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A Report on

Prepared by

Ahmed Saad ElSayed Salem

A PhD Candidate

Presented to

Prof. Eman AlBishbishy

Professor of Curriculum & Instruction – TEFL

Head of Department

2013-2014

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What are Learning Difficulties or Learning Disabilities?

Although the term learning disabilities was not used until the early 1960s, the historical roots of learning disabilities go back more than 200 years. It is important to look at these historical roots to see how the disability has evolved from being considered a medical to an educational condition. Along with the development of an understanding of learning disabilities has been the evolution of its definition. There has been considerable debate about what a learning disability actually is. Frequently, in fact, a learning disability is defined by what it is not, such as a learning problem not due to sensory deficits or environmental disadvantage. Learning disabilities is currently the most prevalent disability, with almost half of all students receiving services under IDEA 04 being identified with a learning disability. You will most likely work with many students with learning disabilities during your teaching career.

The development of learning disabilities as a category of disability was initially a reaction to the existence of a large number of children who were having a broad range of problems progressing academically, but who otherwise had no observable disabilities. The current federal definition of learning disabilities outlined in IDEA 04 is the most widely used, although the definition proposed by the National Joint Committee on Learning Disabilities (NJCLD) is commonly referenced. The definition used in practice varies from state to state.

Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 2004 (IDEA 04), is the most widely accepted. That definition is as follows: General—Specific learning disability means a disorder in one or more of the basic psychological processes involved in understanding or in using language, spoken or written, that may manifest in an imperfect ability to listen, think, speak, read, write, spell, or to do mathematical calculations including conditions such as perceptual disabilities, brain injury, minimal brain dysfunction, dyslexia, and developmental aphasia. Disorders Not Included—Specific learning disability does not include learning problems that are primarily the result of visual, hearing, or motor disabilities, of mental retardation, of emotional disturbance, or of environmental, cultural, or economic disadvantage.

In addition to the IDEA 04 definition of learning disabilities, teachers should be

aware of the definition proposed by the National Joint Committee on Learning Disabilities (NJCLD, 1997), an organization consisting of 13 professional organizations including the Council for Learning Disabilities and the International Reading Association. The NJCLD definition is frequently used and has both similarities to and differences from the federal definition. Both the NJCLD and IDEA define learning disabilities as involving deficits in a number of academic and cognitive areas. The NJCLD definition eliminated the psychological processing deficit requirement and redefined the exclusion aspect of the IDEA definition by stating that a learning disability cannot be the result of other disabilities or extrinsic factors, but that they can coexist. Although the NJCLD definition was not adopted by Congress, it represents the concerns that professionals had, and still have, with the federal definition. A third definition mentioned in the guide of Province of Columbia, 2011 as follows: Learning Disabilities refer to a number of conditions that might affect the acquisition, organization, retention, understanding or use of verbal or nonverbal information. These disorders affect learning in individuals who otherwise demonstrate at least average abilities essential for thinking and/or reasoning. As such, learning disabilities are distinct from global intellectual disabilities. Learning disabilities result from impairments in one or more processes related to perceiving, thinking, remembering or learning. These

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include, but are not limited to language processing, phonological processing, visual spatial processing, processing speed, memory, attention and executive functions (e.g. planning and decision making).

Learning disabilities vary in severity and may interfere with the acquisition and use of one

or more of the following:

A. Oral language (e.g., listening, speaking, understanding) B. Reading (e.g., decoding, phonetic knowledge, word recognition, comprehension) C. Written language (e.g., spelling and written expression) D. Mathematics (e.g., computation, problem solving)

Learning disabilities may also involve difficulties with organizational skills, social

perception, social interaction and perspective taking.

Learning disabilities are life-long. The way in which they are expressed may vary

over an individual’s lifetime, depending on the interaction between the demands of the

environment and the individual’s strengths and needs. Learning disabilities are suggested

by unexpected academic under-achievement or achievement that is maintained only by

unusually high levels of effort and support.

Learning disabilities are due to genetic and/or neurological factors or injury that alters brain

function in a manner that affects one or more processes relate to learning. These disorders are not due

primarily to hearing and/or vision problems, social-economic factors, cultural or linguistic differences, lack

of motivation, inadequate or insufficient instruction, although these factors may further complicate the

challenges faced by individuals with learning disabilities. Learning disabilities may co-exist with other

disorders such as attention, behavioral or emotional disorders, sensory impairments, or other medical

conditions.

Learning disabilities can interfere with a student meeting his or her intellectual and life potential. Learning disabilities result in unexpected academic underachievement. Learning disabilities may impact the acquisition, organization, understanding, retention and/or use of information.

Learning disabilities are complex and go beyond the stereotypical perceptions of the disorder as simply reading difficulties, or letter reversals. They vary considerably, both in terms of the functions they impact and the severity of the impact experienced. The appropriate accommodations depend upon the individual’s strengths as well as his/her specific difficulties.

Frequently, learning disabilities are not detected before children start school. Many students with learning disabilities display no signs of difficulty, except when they attempt the specific academic tasks that challenge their particular area of cognitive processing difficulty.

