Learning Disabilities

By: Colin Baron

Albert Einstein

● One of the most well-known scientists

● Could not talk until age 4

● Could not read until age 9

● Was considered mentally slow, unsociable,

and a dreamer by his teachers.

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Tom Cruise

● One of the most well known actors of this

generation

● Struggled to read in school and was

diagnosed with dyslexia

● Learns his lines by listening to them on

tape

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Magic Johnson

● One of the greatest athletes to ever play in

the NBA

● Struggled with reading and was diagnosed

with dyslexia

● Took extra classes in the summer to keep

up with his work

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What are Learning
Disabilities?
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 Federal Definition

Definition Synonyms Exclusionary Clause

- Learning disabilities are
- An impairment in written - Brain injury
not:
or spoken language as a - Developmental Aphasia
- The result of a visual,
result of an impairment to -Dyslexia
auditory, or motor
one of -Minimal Brain Dysfunction
impairment
the basic psychological
- An intellectual disability
processes such as
- Due to economic or cultural
language, perception, and
disadvantage
memory.

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 Operational Definition

Categories of Learning Disabilities Are:

Language Comprehension
Oral Expression
Written Expression
Reading Skills
Reading Comprehension
Reading Fluency (Michigan Only)
Mathematical Calculations
Mathematical Reasoning

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 L.O.W.

Language Comprehension:
- The ability to correctly process words, phrases, or grammar.

Oral Expression:
- The ability to express ones thoughts, needs, wants, and ideas using
appropriate language.

Written Expression:
- The ability to use spelling, grammar, and punctuation to express ones
thoughts.

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 R.R.R.

Reading Skills:
- The ability to decoding and contextual strategies while reading

Reading Comprehension:
- The ability to read a text and understand its meaning.

Reading Fluency (Michigan):

- The ability to read quickly, accurately, and with expression.

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 M.M.

Mathematical Reasoning:
- The ability to make logical sense of mathematical information

Mathematical Calculations:
- The ability to understand and carry out calculations.

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Simulation Time!

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 Characteristics of
Learning Disabilities
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 Severe Discrepancy

● Students with learning disabilities

have a severe discrepancy between
their potential and their
achievement.

● Their IQ scores are either average or

above average, but they still
struggle in school.
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 Perception/Memory

Students may struggle with:

● Spatial Awareness
● Organization
● Time Orientation

Students may have:

● A passive learning style
● Learned Helplessness 14
 Visual, Auditory, and Oral

Visual Difficulties:
● Figure ground/picking out what is most important.
● Spatial Awareness

Auditory Difficulties:
● Comprehension of sounds and speech
● Picking out what is most important when there are lots of sounds
(auditory figure ground)

Oral Language Difficulties:

● Listening
● Speaking
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● Using Vocabulary
 Reading

Students might have trouble:

● Hearing subtle differences in letter sounds
● Remembering sight words
● Reading smoothly with voice inflection
● Being able to decode words
● Making predictions based on prior reading
● Understanding/Comprehending reading

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 Math

Students might have trouble with:

● Number reversals
● Putting numbers in the right order
● Remembering operations/numbers

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 Writing

Students may struggle with:

● Fine motor problems related to handwriting
● Letter reversals
● Transpositions
● Perseveration

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Identification/Referral

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Create the Timeline

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 Pre-referral

● If there is a concern about a child, different teaching approaches

are tried in the general education classroom before special
education referral

● Students also participate in RTI, a 3-tiered system which is

designed to help students who are behind in a certain subject.

● A “Child Study Team” meets to determine if further intervention is

needed or if the child should be referred for services

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 Special Education Referral/Parent Consent

● A referral is a request for a student to receive special education

services

● Referrals may be made to the Child Study Team by teachers or

parents

● Parent consent must be received before evaluation on the

students can begin

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 M.E.T.

● M.E.T: Multidisciplinary Evaluation Team

● Conducts a multiple evaluations to determine whether or not a

student is eligible for special education services.

● These evaluations must be conducted within 30 school days of a

student’s referral

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 I.E.P.T./I.E.P.

● If a student is eligible, a team meets to construct an Individualized

Education Plan.

● The team consists of:

○ Student’s Parent(s) (must be invited)
○ General Education Teacher (must attend)
○ Special Education Teacher (must attend)
○ School Representative (must attend)
○ Member of the M.E.T. (must attend)
○ Others at Parent Request (optional)
○ Student (must attend at age 16)

● This team works together to create I.E.P. goals for the student
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 Administration Approval/Parent Approval

● Before a student can receive services detailed on their I.E.P, the

school administrator and then the student's parent must give their
approval.

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 Implementation

● A student may be placed in a special education program for part

of the day or the whole day.

● A student may receive accommodations or modifications to help

them academically in their area of need.

● Teachers plan teaching based on the student’s I.E.P. goals

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Continuum of Services

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 Annual Review & 3-Year Re-Evaluation

● Each year, a student’s I.E.P. must be reviewed and reworked to

include modified academic or behavioral goals.

● Every three years, the Multidisciplinary Evaluation Team must

get together to re-evaluate the student’s referral.

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Create the Timeline

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Inclusion

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“
Inclusion is built on the principle that all students

should be valued for their exceptional abilities and

included as important members of the school

community.

-King (2003)

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 Inclusion

● Inclusion for students with learning disabilities can be

difficult because many times they do not take academic risks
or have the perseverance other students might.

● One great strategy to get these students involved is the use of

whole-group response

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Reflection

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 Conclusion

● Think back to the three

people who we opened the
presentation with.

● Just because a person has a

learning disability does not
mean they can not go on to
accomplish great things.

● It is important that students

with disabilities are pushed
to reach their full potential.

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THANKS FOR
LISTENING!
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 Photographs Used

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http://journals.sagepub.com.ezproxy.hope.edu/na101/home/literatum/publisher/sage/journals/content/tcx
a/2016/tcxa_48_5/0040059916640749/20161119/images/medium/10.1177_0040059916640749-fig2.gif

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 Sources

Nagro, S. A., Hooks, S. D., Fraser, D. W., & Cornelius, K. E. (2016). Whole-Group Response
Strategies to Promote Student Engagement in Inclusive Classrooms. TEACHING
Exceptional Children,48(5), 243-249. doi:10.1177/0040059916640749
Obiakor, F. E., Harris, M., Mutua, K., Rotatori, A., & Algozzine, B. (2012). Making Inclusion
Work in General Education Classrooms. Education and Treatment of Children,35(3),
477-490. doi:10.1353/etc.2012.0020

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