No Comments February 25, 2008 – 12:53 am

by Mary Johnson-Gerard, Ph.D.
Educational Psychologist

Learning disabilities as defined by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) is a disorder in one or more of the basic, psychological processes involved in understanding or in using spoken or written languages. These may be manifested in disorders of listening, thinking, talking, reading, writing, spelling, or arithmetic. They include conditions which have been referred to as perceptual handicaps, brain injury, minimal brain dysfunction, dyslexia, developmental aphasia, etc. They do not include learning problems which are due primarily to visual, hearing, or motor handicaps, to mental retardation, emotional disturbance, or to environmental disadvantage.

A hallmark of learning disabilities is that it affects students who have average or above average intelligence and it is associated with how students receive, process, retain or express information. Learning disabilities have been called invisible disabilities because students with them do not look different than other children and many times, if you didn’t know they had a disability you would not be able to tell from their interactions with you.

Learning disabilities affects a student’s ability to learn to read, to do math, to write, to use language effectively, to orient themselves in time and space, and to live an organized and adequately planned life.

Some of the principle characteristics of learning disabilities in the area of reading include:

• Inadequate ability to recognize words that look alike, use phonics to decode words, and read words with multiple syllables
• Inadequate ability to use effective strategies for identifying significant points or the main idea
• Inadequate ability to read at a normal rate and/or an inability to change the pace of reading
• Inadequate ability to effectively understand and remember information read in contrast to being able to recall information received through listening

Some of the principle characteristics of learning disabilities in the area of writing include:

• Inadequate ability to write appropriate sentences, use correct grammar, write all words without omitting any, spell without errors, spell words consistently, and avoid reversing letters
• Inadequate ability to copy from the whiteboard or from a book
• Inadequate ability to write legibly– intermingles print with cursive, uses print when developmentally beyond that level, slant is inconsistent, has problems forming specific letters, uses inconsistent spacing between words
• Inadequate ability to write projects and exhibits evidence of inadequate organization and planning for getting ideas in order and coherent

Some of the principle characteristics of learning disabilities in the area of listening include:

• Inadequate ability to focus attention on the speaker when spoken to
• Inadequate ability to listen to the teacher and if required take notes simultaneously
• Inadequate ability to filter out background noises and/or visual distractions
• Inadequate ability stay connected with someone when involved in a private meeting
• Inadequate ability to focus and concentrate

Some of the principle characteristics of learning disabilities in the area of oral language include:

• Inadequate ability to express ideas verbally although there is a good bet that the student understands what they want to say
• Inadequate ability to describe, in appropriate order, the sequence of events in a story
• Inadequate ability to use appropriate grammar while speaking
• Inadequate ability to find a word so uses a similar sounding word

Some of the principle characteristics of learning disabilities in the area of math include:

• Inadequate ability to memorize basic math facts
• Inadequate ability to distinguish between numbers, sequences of numbers and symbols and may reverse them
• Inadequate ability to copy math problems and to align columns

Some of the principle characteristics of learning disabilities in the area of study skills include:

• Inadequate ability to solve problems requiring logical reasoning and abstract concepts
• Inadequate ability to adhere to basic schedules, consistently is forgetful about personal items, misplaces, loses, or leaves personal property, and most often appears to be disorganized and out of control of self
• Inadequate ability to follow directions
• Inadequate ability to organize self and use appropriate time management strategies

Some of the principle characteristics of learning disabilities in the area of social skills include:

• Inadequate ability to effectively read facial expressions and body language
• Inadequate ability to interpret subtle messages including sarcasm and humor
• Inadequate ability to comprehend organization in time and space – mixes up directions such as up and down, left and right; can be lost when inside a familiar or unfamiliar building, gets disoriented when changes are made to familiar environments, exhibits lack of time concepts and is consistently late or can be exceptionally early for school, classes, groups, and lacks the ability to complete assignments according to requirements
• Inadequate ability to manage emotions and may exhibit extreme anxiety, anger, or depression when demands at school or social situations become overwhelming