Unlike many other disabilities, identifying a learning disability poses some particular challenges since processing disorders are assessed through inference based on student responses. It might not be obvious that a student’s learning difficulties are due to a learning disability.

The specific needs of individuals with learning disabilities change and evolve throughout their lifetime. This does not mean the disability no longer exists, but by varying the activities they undertake and the strategies they develop to address their particular learning disabilities; students may experience different challenges at different times.

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Due to individual differences, no single description or profile can represent all individuals with learning disabilities. Since learning disabilities occur along a spectrum of severity, people can experience mild to significant impacts. Students with learning disabilities have average to above average intelligence and potential, and while they may demonstrate unexpected underachievement compared to their abilities, they can experience academic success and lead happy, successful lives. Self-advocacy helps students gain higher self-perceptions, stronger self-esteem and independence. Students are most likely to experience success in secondary and post-secondary studies if they understand and know how to explain their disabilities, can describe the accommodations that support their learning and engage with an adult to support them in navigating their school experience. Early identification and intervention, appropriate adaptations and supports are keys to

success. If a student’s performance is assessed in the absence of appropriate adaptations,

the assessment may not accurately measure the student’s knowledge.

FEATURES OF LEARNING DISABILITIES:

Wren (1985) lists the characteristics of learners with learning difficulties/disabilities as follows:

In Reading

Confusion of similar words, difficulty using phonics, problems reading multi-syllable words.

Have problem with phonological awareness,

Have Problem with Rapid automatic naming;

Have problem with Reading recognition

Slow reading rate and/or difficulty adjusting speed to the nature of the reading task.

Difficulty with comprehension and retention of material that is read, but not with material presented orally.

In Writing

Difficulty with sentence structure, poor grammar, omitted words.

Frequent spelling errors, inconsistent spelling, letter reversals.

Difficulty copying from board or overhead.

Poorly formed letters, difficulty with spacing, capitals, and punctuation.

In Oral Language

Difficulty memorizing basic facts.

Difficulty expressing ideas orally which the student seems to understand.

Problems describing events or stories in proper sequence.

Residual problems with grammar, difficulty with inflectional or derivational endings.

In Math

Difficulty memorizing basic facts.

Confusion or reversal of numbers, number sequence, or operational symbols.

Difficulty reading or comprehending word problems.

Problems with reasoning and abstract concepts.

In Study Skills

Poor organization and time management.

Difficulty following directions.

Poor organization of notes and other written materials.

Need more time to complete assignments.

In Social Skills 1) Difficulty "reading" facial expressions, body language.

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2) Problems interpreting subtle messages such as sarcasm. 3) Confusion in spatial orientation, getting lost easily, difficulty following directions. 4) Disorientation in time, difficulty telling time.

In order to recognize this type of learners, there are certain characteristics as follows: Relative to their peers, students with learning disabilities are often:

Less engaged in learning tasks - poorly organized in both thoughts and work habits;

less confident in their ability to learn - frustrated with difficult work tasks;

less willing to take risks in learning situations - discouraged by their lack of success;

unable to cope with multiple instructions.

Types of Learning Disabilities Although students with learning disabilities may share some common attributes, there are many different types of learning disabilities. Some of the most common learning disabilities are outlined below. It should be pointed out that, in many cases, a student will demonstrate qualities which indicate a disability in a number of different areas, not just one.

Arithmetic Disorder Arithmetic Disorder (Dyscalculia) is generally characterized by difficulty in learning or comprehending mathematics. It affects a person’s ability to understand and manipulate numbers or understand numbers themselves. A student with arithmetic disorder might have difficulty with

organizing problems on the page, keeping numbers lined up;

following through on multiple step calculations, such as long division;

transposing numbers accurately on paper or on to a calculator, such as turning 56 into 65;

distinguishing right from left ;

using the mathematical calculation signs, confusing basic operations and facts;

applying logic but not accurately completing calculations;

understanding and solving word problems

being hesitant, refusing or experiencing anxiety when asked to engage with mathematical concepts;

remembering and applying mathematical functions in various ways: - recalling math rules, formulas or sequences - being able to perform an operation one day but not the next - understanding abstract concepts like time and direction - checking change, reading analog clocks, keeping score during games, budgeting, estimating - remembering dance step sequences or rules for playing sports - visualizing the face of a clock or places on a map - recalling dates, addresses, schedules and sequences of past or future events.

Writing Disorder

Writing Disorder (Dysgraphia) is generally characterized by distorted writing in spite of thorough instruction. A student with writing disorder might experience some of the following difficulties:

inconsistent and sometimes illegible writing; e.g., mixing print and cursive, upper and lower case, irregular sizes, shapes or slant of letters;

inconsistent positioning on the page, with respect to lines and margins;

unfinished words or letters, omitted words and many spelling mistakes;

fine motor difficulty, such as inability to reproduce letters or remembering, motor patterns

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inconsistent speed in writing, either extremely labored or quick

writing that doesn’t communicate at the same level as the student’s other language skills;

odd grip, unusual wrist, body or paper position;

pain or muscle spasms while writing;

talking to self while writing, or carefully watching the hand while writing;

refusal, reluctance or extreme stress when asked to complete a written task.

