1. McLoughlin/Lewis, Assessing Students with Special Needs, 7e ISBN: 0-13-173273-0 © 2009 Pearson Education Inc. All rights reserved. Chapter 8 Learning Disabilities

2. McLoughlin/Lewis, Assessing Students with Special Needs, 7e ISBN: 0-13-173273-0 © 2009 Pearson Education Inc. All rights reserved. Assessment of Learning Disabilities Debate exists over the definition of learning disabilities (LD) –IDEA 2004 allows defining LD using a discrepancy analysis or a response to intervention approach Specific learning abilities are attention, perception, memory, and processes of receiving, associating, and expressing information Learning strategy assessment focuses on methods students use to interact with the demands of a learning task

3. McLoughlin/Lewis, Assessing Students with Special Needs, 7e ISBN: 0-13-173273-0 © 2009 Pearson Education Inc. All rights reserved. Eligibility for Learning Disabilities Includes: –Gathering information about learning strategies used by students –Consideration of whether appropriate learning experiences have occurred –Determining difficulties are not the result of environmental, cultural or economic disadvantage

4. McLoughlin/Lewis, Assessing Students with Special Needs, 7e ISBN: 0-13-173273-0 © 2009 Pearson Education Inc. All rights reserved. Issues and Trends Historical approaches not supported by research: –Preferred modality method –Deficit remediation method Newer approaches focus on: –Performance problems in basic skills –Learning strategies

5. McLoughlin/Lewis, Assessing Students with Special Needs, 7e ISBN: 0-13-173273-0 © 2009 Pearson Education Inc. All rights reserved. More Issues and Trends Phonological awareness training supports –decoding –Spelling Movement away from the use of the discrepancy concept in the identification of students with learning disabilities –Responsiveness to Instruction concept

6. McLoughlin/Lewis, Assessing Students with Special Needs, 7e ISBN: 0-13-173273-0 © 2009 Pearson Education Inc. All rights reserved. Current Practices Learning abilities and strategies are a concern to both general and special educators. Major concern with technical qualities of assessment tools. Some states continue to use discrepancy model. Discrepancy systems include Woodcock- Johnson and Wechsler Tests. State and local regulations may require data on the student’s response to instruction

7. McLoughlin/Lewis, Assessing Students with Special Needs, 7e ISBN: 0-13-173273-0 © 2009 Pearson Education Inc. All rights reserved. Sources of Information School records Observations Individual tests Interviews Teachers Parents

8. McLoughlin/Lewis, Assessing Students with Special Needs, 7e ISBN: 0-13-173273-0 © 2009 Pearson Education Inc. All rights reserved. Screening for Sensory Impairments Refractive disorders –Myopia, hyperopia, astigmatism Muscle disorders –Restricted peripheral vision –Color vision impairments Snellan chart is most often used for vision screening

9. McLoughlin/Lewis, Assessing Students with Special Needs, 7e ISBN: 0-13-173273-0 © 2009 Pearson Education Inc. All rights reserved. Hearing Impairments Conductive hearing losses responsive to medical treatment Sensorineural losses caused by damage to inner ear Screening instrument is audiometer

10. McLoughlin/Lewis, Assessing Students with Special Needs, 7e ISBN: 0-13-173273-0 © 2009 Pearson Education Inc. All rights reserved. Screening for Learning Disabilities Learning Disability Evaluation Scale- Renormed (LDES-R) Learning Disabilities Diagnostic Inventory (LDDI) Both use screening questionnaire completed by teachers

11. McLoughlin/Lewis, Assessing Students with Special Needs, 7e ISBN: 0-13-173273-0 © 2009 Pearson Education Inc. All rights reserved. Discrepancy Analysis for Identification of LD Historically a discrepancy between expected performance and actual performance was required to identify a learning disability –States can no longer require a school to establish a discrepancy, rather it can remain an option for a school The response-to-intervention approach is favored by IDEA 2004 –Instruments such as the Woodcock Johnson III and the Weschler tests are commonly used to determine a discrepancy

