difficulty coordinating eye-hand activities (catching, hitting, throwing) or knowing where they are in space, bumping into things. Another aspect of motor problems might relate to balance, resulting in difficulty riding a bike or quickly going down stairs. Finally, some with motor problems might be very sensitive to touch (tactile sensitivity).
Finally, some with LD might have problems with higher level tasks such as organization and executive function. He or she will have problems organizing materials, losing, forgetting, or misplacing things. Or, the problems might relate to organizing ideas when speaking or when writing. Executive function problems relate to analyzing tasks, deciding how to address these tasks, and carrying them out in a timely way.

8. Prevalence
Fifteen percent of the U.S. population, or one in seven Americans, has some type of learning disability, according to the National Institutes of Health.
As many as 80% of students with learning disabilities have reading problems.
50% of people with LD’s will also have a related disorder.

9. Etiology/Causes
National Center for Learning Disabilities states that there is frequently no apparent cause for learning disabilities.
Some research indicates that the following could cause LD’s: heredity, problems during the mothers pregnancy, head injuries, nutritional deprivation, and exposure to toxic substances.

10. Characteristics
Students with reading LD’s may have problems with rhyming, segmenting, and blending which leads to difficulty with decoding.
Students with writing LD’s may have problems with spelling, poor hand writing, and trouble expressing thoughts on paper.
Students with math LD’s may have problems with sequencing, grouping, sorting, comparing and contrasting, matching, and recognizing numbers and/or objects. They may also have difficulty with memorizing basic math functions and applying them. If the problem is visual-spatial, they may have difficulty understanding written directions.

11. How it affects development
Children with one or more of these disorders may miss out on learning basic skills which leads to an inability to master more complex skills that build on the basics.
People with LD’s can have difficulty exhibiting appropriate social skills including an inability to monitor language effectively. Many times the offender has no idea what they did wrong and why people react the way they do.
This may be the result of underdeveloped social skills, lack of experience/exposure in the workforce, shyness, intimidation, behavior disorders, or low self-esteem.

12. Assessment and Diagnosis
A professional must evaluate the person based on conversation and observation. This could be a clinical psychologist, school psychologist, Educational psychologist, neuropsychologist, school counselor, social worker, psychiatrist, or many other types of doctors.
Testing will occur to see intellectual or cognitive potential, testing of information processing or sensory motor abilities, and assessment of current educational achievement.
Testing can include IQ or cognitive tests, educational achievement tests, projective personality tests, questionnaires and surveys, speech and language tests, and neuropsychological tests.

13. Treatments
The first step is recognizing that there is a LD by evaluating strengths and weaknesses.
Establish strategies to help the student overcome the LD.
Explicitly teach social behaviors in context when needed using positive reinforcement.

14. Tips for teachers
Provide strategies for organization, like graphic organizers.
Provide opportunity for extra help and practice with skills.
Explore options for materials that can help such as raised line paper, certain pens or pencils, color overlays, or read instructions aloud.
Have students complete tasks in small steps rather than all at once.
Use explicit instruction and provide constructive feedback that focuses on strengths and weaknesses.
Use assistive technology.
When a student acts out inappropriately, teach them what they did wrong and how to self correct instead of resorting to punishment all the time.

15. Specific techniques to try
Provide read along tapes for texts and materials
Allow students to record lessons for playback
Provide outlines of your lessons
Provide videos or talking books to provide general information
Computers with word processing software
Mis-speller’s dictionary
Type handouts, use large print and double spacing
Mnemonics
Multi sensory approach to teaching
Student made dictionary’s full of items they have trouble with
Allow sufficient wait time when asking questions
Ask questions out loud and provide them in written form

16. Assessment- Identify the LD
Jenny has normal vision and intelligence. She reads much slower than the other kids in her class. When reading out loud she sometimes skips words or substitutes similar words. She has trouble understanding what she just read. Even when you tell her a story out loud she has difficulty recounting the story to you. She commonly transposes similar letters and numbers. She has trouble seeing and hearing similarities and differences in letters and words. What does Jenny have?
Timmy displays normal language acquisition and has a good visual memory for the printed word. He has trouble with simple tasks such as keeping track of time, recalling schedules, and sequencing past or future events. He has inconsistent results in addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. He has difficulty doing simple math in his head. He has poor long term memory recall, for example he does well with a new math concept today but is unable to perform the same math concept the following day. What does Timmy have?
Judy is very bright and excels in reading. However when asked to write anything it seems to take a great deal of effort and is a very slow process. She only writes in cursive if she has to and her print shows inconsistent and irregular letter formations. She often uses an inappropriate mixture of upper and lower case letters. Her peers think she is lazy because she exhibits low classroom productivity, incomplete homework assignments, and has difficulty in focusing attention. What does Judy really have?
Ben has poor coordination. When he runs or jumps it is very awkward for him. He has poor handwriting and some speech issues. He is overly sensitive to light, touch, smells, taste, and space. What might Ben suffer from?
Dyslexia
Dyscalculia
Dysgraphia
Dyspraxia

17. I’m not stupid, I have a learning disability

18. Transition into Adulthood
Learn to become a self advocate
Adults with LD have the right to any job they are qualified for and the right to ask for accommodations that enable them to complete their job effectively.
Knowledge of and access to techniques to help those with LD’s help themselves enable them to lead a normal adult lifestyle.
Upon graduation from High School, students should be provided with a Summary of Performance (SOP)
The SOP must provide recommendations on how to assist the child in meeting the child’s postsecondary goals. Required by IDEA 04.

19. Take home assessment Visit the website:
Take the quiz regarding learning disabilities. If you know a child that you suspect has a learning disability answer for that child. If not, answer it for yourself.
Post your results on your assessment area of your wiki. Were the results surprising? Did you learn anything new? What did you think about the assessment?

20. References
Dr. Don Deshler, Center for Research on Learning.