Strategies to deal with Writing and Expression Proficient writing involves

• vocabulary and expressive language skills

• mastery of the mechanics of written language

• a store of background information to use in formulating ideas

• planning and organizational skills Supports for student with writing difficulties should incorporate both compensatory strategies and intervention strategies, so students can manage requirements for written work while still developing their writing skills. This section discusses various aspects of writing such as spelling, motor control, planning, drafting, editing, publishing, and note taking. Reading Disorder Reading Disorder (Dyslexia) is generally characterized by difficulties with the alphabet, word recognition, decoding, spelling, and comprehension. A student with reading disorder might have difficulty with the following:

• naming, learning the sequence of or printing the alphabet

• memorizing non-phonetic words

• reading words that cannot be translated into a mental picture (and, a, the,

etc.)

• sound/symbol correspondence, or sequencing of letters to create a word

• reading aloud without repeated mistakes and pauses

• comprehending reading material, grasp of vocabulary

• reading numbers and confusing math symbols

• organizing what he or she wants to say verbally, or not being able to think of the word needed

• retelling a story in sequence of events

• finding a word in the dictionary, naming the days of the week and months of the year

• understanding inferences, jokes or sarcasm.

Clements (1966) lists the Characteristics of Students with Learning Disabilities as follows:

(1) hyperactivity,

(2) perceptual-motor impairments,

(3) emotional liability,

(4) general coordination deficits,

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(5) disorders of attention,

(6) impulsivity,

(7) disorders of memory and thinking,

(8) specific learning disabilities,

(9) disorders of speech and hearing, and

(10) equivocal neurological signs (Clements, 1966).

Spelling Disorder: Spelling disorders (Dysorthographia) are generally characterized by difficulties with spelling. They stem from weak awareness or memory of language structures and letters in words.

A student with a spelling disorder might present some of the following difficulties, often in

conjunction with poor skills in reading and/or arithmetic:

Arbitrary misspellings, such as addition, omission and/or substitution of letters in words

reversal of vowels and/or syllables

slow, hesitant or poor written expression

errors in conjugation and grammar

phonetic spelling of non-phonetic words

misunderstanding the correspondence between sounds and letters.

Auditory Processing Disorder Auditory processing disorder describes a variety of disorders that affect the way the brain processes or interprets what it hears even though the student might have adequate hearing. A student with an auditory processing disorder might have difficulty with the following:

• listening, particularly where there is background noise or when attention is divided

• processing information if the speaker is speaking quickly

• understanding what is said

• recalling what they have heard or following a sequence of directions

• recognizing and interpreting distinct sounds or attributing meaning to sounds in words

• using phonemes incorrectly when speaking

• applying phonics, encoding (spelling) and decoding (sounding out) words

• reading comprehension, vocabulary and basic literacy.

Visual Processing Disorder A visual perception disorder involves difficulty making sense of what is seen, even though vision is intact. A student with visual processing disorder might find the following tasks challenging:

• recalling and using visual information, e.g. remembering the order or meaning of symbols, words or pictures

• differentiating colours, letters or numbers that are similar

• recognizing objects or parts of an object

• noting and comparing features of different items

• distinguishing a particular shape from its background and/or understanding how objects are positioned in relation to one another

• attending when there is competing visual information

• perceiving distances, depth or movement

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• accurately identifying information from books, pictures, charts, graphs and maps

• organizing essays with information from different sources into one cohesive document, or solving math problems

• writing within margins or on lines, or aligning numbers in math problems

• fine motor tasks, such as writing or copying

• tracking and/or reading with speed and precision.

Sensory Integration (or Processing) Disorder Sensory Integration Disorder is associated with the ability to integrate information from the body’s sensory systems (visual input, auditory input, olfactory input, taste, tactile input, vestibular input (balance/movement), and proprioceptive input (position). Information from the senses are not interpreted in ways that it can be used efficiently by the brain. A student with a sensory integration disorder might present some of the following difficulties: • extremely over- or under-reactive to senses, such as touch, sound, light, smells or anything put into the mouth

• strong over- or under-responsiveness to movement: e.g. avoids movement or craves it, startles easily, seems clumsy, careless or very physical

• having a strong attraction to or dislike for getting messy

• knowing where one’s body is in space

• knowing how much physical pressure to apply to something

• unusually high or low activity level, or rapidly moving from one to the other

• calming oneself or unwinding

• social emotional problems, e.g. easily frustrated, tantrums, acting out, poor self concept,

• making smooth transitions

• being easily distracted

• carrying out small or large motor tasks

• determining physical characteristics of objects

• putting ideas into words, delays in speech/language development, articulation .

Organizational Learning Disorder An organizational learning disorder is a type of learning disability related to challenges with executive functions and frequently accompanies other learning disabilities. Organizational learning disorder might include difficulties in handling too much stimuli or information at one time, thinking in an orderly and logical way, distinguishing direction, or organizing materials and time. A student with an organizational learning disorder might present some of the following difficulties: • allocating or organizing time

• arranging, or locating the beginning, middle and end

• setting priorities, time management, estimating time

• following schedules and meeting deadlines

• solving problems in stages

• organizing desks or notebooks, finding materials

• settling down and functioning effectively when settings or expectations change

• remembering what they are required to do

• drafting an outline or assembling materials for presentations.