12. McLoughlin/Lewis, Assessing Students with Special Needs, 7e ISBN: 0-13-173273-0 © 2009 Pearson Education Inc. All rights reserved. Response to Intervention Approach to Identification of LD Involves examination of the student’s ability to benefit from high quality instruction in order to show progress in the school curriculum –Takes place during the prereferral stage –Preventative –Include multiple levels or tiers within a broader continuum of services –Three primary components: systematic application of scientific, research-based interventions in general education, measurement of student responses to the interventions, and use of the response data to change the intensity or type of subsequent intervention

13. McLoughlin/Lewis, Assessing Students with Special Needs, 7e ISBN: 0-13-173273-0 © 2009 Pearson Education Inc. All rights reserved. Tests of Perception Evaluate –Visual discrimination –Figure-ground discrimination –Spatial relationships –Form perception –Auditory discrimination –Auditory blending

14. McLoughlin/Lewis, Assessing Students with Special Needs, 7e ISBN: 0-13-173273-0 © 2009 Pearson Education Inc. All rights reserved. Tests of Perception Developmental Test of Visual Perception (2nd ed.) (DTVP-2) Motor-free Visual Perception Test (3rd ed.) (MVPT-3) Goldman-Fristoe-Woodcock Auditory Skills Test Battery Goldman-Fristoe-Woodcock Test of Auditory Discrimination Auditory Discrimination Test

15. McLoughlin/Lewis, Assessing Students with Special Needs, 7e ISBN: 0-13-173273-0 © 2009 Pearson Education Inc. All rights reserved. Tests of Motor Skills Purdue Perceptual-Motor Survey Bruininks-Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency Test of Gross Motor Development (2nd ed.) (TGMD-2) Developmental Test of Visual-Motor Integration (5th ed.) VMI Test of Visual Motor Integration (TVMI)

16. McLoughlin/Lewis, Assessing Students with Special Needs, 7e ISBN: 0-13-173273-0 © 2009 Pearson Education Inc. All rights reserved. Measures of Memory and Attention Assess short-term recall in the serial mode Test of Memory and Learning (TOMAL) is comprehensive Wechsler Memory Scale-Third Edition is designed for adolescents and adults Observation is the major technique for assessing attention

17. McLoughlin/Lewis, Assessing Students with Special Needs, 7e ISBN: 0-13-173273-0 © 2009 Pearson Education Inc. All rights reserved. Tests for Specific Abilities Detroit Tests of Learning Aptitude (4th ed.) (DTLA-4) –Scores for Linguistic, Attentional and Motoric domains –Hammill Multiability Intelligence Test (HAMIT) is shorter version of DTLA-4

18. McLoughlin/Lewis, Assessing Students with Special Needs, 7e ISBN: 0-13-173273-0 © 2009 Pearson Education Inc. All rights reserved. Tests for Specific Abilities Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children - IV subtests Woodcock-Johnson-III Tests of Cognitive Abilities Kaufmann Assessment Battery for Children, Second Edition (KABC-II)

19. McLoughlin/Lewis, Assessing Students with Special Needs, 7e ISBN: 0-13-173273-0 © 2009 Pearson Education Inc. All rights reserved. Assessment of Learning Strategies Use of ineffective or inefficient learning strategies School Motivation and Learning Strategies is available for younger children and teens Reliance on informal approaches Study Skills Counseling Evaluation (SSCE) identify weaknesses in high school and college students

20. McLoughlin/Lewis, Assessing Students with Special Needs, 7e ISBN: 0-13-173273-0 © 2009 Pearson Education Inc. All rights reserved. Answering Assessment Questions Different procedures yield varied results Technical quality should be documented Assessment devices measure the same skills with different strategies Assessment team must document specific learning abilities and strategies