Remediation of learning disabilities in a public school system.
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In this study, pretest and posttest achievement test data were collected for 67 children with learning disabilities assigned to one of four conditions: one period of resource room instruction per day; two periods of resource room instruction per day; consultative services combined with in-class instruction; and consultative services to classroom teachers. Analysis of pretest achievement measures indicated that students assigned to two periods of resource room per day differed significantly from the other groups and results from this group were analyzed separately. Students in the remaining three conditions made gains in standing relative to same-age peers from pretest to posttest. Students receiving a combination of consultation and direct services showed small, but significantly greater overall gains in achievement than did students placed in the resource room.
OBJECTIVE: To assess the impact of the provisions of the Maharashtra government on the academic performance of children with specific learning disability (SpLD) at the Secondary School Certificate (SSC) board examination. METHODS: The academic performance of 60 children (45 boys, 15 girls) at the SSC board examination with benefit of chosen provisions was compared with their performance at their last annual school examination before diagnosis of SpLD. RESULTS: There was a significant improvement in their mean percentage (%) total marks scored at the SSC board examination as compared with the mean % total marks scored by them at their last annual school examination before the diagnosis (63.48 +/- 7.86 vs. 40.95 +/- 7.23) [mean +/- SD, mean % difference = 22.53, 95% CI = 19.8 - 25.26, P. CONCLUSION: Children with SpLD who availed the benefit of provisions showed a significant improvement in their academic performance at the SSC board examination.
BACKGROUND: A growing shortage of residential care for people with learning disabilities leads to placement funded by one authority in another authority's area. Such out-of-area placements are governed by guidance from different government departments in respect of different funding streams. METHOD: This paper presents an analysis of this guidance and shows that it is inconsistent and incomplete. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: The guidance creates a framework of incentives for health and social services authorities that could lead to people being placed out-of-area against their own best interests, with negative consequences for them and for the 'receiving' authorities. A companion paper uses interview data to examine the reasons for and effects of out-of-area placement.
The effects of cooperative learning on 417 regular-education students, acceptance of 41 of their special-education classmates were examined in an 8-month study. The participants were in Grades 5-8 in 21 classes in 2 U.S. schools. The 3 conditions were cooperative learning and competitive learning, taught by the same teachers, and competitive learning, taught by a random sample of teachers. In October and in May, the regular-education students rated each classmate's desirability as a work partner. The students' peer ratings were generally very stable, for both their regular-education classmates and their special-education classmates. Positive changes in peer ratings for both types of classmates occurred more frequently in the cooperative-learning condition than in the competitive-learning conditions.
A survey was developed to assess support services, procedures, policies, the proportion of students with learning disabilities (LD), and the factors that affect differences in proportion in a nationally representative sample of postsecondary institutions (PSIs). The factors investigated included general characteristics about the PSI, such as size of the student body and type of PSI. The specific characteristics investigated in regard to LD were admissions procedures, year of initiation of LD support services, type and location of support services, eligibility criteria for services and accommodations, the number of students with LD, and demographic and diagnostic information available. In this article, descriptive data regarding the services, practices, policies, procedures, and proportions are provided. The findings indicated that the proportion of students with LD ranged from .5% to almost 10%. The factors that had a significant impact on the proportion of students with LD were size of the student body, the type of institution, the institution's Carnegie classification, and whether the institution offered graduate degree programs. These findings and their implications are discussed.
This study examined the self-perceptions, motivational orientations, and classroom adjustment of children with learning disabilities (LD), matched-IQ non-LD, randomly selected non-LD, and low achieving children. Elementary-age children (N = 148; 37 from each group) completed domain-specific measures of their self-concepts, perceptions of control, and motivation. Teachers rated children on motivational and competence indices and classroom behavioral adjustment. Comparisons among groups indicated that children with LD were lower in perceived cognitive competence and academic self-regulation relative to the nondisabled control groups, but were comparable to the low achieving children. Children with LD were most likely to perceive academic outcomes as controlled by powerful others. No group differences were found for general self-perceptions of control or competence. Teacher ratings of children with LD were more discrepant from those of comparison groups than were self-ratings of children with LD. The results suggest the need for matched-IQ and low achieving control groups in research on children with LD. The origin and role of both environmental inputs and self-perceptions in the adjustment of students with LD are discussed.