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Social Cue Disorder Individuals with social cue disorder have difficulty behaving in an automatic way. Picking up on spoken and unspoken cues is a complex process. Information must be detected, processed, have meaning extracted; then a response must be formulated. A student with social cue disorder might present some of the following difficulties: • poor impulse control and/or needs immediate gratification

• illogical reasons for actions and/or little thought about logical consequences

• inappropriate conclusions or goals, due to deficient reasoning ability

• inability to interpret environmental and social cues: e.g. body language, pitch of voice, personal space and/or facial expressions

• trying too hard or inappropriately to be accepted socially

• being disruptive due to low tolerance for frustration

• not understanding social conventions such as standing too close or turn taking.

Characteristics of Students with Learning Disabilities

There have been many attempts to identify the major characteristics of students with learning disabilities. One of the earliest studies in this area was made in 1963 by a task force that was assembled on the recommendation of the federal government and concerned agencies. The task force identified 10 commonly exhibited characteristics of minimal brain dysfunction/learning disability: (1) hyperactivity, (2) perceptual-motor impairments, (3) emotional lability, (4) general coordination deficits, (5) disorders of attention, (6) impulsivity, (7) disorders of memory and thinking, (8) specific learning disabilities, (9) disorders of speech and hearing, and (10) equivocal neurological signs (Clements, 1966). The task force findings reinforced the neurological basis of learning disabilities. Notice that none of the 10 listed characteristics specifically addressed academic skill deficits. Today both academic and nonacademic characteristics are associated with learning disabilities. These include characteristics related to reading, mathematics, written expression, expressive and receptive language, cognition (including attention, memory, and metacognition), and social/emotional areas. It is important to remember that not all students identified as having a learning disability will have all of these characteristics or display problems in all of these areas.

Characteristics Related to Reading: Students with learning disabilities manifested in reading ability may also have problems with phonological awareness, rapid automatic naming, reading recognition, and reading comprehension. One of the most severe reading problems linked to learning disabilities is dyslexia. Dyslexia is described as having a neurological basis (International Dyslexia Association, 2002) and being resistant to remediation (Hynd, 1992). Therefore, when a child is labeled as having dyslexia, even informally, it suggests some type of biologically based reading problem that cannot be remediated or is diffi cult to remediate. In reality, reading problems can occur from a variety of causes, and the incidence of “pure” dyslexia is not very high. Bender (2004) stated that less than 1% of individuals with learning disabilities have dyslexia and that the terms reading disability and dyslexia should not be used interchangeably. He further pointed out that the vast majority of reading problems can be effectively remediated. Problems in reading that might indicate a learning disability related to early reading skills include phonological awareness and rapid automatic naming. Phonological awareness is the recognition that words, syllables, or sounds exist in spoken language and can be manipulated by deleting, adding, substituting, and transposing. It manifests itself in the ability (or lack of ability) to break down speech into smaller parts such as sounds or syllables. An individual with a problem in this area might not recognize that “dog” is actually made up of three sounds, d/o/g. Lewis, Frebairn, and Terry (2000) followed a group of 4- and 6-year-old children with phonological processing problems into the third and fourth grades. They found that these children developed problems in reading decoding (sounding out words), reading comprehension, and spelling. Another important early reading skill

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is rapid automatic naming (RAN) , the ability to quickly name stimuli such as digits, letters, or pictures of simple objects. Research has indicated that young children who have difficulty with RAN also have deficits in reading ability (Bowers & Ishaik, 2003). Research on phonological awareness/processing and RAN is very important because there also is evidence that children who experience reading problems early in life continue to have problems and rarely catch up. The “Matthew effect,” the phenomenon that good readers become better readers and poor readers become poorer readers, has been observed for years (Stanovich, 1986). The Matthew effect reinforces the extreme importance of early reading intervention, one of the goals of the No Child Left Behind Act. Two other areas in reading in which students with learning disabilities often have problems are in word recognition and reading comprehension. As a group, students with word recognition problems can display a number of characteristics either in isolation or in combination. These include mispronunciations; skipping, adding, or substituting words; reversing letters or words; and difficulty blending sounds together. While many students with learning disabilities eventually learn word recognition skills, they may still have problems in comprehension. Problems in reading comprehension, understanding what is read, can be due to a number of possible factors including lack of background knowledge, difficulty understanding text structure, and vocabulary deficits (Ehren, 2005; Joshi, 2005). It also follows that a word recognition problem can cause a comprehension problem (Williams, 2003). For example, if a student comes across unfamiliar vocabulary words and substitutes incorrect words for them, the meaning of the passage will be difficult to determine.

