1. Learning Disabilities According to the National Advisory Committee on Handicapped Children in 1967, a learning disability is a “disorder of one or more of the basic psychological processes involved in understanding or in using language, spoken or written, which may manifest itself as an imperfect ability to listen, think, speak, read, write, spell or do mathematical calculations.

2. Including Perceptual disabilities Dyslexia (reading) Dyscalculia (math) Dysphasia (language)

3. Does not include problems resulting from Hearing (Deaf) Vision (Blind) Motor disabilities Mental retardation Emotional disturbance Autism OR –Environmental –Cultural –Economic disadvantage

4. Learning Disabilities 1987 In 1987, the Interagency Committee on Learning Disabilities defined learning disabilities as “a generic term that refers to a heterogeneous group of disorders manifested by significant difficulties in the acquisition and use of listening, speaking, reading, writing, reasoning, or mathematical abilities. These disorders are intrinsic to the individual and presumed to be due to central nervous dysfunction. Even though a learning disability may occur concomitantly with other handicapping conditions (e.g., sensory impairment, mental retardation, social and emotional disturbance: or environmental influences (e.g., cultural differences, insufficient or inappropriate instruction, psychogenic factors), it is not the direct result of those conditions or influences.”

5. Learning Disabilities: Statistics Affects 1 in 7 people (14%) Affects children and adults Range from relatively mild to severe Often runs in families Are not cured and do not go away, but individuals can learn to compensate for and even overcome areas of weakness.

6. Learning Disabilities: Statistics 2.3 million students currently receive special education services for LD in the U.S. (5% of all school-aged children in public schools) Approximately 85% of all LD individuals have difficulty with READING.

7. Learning Disabilities One of the most consistent features of LDs is unevenness in development. These differences are most pronounced in preschool and school-aged children with LD.

8. Auditory vs. Vision About 80% of learning disabilities are associated with auditory processing deficits while about 20% are associated with visual processing deficits.

9. Visual processing deficits resulting in classroom difficulties An child with LD may have visual information processing deficits. Poor laterality and directionality –Difficulties with letters, spelling, and reading –Difficulty with left-right concepts –Makes consistent reading and spelling errors including letter reversals (b/d, p/q), inversions (m/w), transpositions (felt/left), and substitutions (house/home) –Transposes number sequences & confuses arithmetic signs (+,-,x,/,=)

10. Visual processing deficits resulting in classroom difficulties Visual perception problems –Visual discrimination Confuses likenesses and differences Mistakes words with similar beginnings or ending Difficulties with alphabet recognition

11. Visual processing deficits resulting in classroom difficulties –Visual figure-ground Difficulty completing work Difficulty discriminating relevant from irrelevant Works slowly compared to peers –Visual closure Ignores details of visual tasks –Visual memory and sequencing Poor spelling skills Difficulty with math concepts Difficulty visualizing what is read Poor recall of visually presented tasks

12. Visual processing deficits resulting in classroom difficulties Visual-motor integration problems cause –Difficulty completing written work in allotted time –Poor spacing and inability to stay on lines –Poor writing –Difficulty producing answers on paper

13. Visual processing deficits resulting in classroom difficulties Auditory-visual integration –Poor spelling ability –Difficulty learning to read phonetically –Difficulty relating symbols to their sounds

14. Assessment of Learning Disabilities Discrepancy Model –Intelligence –Academic Achievement Response to Instruction

15. Example of Intelligence Test Wechsler Intelligence Scales IV Verbal –Similarities –Vocabulary –Comprehension –(Information) –(Word Reasoning) Perceptual Reasoning –Block Design –Picture Concepts –Matrix Reasoning –(Picture Completion) Working Memory –Digit Span –Letter-Number Sequencing –(Arithmetic) Processing Speed –Coding –Symbol Search –(Cancellation)

18. Block Design

21. Picture Concepts

24. Matrix Reasoning

31. Symbol Search

33. Cancellation

35. Example of Achievement Test Woodcock-Johnson III Letter-Word Identification Reading Fluency Calculation Math Fluency Spelling Writing Fluency Passage Comprehension Applied Problems Writing Sample Word Attack

36. Letter-Word Identification

37. Reading Fluency

38. Math Calculations

40. Writing Fluency

41. Passage Comprehension

42. Writing Sample

43. Word Attack