1. Chapter Five Learning Disabilities
 Largest Disability Category
– Label is less offensive
– Increased number of students who are unable to participate and succeed in
the general education curriculum
2. LD
 Student with LD do not learn the same way or as efficiently as those without
the disability
 Possess normal intelligence
 Perform below their classmates academically
 There is no single explanation the cause of how it might be corrected
3. History
 Term first coined in 1963 by Sam Kirk
 Programs were first started for elementary age students
 Secondary programs did not begin until the end of the 1970s
4. Prevalence
 Since 1977 the prevalence of LD has increased dramatically and the
prevalence of speech or language impairments and mental retardation have
decreased substantially
5. Questions
 Are children without disabilities being identified
 Are underachievers being identified as having LD
 Is the label less offensive than other SPED labels
 Why are so many students being referred
 Why are so many students failing general ed?
6. Definitions
 Two are commonly used (p.162)
– Federal Law
– National Institutes of Health
7. Types of LD
General Unexpected Underachievement
Reading Disabilities
Math
8. Causes
– Problems exist across the life span
– Fad and unproven theories
 Brain damage
 Genetic
 Connection between LD and SES
9. Causes
 Presumed CNS dysfunction
 Assumption of brain injury
 Heredity
 Chronic otitis media while language is developing
 Poor instruction
 Inadequate learning strategies
 Improper selective attention
10. LD Inquiry
 Strong relationship between poor language development and LD
 Early intervention programs that emphasize language and cognitive
development reduce the probability of later LD identification
 Learning how to learn improves academic performance and success in
general education classes
11. General (VERY) Characteristics
3 Areas
Academic
Social
Behavioral Style
Table 5.2 P. 164
12. Learning Characteristics
Lack of motivation or poor attributions
Inattention
Inability to generalize
Faulty information processing
Insufficient Problem Solving Skills
13. Assessment
 Early Identification
 Response to Intervention
– OLD WAY- -Discrepancy formulas (gap between a student’s achievement
and his/her potential. Typically measured by IQ score and standardized
achievement test
– IDEA’04 NEW WAY- -RTI: filters children through many states of
intervention. “A multitiered pre-referral method of increasingly intensive
interventions; used to identify “nonresponders”, or students with LD”
14. RTI Advantages
 No delay in receiving intervention
 Reduces inappropriate referrals
 Poor teaching not a reason
 Assessment leads to intervention
 No stigma
 Low achievement is distinguished from LD
15. Five Main Ways In Which Emotional Concern and LD Interact
 LD may lead to emotional distress
 LD may raise or exacerbate existing emotions concerns
 Emotional issues may mask a child’s learning disability
 Emotional health my exacerbate learning disabilities
 Emotional health can actually enhance the performance of children with
learning disabilities.
16. Evidence Based Practices
 Outcomes improve
– With proven procedures
– Skills of concern directly
– Strategies to organize, comprehend, and remember complex material and
information
– Under conditions of frequent evaluation
17. Types of Instructional Methods
 Direct Instruction
 Concrete examples
 Task Analysis
 CBA and CBI
 Strategy Training
 P. 182 Accommodating for Inclusive Environments
18. Instructional Support
 Provide structure and standard set of expectations
 Adjust instructional materials and activities
 Give students feedback and reinforcement for success
 Make tasks more interesting
19. Instructional Methods
 Pictorial Mnemonics
 Individualized Instruction
 Phonics Instruction
 Carefully planned homework
20. Student Needs
 Professional and Specialists who can meet their unique learning needs
 Supports
 Curricular options
 Placements
21. LD Outcomes
 High dropout rate
 Only about half of this population is able to live independently
 The majority are not self-supporting
22. Skills of Successful Adults
 Possess compensatory skills
 Ask for assistance and accommodations
 Monitor their work carefully for errors
 Received counseling or therapy when necessary
 Have strong support from their families
23. Tips
 Engage students in active learning processes
 Teach comprehension strategies
 Teach thinking and problem solving skills
 Help students focus attention on relevant features of a task
24. Tips
 Use self-management skills in daily activities
 Individualize instruction
 Teach students the relationship between effort and success
 Have students predict consequences for their behavior
 Use concrete examples
 Refer students in need of specialized instruction
25. Inclusive Education
 Collaboration
– Communication is open and ongoing
– Participation is voluntary
– Parity exists in the relationship
– Goals are shared
– Evaluation of student performance is continual
– Decision making is done as a team
– Resources are pooled
– Trust and respect are the basis of the partnership
– Planning time is scheduled
26. Transition through Adulthood
 Postsecondary options
– College accommodations
 Alternative exam formats
 Extended time
 Alternative access to oral and written material
 Tutors
 Readers, classroom notetakers, or scribes
 Registration assistance, course substitution
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Adaptive equipment and technology
Textbooks on tapes
Course waivers
27. Family Involvement
 Home/School contact
 Homework
28. Technology
 Computer Assisted Instruction (CAI)
– Reading, writing, spelling, organization, speech, calculation, daily life, study
skills, researching topics, remembering