Writing and Written Expression Characteristics Students with learning disabilities might have problems with handwriting, spelling, and written language/written expression, such as punctuation, vocabulary, and sentence structure. They also might have problems in more than one of the areas, as they seem to be interrelated. Figure 4.3 shows a writing sample that includes all of the previously mentioned problems. Handwriting. Poor handwriting, a characteristic of some students with learning disabilities, may be related to a number of underlying causes, including poor fi ne-motor skills, faulty visual perception of letters and words, lack of coordination, the inability to transfer the input of visual information to the output of fi ne-motor movement, and difficulty remembering visual impressions (Lerner & Kline, 2006). Also, if handwriting is difficult for a student, writing may take longer (Hallahan, Lloyd, Kauffman, Weiss, & Martinez, 2005). Spelling. Spelling is an area in which many students with learning disabilities have considerable difficulty. Some emphasis has been placed on determining the type of spelling there are several types of error patterns, each with its own suggested instructional procedures. These included phonological processing errors ( pincess for princess) , spelling conventions errors ( busyer for busier), and letter production errors ( maq for map ). Written Expression. Many students with learning disabilities display problems in the overall area of written language or written expression. Problems with handwriting and spelling often lead to difficulty in composing written products (Berninger & Amtmann, 2003; Graham, 1999), and it appears that many students with learning disabilities have more diffi culty with compositional writing than with writing single words or sentences (Mayes, Calhoun, & Lane, 2005).

Compositional writing involves aspects such as capitalization and punctuation, vocabulary, organization, and theme development. For example, a student with a learning disability in this area might write a story that is short; is not well thought out; and has numerous capitalization, punctuation, and spelling errors.

Expressive and Receptive Language Characteristics The importance of language in the field of learning disabilities is well appreciated. In fact, many states have programs specifically for students with language learning disabilities (LLD). Students with learning disabilities in this area might have problems in expressive language (producing language), receptive language (understanding language), or in both. Although students with learning disabilities have problems in both areas compared to normally achieving students,

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research generally supports the fact that they have greater difficulty with expressive language than with receptive language (Hallahan et al., 2005). It is important to identify language problems because they are directly related to academic areas, particularly reading and written expression. Problems in language at age 5 might show up as reading problems at age 8 and writing problems at age 14 (Lerner & Kline, 2006). Students with learning disabilities can have problems with any of the components of language. It should be noted, however, that some students with learning disabilities have strong verbal skills. These students might be identifi ed as having a nonverbal learning disability.

Cognitive-Related Characteristics The federal definition of learning disabilities mentions deficits in “thinking.” The general area of thinking, or cognition, is complex and includes a number of specific subareas. The subareas particularly relevant to a discussion of learning disabilities are attention, memory, and strategy use. Another related area is metacognition, an individual’s ability to think about the thinking process. Note that a distinction is made between cognition and intelligence. The IQs of students with learning disabilities vary considerably, from low average to quite high, even into the gifted range. Attention. There are several types of attention problems that students with learning disabilities might demonstrate. A student might have difficulty focusing attention on the task at hand or not be able to attend to the important aspects of a task. A related characteristic that is frequently noted is distractibility. In effect, however, children with attention problems might attend to very little, whereas children who are distractible might attend to too many things. Memory and Strategy Use. Memory is a sequential process that has several components. Sousa (1999) provided an excellent description of this process. First, an individual must perceptually register information presented. This information is then immediately stored in short-term memory. Next, an individual uses his or her working memory to keep the information while it is processed. The information is then sent to long-term memory for storage. Later, through the process of retrieval, the information can be reused. Research has indicated that many students with learning disabilities have problems with both visual and, particularly, auditory short-term memory (Swanson & Saez, 2003). These students also have difficulty in the area of working memory (Siegel, 2003; Swanson, Cooney, & McNamara, 2004). Attention, in fact, has been turned to this area because of the important role of working memory in reading recognition and reading comprehension (Seigneuric & Ehrlich, 2005; Siegel, 2003). For example, when reading a word, a student must simultaneously recognize the visual configuration of letters, note the order of the letters, and break the word into individual sounds. The student with a working memory deficit might have difficulty retaining this information while synthesizing and blending the letter sounds to recognize the word (Young, 2000). There is evidence suggesting that the memory problems are related to the difficulty or failure to use strategies that facilitate remembering, and that the teaching of strategies can help an individual remember and learn new information. In one significant early study, Torgesen (1977) observed strategies used by both accomplished and poor readers to memorize different material. The accomplished readers recalled more information and consistently used more organized and active techniques to help them remember. More important, when the groups were given instruction on the use of efficient strategies, the poor readers’ memory scores improved to the point that there were no significant differences between the two groups. Put another way, students with learning disabilities are considered to be passive learners who do not use strategies as skillfully as their peers without learning disabilities and therefore need specific instruction in this area. Metacognition. Metacognition is how one thinks about one’s own thinking and the ability to use and regulate strategies and other organization skills. Not only do students with learning disabilities have difficulty developing effective cognitive strategies, but they also may have problems with metacognition, knowing when and how the strategies should be employed. For example, a student might learn a specific strategy to remember information when reading a

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textbook and might not realize that that same strategy could be used in helping to remember other information as well.