The purpose of our study was to explore whether gender-biased language exists in two editions of popular learning disabilities (LD) textbooks by a female author and a male author. First, we examined whether gender-biased language (as measured by the frequency of gender-specific pronouns) was present in LD textbooks as a function of the author's gender and discovered that the male author exhibited approximately a 7:1 ratio in his use of masculine to feminine pronouns. In contrast, the female author demonstrated no significant difference in her use of gender-specific pronouns. Second, we investigated whether the degree of gender-biased language has changed in different editions over the past 5 years and found a significant change only in the use of neutral pronouns by the male author. The existence of gender-biased special education textbooks raises the issue of the possible influence that such material may have on professional expectations concerning students with LD. In a field in which males are placed in LD programs in disproportionate numbers, the responsibilities of both authors and publishers are discussed, as their actions may have an impact on female students' rights in accessing appropriate educational services.
Students referred by general education teachers to school study teams (SSTs) were evaluated for learning disabilities (LD) eligibility. We classified children as LD on the basis of a WISC-III Full Scale IQ of 82 or higher and a 22-point discrepancy between IQ and any WRAT-R achievement score. Research decisions were then contrasted with actual school-based decisions regarding the child as LD. Over half of the students referred to SSTs were certified by the schools as LD, yet less than half of these school-certified students with LD evidenced the aptitude-achievement discrepancy required by the state. Examination of the cases called LD by the schools revealed that children were classified as LD on the basis of low absolute achievement, regardless of whether or not a discrepancy existed. Moreover, in cases where a discrepancy was found but the school did not classify the child as LD, that child evidenced significantly higher achievement, despite exhibiting the requisite 22-point discrepancy. The school-identified students with LD constituted an extremely heterogeneous group, including students with mental retardation along with a substantial number who failed to qualify for any special education services. Findings are discussed in terms of the discrepancy between criteria specified in state regulations and what the committee members at the school site seemed to use in classifying children with LD.
This study compared the speech-in-noise perception abilities of children with and without diagnosed learning disabilities (LDs) and investigated whether naturally produced clear speech yields perception benefits for these children. A group of children with LDs (n = 63) and a control group of children without LDs (n = 36) were presented with simple English sentences embedded in noise. Factors that varied within participants were speaking style (conversational vs. clear) and signal-to-noise ratio (-4 dB vs. -8 dB); talker (male vs. female) varied between participants. Results indicated that the group of children with LDs had poorer overall sentence-in-noise perception than the control group. Furthermore, both groups had poorer speech perception with decreasing signal-to-noise ratio; however the children with LDs were more adversely affected by a decreasing signal-to-noise ratio than the control group. Both groups benefited substantially from naturally produced clear speech, and for both groups, the female talker evoked a larger clear speech benefit than the male talker. The clear speech benefit was consistent across groups; required no listener training; and, for a large proportion of the children with LDs, was sufficient to bring their performance within the range of the control group with conversational speech. Moreover, an acoustic comparison of conversational-to-clear speech modifications across the two talkers provided insight into the acoustic-phonetic features of naturally produced clear speech that are most important for promoting intelligibility for this population.
OBJECTIVES: This report presents national estimates of the prevalence of diagnosed Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) and/or Learning Disability (LD) in U.S. children. Differences in the prevalence of these conditions are examined for children with selected sociodemographic characteristics. The occurrence of other health conditions and use of educational and health care services are contrasted for children with only ADD, those with only LD, those with both diagnoses, and those with neither diagnosis. METHODS: Estimates in this report are based on data from the National Health Interview Survey (NHIS), a national household survey of the civilian noninstitutionalized population of the United States. The analysis focuses on 8,647 children 6-11 years of age in the 1997 and 1998 NHIS. RESULTS: In 1997-98 over 2.6 million children 6-11 years of age were reported to have ever had a diagnosis of ADD or LD. A diagnosis of only ADD was reported for 3 percent of children, a diagnosis of only LD for 4 percent, and a diagnosis of both conditions for 4 percent. The prevalence of ADD with or without LD was greater for boys than for girls. Having health insurance was associated with a diagnosis of only ADD. Living in a low-income or mother-only family occurred more often among children with a diagnosis of LD. Children with LD were nearly five times more likely to be in special education than children with a diagnosis of only ADD. Children with ADD, in contrast to children without this diagnosis, more often had contact with a mental health professional, used prescription medication regularly, and had frequent health care visits.
