Learning Disabilities

Buy this book »

Prevalence and Definitions of Learning Disabilities

Learning disabilities (LD) is a general term describing a group of learning problems. Students with LD are highly represented in general education classes, as LD is the largest single disability area. Approximately 4.3% of all school-age children are classified as having learning disabilities (U.S. Department of Education, 2002a), or 49.2% of the children requiring special education services in the schools. About twice as many males as females are identified as having learning disabilities (Oswald, Best, Coutinho, & Nagle, 2003).

Learning disabilities is used as an umbrella term to refer to a group of individuals with average or above-average intelligence who nonetheless have difficulties with academic tasks. The federal definition is given as follows:

“Specific learning disability” means a disorder in one or more of the basic psychological processes involved in understanding or using language, spoken or written, which may manifest itself in an imperfect ability to listen, think, speak, read, write, spell, or to do mathematical calculations. The term includes such conditions as perceptual handicaps, brain injury, minimal brain dysfunction, dyslexia, and developmental aphasia. The term does not include children who have learning problems that are primarily the result of visual, hearing, or motor handicaps, of mental retardation, of emotional disturbance, or of environmental, cultural, or economic disadvantage. (Federal Register, 1977, p. 65083)

The standard that learning problems are not the result of sensory, motor, intellectual, emotional, or sociocultural influences is sometimes referred to as an exclusionary clause.

Over the years, many definitions of learning disability have been proposed by various task groups and professional organizations (Hallahan & Mock, 2003). Most definitions share components with the federal definition.

Most states previously required the presence of a discrepancy between ability and achievement to support identification of a learning disability. For example, Edward had a Full Scale IQ (Intelligence Quotient) score of 101 and a standard score of 85 on a test of reading achievement. This amounts to a discrepancy of 16 standard score points between ability (the IQ test) and achievement (the reading achievement test), where the Full Scale IQ is average (about the 50th percentile), and the reading achievement score is substantially lower (about the 15th percentile). Other evidence in support of the presence of learning disabilities was also usually required (Mercer & Pullen, 2005). According to the most recent IDEA amendments, states may no longer require schools to use discrepancy criteria. Instead, schools are encouraged to determine whether students respond to research-based intervention, as described in a following section (Wright & Wright, 2005).

Classroom Scenario

Maria

 Maria is a 12-year-old girl of average intelligence and has a pleasant, cooperative disposition. She tries hard to succeed in school but has great difficulty reading independently. She writes slowly, using simple statements and words that are easy for her to spell. Her writing is labored and does not accurately reflect her thinking.

Maria receives assistance with her reading and writing in the resource room four days a week. Mr. Harrison, Maria’s teacher, has prioritized Maria’s class assignments. Mr. Harrison does not require that she read or write independently to participate in class activities. In social studies, for example, when the class is given an assignment to read parts of the textbook, Maria is allowed to read together with a classmate. The classmate reads questions from the assignments aloud, and Maria is allowed to write simple answers to the questions or to dictate longer answers to her partner. Mr. Harrison uses clear, structured presentations to maximize Maria’s understanding of the lessons. Finally, Maria’s performance is systematically monitored to ensure that she is learning adequately and that the need for further adaptations is examined. By the second semester, Maria’s reading and writing skills have improved enough that she is encouraged to independently complete reading and writing assignments when possible but to ask a classmate or teacher for specific assistance when required.