Social and Emotional Characteristics Research indicates that many students with learning disabilities have some type of problem in social and emotional areas. There are estimates that one-third of all students with learning disabilities have social skills defi cits (Bryan, 1997) and that these students might also have problems relating to others (Haager & Vaughn, 1997). There is some evidence that students with learning disabilities are more likely to be socially rejected by their peers than their peers without learning disabilities (Kuhne & Wiener, 2000; Wong & Donahue, 2002). Similarly, many students with learning disabilities have fewer friends and less social status than their peers and thus should be provided with a supportive environment to enable them to meet others (Whitehouse, Chamberlain, & O’Brien, 2001). Other behavior problems that have been associated with learning disabilities are depression, anxiety disorders, and antisocial personality disorder (Sundheim & Voeller, 2004). This should not be interpreted to mean that all, or even most, students with learning disabilities will display these characteristics, but you should be aware that they may exist.

Low self-concept, including academic, social, and general self-concept, has been reported for many students with learning disabilities (Elbaum & Vaughn, 2003). A related well-documented characteristic is learned helplessness. This refers to a situation in which individuals have inaccurate insight into the nature of their behavior, attributing their successes to external factors such as luck and attributing their failures to internal factors such as a lack of effort or ability.

What and How Teachers teach Students with LD: There is considerable overlap in the instructional needs of students with mild/moderate disabilities across the categories of learning disabilities, mental retardation/intellectual disabilities, and behavioral and emotional disorders. These instructional needs may include academic instruction, functional and life skills instruction, and behavioral and social skills instruction. Generally, students with learning disabilities need highly intensive instruction in both the process of learning and the content of learning (Miller, 2002). The focus of instruction is determined by the individual student’s cognitive, social, and emotional needs, not by his or her category of exceptionality.

Instructional Content Most students with learning disabilities will be taught within the general education curriculum with additional support when needed in the areas of reading, written language, mathematics, and study skills. Another area that demands consideration in content planning for secondary students is transition. You may find that you need to implement a functional skills or social skills curriculum with some students with learning disabilities.

Types of Content Knowledge Three different sub-processes of knowledge must be addressed when considering instructional content for students with learning disabilities: declarative knowledge, procedural knowledge, and conditional knowledge (Meichenbaum & Biemiller, 1998). Declarative knowledge is knowledge of the facts that must be learned: in other words, the “what” part of learning. This will likely come from the general education curriculum goals. For example, declarative knowledge is knowing the three branches of the government or the names of the state capitals. This is the type of knowledge that is typically the focus of educational instruction and assessment. The two other types of knowledge, which are significant in teaching students with learning disabilities, are procedural knowledge , or the “how” of learning, and conditional knowledge , or the “when and why” of learning. For example, the student needs to learn that making a word or sentence out of the first letters of a list will help him or her remember the list (procedural knowledge) but will not be useful for learning the content of a full chapter (conditional knowledge). Declarative knowledge may be lacking in students with learning disabilities due to a deficit in procedural or conditional knowledge. For example, a student may be failing history tests because he or she may

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not know how and when to study the chapter. For students with learning disabilities to learn the same content as students without disabilities, an array of procedural and conditional strategies should become part of the content taught (e.g., Gersten, 1998). Procedural knowledge involves the use of cognitive strategies, and conditional knowledge involves the use of metacognitive strategies.

Areas of Instructional Content The areas of content that are most often affected by learning disabilities are reading, written language, mathematics, and study skills. Which areas need to be addressed will be determined by the individual student’s needs.

Reading. Reading requires skills in the broad areas of both decoding and comprehension. Decoding is translating print into oral language, and comprehension is understanding the language of the text once it is decoded (Carnine, Silbert, & Kameenui, 1997). After a very comprehensive examination of reading research, the National Reading Panel (2000) identified five essential components of effective reading instruction: phonological awareness training, phonics instruction, fluency instruction, vocabulary instruction, and comprehension instruction. Students with learning disabilities may experience difficulty in any of these areas. Phonological awareness is a skill that has come to the forefront of literacy education. Because spoken language is a continuous stream of sound, it is not until children begin to read that they must learn to segment language in the way that it is done in written language (Smiley & Goldstein, 1998). Students with problems in phonological awareness will need extra support in developing an understanding of how words, syllables, and sounds construct words. Fortunately, research shows that young children can develop phonological awareness through specifi c instruction and that such teaching can have a positive effect on overall reading achievement (Armbruster & Osborn, 2001; Torgesen, 2000). Typically, instruction in phonological awareness focuses first on spoken language and includes structured activities in rhyming, blending, and segmenting sounds and then moves to teaching alphabetic principles of how letters relate to the sounds in speech (phonics). A list of programs that have been developed for teaching phonological awareness and alphabetic principles is available at the Online Learning Center. Some students with learning disabilities may need phonics instruction, or sound symbol (letter) correspondences. The Direct Instruction (DI) method of teaching reading, designed in the late 1960s by Engelman and his associates, is one specific curriculum program with a very heavy phonics emphasis available to teach reading to students with learning disabilities. DI is a structured, teacher-directed program that should not be confused with the more general direct instruction, approach to teaching discussed in the Instructional Procedures section. DI is based on the principle of teaching sequences of skills designed to minimize error, providing ample practice, and giving immediate feedback and positive reinforcement. Its emphasis is on the antecedents of instruction, such as teacher directions, instructional statements, and prompts. Curriculum design is a critical element of the DI program The DI approach teaches a series of carefully sequenced phonics skills. Children are taught in small groups, with teachers following a rigidly prescribed, fast-paced script that involves hand signals (one finger up for response time), auditory signals (such as clapping), verbal signals (such as “say it slow” and “say it fast”), and includes many opportunities for unison group responses. There is ongoing evaluation and continual regrouping according to demonstrated competencies or weaknesses. DI has been the focus of considerable validation and feasibility research and a high level of effectiveness has been reported. Another exemplary program for students with language-based learning disabilities in the middle grades is the Wilson Reading System (Moats, 1998; Shaywitz, 2003). This structured program includes instruction in phonemic segmentation, sight word fluency, vocabulary, oral expressive language development, and comprehension.

