Information on Five Challenging Disabilities-Specific Learning Disabilities

Prevalence and Types of Learning Disabilities   According to the U.S. Department of Education (2006), approximately 5 percent of children enrolled in public schools have some form of SLD. Although it was once thought that males were more likely to demonstrate SLD than females, recent studies have questioned this finding. Learning disabilities can be inherited, or they may result from problems during pregnancy or birth (for example, lack of oxygen or prematurity) or result from environmental accidents (for example, brain injury) or toxins (for example, exposure to lead-based paint). The more common types of SLD and the areas that these disabilities affect are listed in Table 3.5.

Educational Planning   Although some of the more severe learning disabilities can be detected at an early age, in most cases SLD will likely not be identified prior to the second or third grade because up to this point, many children experience processing problems due to immaturity. For example, letter and number confusions and reversals are quite common prior to eight years of age and often correct themselves with increasing maturity. Also, lags in reading, writing, and math often do not surface until about third grade because children are mastering foundation skills until this time. However, parents or teachers can request a psychological assessment if they are concerned that a child has an SLD. Because many children with SLD encounter academic problems, they may feel inadequate, resulting in lowered self-esteem, or they may act out their frustrations, resulting in behavioral problems. It is important for the child's support team to discuss how to help the child develop a more positive self-image or more appropriate ways of relieving frustration, both at home and at school.

Children with SLD often experience difficulties in their social relationships due to difficulties in transferring information from situation to situation, a failure to recognize social cues, a poor sense of timing in social circles, or other problems caused by their neurological processing difficulties. Social skills training programs can be an effective way of helping a child to understand and respond to social cues in a more appropriate way. Increased communication between family members at home and educators at school can help improve a child's success in transferring information across situations.