Intellectual, achievement, and personality profiles were developed for a sample of 245 applicants to a special college program for learning-disabled students. Only 15% of the applicants had WAIS IQs above 115; the most depressed subtests were Arithmetic, Digit Span, Information, Vocabulary, and Digit Symbol. For both sexes, mean WRAT reading levels were higher than spelling and arithmetic (roughly seventh- vs. sixth-grade competence). Although the male applicants (N = 174) had significantly higher WAIS Verbal IQs than the female applicants (N = 71), their WRAT spelling achievement levels were significantly lower. A higher percentage of the females than males exhibited specific arithmetic disability. For both sexes, but more robustly for females, specific arithmetic disability was associated with more elevated MMPI profiles. Dyslexic students, by contrast, admitted to fewer problem areas on the MMPI. Relatively few applicants had MMPI scaled scores greater than or equal to 70.
A study of the psychosocial functioning of young adults with a history of learning disability (LD) in childhood is reported. The design was a non-clinic community follow-up investigation of a cohort of children who had received special education, the sample frame for which was a birth-period cohort survey. Participants were 149 young adults (89 males and 60 females derived from a survey of the 33,800 children born in the Cambridge Health District between 1967 and 1973) at the stage of transition to adult services (age 18-22y), whose measured IQ scores in childhood were <80, and who had received special education during school years. Most of the young adults were living at home (n=108) and many were in full-time employment (independent employment n=41, sheltered employment n=20), this survey having been carried out in an area of high employment. A strong correlation was found between the child IQ score and subsequent adult Vineland Scale Score. Greater efforts should be made to detect and assess LD and its attendant problems in children in order to plan future care and transition to adulthood, especially for those with more severe disabilities.
Studies investigating the post-high-school vocational status of individuals with disabilities have frequently found that these individuals are more likely to be unemployed, underemployed, or employed part-time, when compared to nondisabled peers. Transition programs are needed for adolescents with disabilities to facilitate their vocational success. The current study surveyed 80 high school students with learning disabilities (LD) and 80 nondisabled (NLD) peers to determine their transitional needs. Results indicated that (a) more students with LD than NLD students are involved in transition programs; (b) career goals were established by the majority of both groups; (c) parents provided most of the assistance in making career decisions; and (d) twice as many NLD students as students with LD wanted to go to college, while twice as many students with LD as NLD students wanted to enter the job market. More students with LD than NLD students were aware of vocational rehabilitation (VR) services, but the number was still below 50%. The majority of the information about VR services came from the school.
295 first- and fourth-year students in the College of Education at the University of Saskatchewan, Canada were asked to describe learning disabilities. When the descriptors they used were categorized, nonparticipation in the classroom formed the largest single category.
The purpose of the study was to examine if survivors of pediatric brain tumors exhibit a pattern of performance consistent with nonverbal learning disability (NVLD) and to explore the relationship between neuropsychological and social functioning in these children. A comprehensive neuropsychological battery and objective measures of psychosocial function designed to assess NVLD were administered to 15 survivors of brain tumors, ages 8-12 years. Despite the small sample size, a trend for better verbal skills compared to nonverbal skills was found using composite scores. Parents reported significant social deficits and a tendency for greater internalizing behavior problems as expected in NVLD. Additionally, there was a trend for a positive association between nonverbal scores and social function. Further research is needed to determine if the NVLD pattern observed is attributable to white matter damage of the right hemisphere. Routine neuropsychological and psychosocial assessment and intervention are indicated.