Fluency is the ability to read quickly and accurately and is, by its nature, related to reading comprehension, for if a reader takes too long to decode a sentence or passage, the beginning of what was read is lost before the end is reached. Students with problems with fluency will need extra help in learning to decode more quickly and accurately. Repeated readings, in which students are asked to read the same material repeatedly, is one strategy that has been found to be

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effective in building fluency (Kuhn & Stahl, 2003). In this approach, students are given one minute to read a passage. Then the number of words read accurately within that time frame is recorded; corrective feedback is often provided. Students are then asked to read the passage again to determine if they can accurately read more words within the minute. The passage is repeatedly read until students are reading 100 or more words accurately within a minute (DeVault & Joseph, 2004). Corrective feedback may include teacher modeling, direct instruction, and positive comments or suggestions (Conderman & Strobel, 2006). Students with learning disabilities in the area of reading may display problems in vocabulary development. Repeated readings may also enhance vocabulary if corrective feedback includes information about new words and word meanings (National Reading Panel, 2000). Also promising in promoting vocabulary learning are interventions that engage students interactively with memory devices and graphic depictions paired with direct instruction and practice. Reading comprehension can be increased for students with learning disabilities through the development of cognitive and metacognitive strategies. Examples of strategies with demonstrated success in reading comprehension at various age levels, including story mapping, collaborative strategic reading (CSR), and peer-assisted learning strategies (PALS). Repeated silent readings have also been used to improve comprehension rates of secondary students with learning disabilities.

Written Language. Students with learning disabilities may require support in developing written language skills. An effective way of supporting writing development is by focusing on writing as a process rather than a product. In the mid-1980s, Graves (1983, 1985) presented the idea that writing is a not just a product but is a process of cognitive activity. This process involves question asking, decision making, problem solving, and feedback with the overall purpose to communicate ideas to others. The process of written composition occurs over time and includes several stages. Teaching the writing process involves showing students how to write in overlapping and recurring stages, which include prewriting, drafting, revising, editing, and creating a final draft. In a recent analysis of research-based instructional interventions for teaching written expression to students with learning disabilities, three components of instruction stood out as reliably and consistently leading to improvement in teaching expressive writing: adhering to a basic framework of planning, writing, and revision; explicitly teaching critical steps in the writing process; and providing feedback guided by the information explicitly taught. Teachers should remember that writing is a process that occurs over time and that it should be taught accordingly. Students with learning disabilities will typically need to be taught writing strategies within each component of the process. For example, in the stage of editing, students may need to learn to use the error monitoring strategy COPS to remind them to check for Capitalization, Overall Appearance, Punctuation, and Spelling. Both elementary and secondary students with learning disabilities have been found to write more reflective, complex, and well-written essays when explicitly taught writing strategies.

Teaching Strategies used with EFL learners with LDs: Many of the strategies you would consider for any of your students with learning disabilities will work as effectively with a student who is also an English language learner. Some of the instructional practices especially effective for English language learners, summarized in an examination of existing research and analyses of discussions with professional work groups by Gersten, Baker, Marks, and Smith (1999), include the following:

Using visuals to reinforce concepts and vocabulary

Utilizing cooperative learning and peer tutoring

Making strategic use of the native language by allowing students to organize their thoughts in their native language

Providing sufficient time and opportunities for students to use oral language and writing in both formal and informal contexts

Focusing on rich and evocative vocabulary words during lessons and using these as vehicles for teaching literary concepts.

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Other practices to consider are providing lectures that are simplified, appealing, and multisensory; adapting textbooks and assignments; evaluating their textbooks and assignments for appropriateness; and using supplementary materials (Sheppard, 2001). Research on the characteristics of effective teachers of students with cultural and linguistic diversities indicates that effective teachers have high expectations of their students, see themselves as members of a community, believe in diversity and meeting individual needs, are confident in their ability to teach diverse students, recognize the diverse languages in their classrooms as valuable, and acquire a few words from each. They also communicate directions clearly, pace lessons appropriately, involve the students in decisions, monitor students’ progress, and provide feedback.

In addition to planning for instruction, the teacher of students with learning disabilities should give careful thought to the instructional environment and how instructional technology will be used. The instructional environment can play a significant role in the successful performance of students with learning disabilities. It is important to plan for both structure and organization in the environment and to give careful thought to how students are grouped. Instructional technology has many uses with students with learning disabilities from preschool through postsecondary settings. For some students, it is essential for success.

Strategies used in Teaching Reading to DL Students Many students with learning disabilities experience considerable difficulty with reading. Proficient reading is a highly complex task that requires extensive knowledge and a broad range of skills: • rapid, sequential processing of visual symbols to recognize letters and word forms

• forming virtually instantaneous associations between visual word forms and oral word forms

• understanding vocabulary

• drawing upon linguistic knowledge to attain meaning from the word order

• mastery of writing conventions to know the significance of punctuation

• gathering and holding sufficient basic material in working memory to access the ideas being expressed

• collecting and holding the ideas to facilitate comprehension.

Teachers’ should focus on enabling the students to acquire skills, such as encoding and

decoding, increasing fluency and improving comprehension. To meet with success in school

and in the world, students need assistance in “learning to read” and in acquiring skills to

actively engage in “reading to learn”.

Decoding

Decoding is the process of using one’s knowledge of letters, sounds and word patterns to

determine an unknown word. Effective decoding depends on knowledge of letter/sound

relationships, the meanings of roots, prefixes and suffixes, and word patterns.

Strategies to be used • Use phonemic games.

- Teach students to move a token for each sound segment in a word.

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- Reverse-a-Word (Say ”cat”, then say it with the first sound last and the last sound first – e.g. “tac”).

- Remove-a-part (Say ”cat”, then say it without the beginning sound – e.g. ”at”).

• Teach the tapping technique, where students identify speech sounds before they spell words by touching the thumb to successive fingers as they segment and pronounce the speech sounds.

• Use mnemonic devices to help students remember tricky spellings of word families.

• Emphasize prefixes, roots and suffixes, beginning with inflections that change the spelling of a base word (fine, finest; begin, beginning; study, studied).

• Link meaning and spelling. The words designate, signal and assignment, for example, share a root. Students then identify spelling patterns and learn to use them as a tool to read and write new words.

Teaching Spelling (Encoding) to LD Students: Spelling involves using one’s knowledge of letters, sounds and word patterns in a verbal word to map (encode) those sounds onto a letter sequence in order to spell out a written word. Spelling difficulties are common even for students without a learning disability; however, when they occur in combination with language or mathematics based difficulties, a learning disability might be the cause. Poor spellers have trouble noticing, remembering and recalling the features of language that letters represent. This includes the ability to analyze and remember the individual sounds in the words (phonemes), such as the sounds associated with f, sh, or p; syllables, such as cas, mem, neg; and meaningful parts of longer words (morphemes), such as re-, -ment or -est.

Strategies to be used in teaching Spelling:

Teach reading and spelling together, giving a context for language and meaningful practice.

Discuss word structures, origins and meaning of words and morphemes.

Encourage hands-on practice with spelling words by

providing a tray of salt or modeling clay to make words

printing a spelling word on a strip of paper, cutting the letters out and having students rearrange the letters to re-create the word

spelling with magnetic letters

Use box-words that mirror the shape of letters in words. e.g. m-o-t-h-e-r would look like this:

Students then match the word to the blank boxes and use the blank boxes to guide encoding or to guide sorting a list of words into word families.

Make correctly spelled words easily accessible by

keeping a list of most-commonly misspelled words or having students create a personal dictionary for reference

having students regularly re-practicing and using challenging words

brainstorming with students before they write, in order to generate and provide correct spelling of pertinent words

making word prediction software available.

Provide adaptations to ensure students feel successful by

reducing the number of spelling words a student needs to master, focusing on quality not quantity ensuring that spelling tasks are at a level where students experience success, gradually increasing the degree of difficulty as the student progresses.

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Strategies to deal with Writing and Expression Proficient writing involves

• vocabulary and expressive language skills

• mastery of the mechanics of written language

• a store of background information to use in formulating ideas

• planning and organizational skills Supports for student with writing difficulties should incorporate both compensatory strategies and intervention strategies, so students can manage requirements for written work while still developing their writing skills. This section discusses various aspects of writing such as spelling, motor control, planning, drafting, editing, publishing, and note taking.

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References

1) College Students with Learning Disabilities, by Carol Wren, 1985

2) Supporting students with Learning Disabilities, Province of British Columbia,a guide for

teachers. Retrieved at

http://www.bced.gov.bc.ca/specialed/docs/learning_disabilities_guide.pdf

3) Aly, S. (2009). Overcoming English language reading and writing difficulties via a

suggested design of a brain compatible learning environment, OCCASIONAL PAPERS

IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE EDUCATION, PP.

4) Chapter 4: Students with Learning Disabilities. Retrieved at: http://highered.mcgraw-

hill.com/sites/dl/free/0072866373/567136/Taylor_Chapter4.pdf

5) Special Education Services: A Manual of Policies, Procedures and Guidelines, which is

posted on the Ministry of Education website at:www.bced.gov.bc.ca/specialed/ppandg.htm

6) Teachers Make the Difference: Teaching Students with Learning Disabilities at

Middle School and Secondary School Levels. Ministry of Education Saskatchewan,

(2009).